The BC Lions are known to host the most electrifying home openers in the CFL. For the past three years, The BC Lions have branded their home openers as concert kickoffs. The concert kickoffs are about BC Lions local owner Amar Doman bringing in a marquee musical act to perform before the home opener. This year was no different, as for the fourth year the concert kickoff featured another star performer by the name of Snoop Dogg. The BC Lions were up against the Edmonton Elks and Snoop Dogg was performing pre-game to get the crowd hyped for the opening kickoff.
There were other festivities for fans to enjoy around BC Stadium prior to the Snoop Dogg concert, like, the BC Lions Backyard Party which was a pre-game hangout for fans of all ages. This included, food and drink deals, music by DJ Physik, family friendly entertainment, and a vibrant atmosphere to build the hype prior to the kickoff. Another great attraction for fans was to see the Grey Cup in person. The Grey Cup was first commissioned in 1909 by Earl Albert Grey, then Canada’s governor general, who made his trophy available to the winner of the Canadian Dominion Football Championship, known as the National Canadian football. Moreover, the BC Lions have won six Grey Cup championships, their latest was in 2011.
Snoop Dogg’s performance was one of the main reasons people of all ages were excited to attend the home opener game, as the announced attendance was 52,837. As a result, Snoop Dogg did not disappoint when he took the stage, he performed a variety of his songs including some of his hits, “Drop It Like It’s Hot”, “The Next Episode”, and “Nuthin’ But A G Thang” to name a few of them.
The Lions beat the visiting Edmonton Elks 31-14 in their CFL regular season opener. However, the outcome of the game could not have been predicted at half-time as they were down 7-3. Both teams started off slow as neither team gained momentum and this was seen as a surprise for the Lions because the home crowd was still hyped from the Snoop Dogg’s pre-game concert. However, the Lions could not feed off the energy early into the game to put points on the scoreboard.
The game was the first since 1968 which featured two Canadians starting at quarterback, Nathan Rourke of the Lions and Tre Ford of the Elks.
The Lions offense exploded in the second half finding the end zone four times. Rourke was 27 of 36 passing for 324 yards and three touchdowns. Also, he rushed for 54 yards, on five carries. Whereas, Ford completed 18 of 27 passes for 178 yards and racked up a team high 54 rushing yards on six carries.
As for the receivers for both teams, Justin Rankin was Edmonton’s top pass catcher with five receptions for 67 yards, while Stanley Berryhill III of BC led all receivers with 105 yards from six catches. Rourke found Stanley Berryhill III for a pair of third quarter touchdown passes to put the Lions in the driver’s seat as they led for the remainder of the game.
Overall, the Lions’ improved their record to a perfect 4-0 in Concert Kickoff games since 2022. The fans went home happy as the Lions got the victory and the Snoop Dogg performance at BC Place Stadium was the crowning moment.
