Canadian quarterback Nathan Rourke started for the B.C. Lions on Friday night in Saskatchewan.
Franchise QB Michael Reilly was listed as the starter on the depth chart and warmed up at Mosaic Stadium, but it was Rourke who took the field for the first series of the game against the Roughriders.
During camp Reilly was dealing with shoulder soreness, which caused him to miss a handful of sessions. On Sunday, July 18, Reilly underwent an MRI on his right shoulder and arm to rule out a serious setback. Overuse during training camp has the Lions treating Reilly as a starting pitcher.
The Lions put Reilly on a “pitch count” wanting his arm as “live” as possible to begin the year, but it didn’t go as planned. Reilly was listed with a right elbow ailment on the team’s injury report entering Week 1.
The last Canadian quarterback to start for the Lions was Giulio Caravatta in 1996. Strong-armed Brandon Bridge was the last national signal caller to start a CFL game in 2018 with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
Rourke connected with Lucky Whitehead for a 75-yard catch and run in the second quarter for his first career passing touchdown in the CFL. It was the first major toss by a national pivot since Bridge in 2019 who did it with the Lions.
The Victoria-born, Oakville-raised Rourke was a second-round pick out of Ohio University in the 2020 CFL Draft. The two-time Jon Cornish Trophy-winner passed for 7,457 yards and 60 touchdowns against 20 interceptions while also adding 2,672 yards and 49 touchdowns on the ground as a member of the Bobcats.
During his senior season at Ohio, Rourke threw for 2,676 yards, 20 touchdowns against five interceptions with a 61.4 completion percentage. He rushed for 780 yards and 12 touchdowns, averaging 5.4 yards-per-carry.
The Bobcats went 6-6 and earned a Famous Idaho Potato Bowl spot, a game they would go on to win with Rourke being named MVP. The physical activity and sport coaching major earned 2019 All-Mid-American Conference first-team honours.
Rourke started all 13 games as a junior in 2018 and led the Bobcats to a win in the Frisco Bowl and a 9-4 overall record. He completed 164-of-274 of his passes (59.9 per cent) for 2,434 yards, 23 touchdowns and eight interceptions while carrying the ball 134 times for 860 yards (6.4 yards-per-carry) and 15 touchdowns.
The QB finished his Ohio career with a 24-13 record as a starting quarterback and was under centre for three-straight bowl victories. Ohio matched the University of Toledo (1969-1971) and Miami University (1973-1975) for the most consecutive bowl wins in Mid-American Conference history.
The six-foot-two, 210-pound dual-threat passer has the skills to succeed at the CFL level, but he’s been put in a difficult situation.
