B.C.'s McCallum buries Bombers with late kick
Paul McCallum kicked a 19-yard field goal with 12 seconds left Saturday as the B.C. Lions defeated Winnipeg 16-14 to put the Blue Bombers farther out of playoff contention.
McCallum, who booted six field goals in a 29-10 upset of Calgary last week, was also good from 39 and 40 yards in the second half as the Lions rallied from a 10-point deficit.
Lions quarterback Travis Lulay began the comeback after a Steven Jyles interception led to Lulay leaping into the end zone after a 10-yard scramble up the middle.
Lulay completed the rally on his final drive that included a 29-yard reception through the middle by Geroy Simon that gave B.C. a first down on the Bomber 19-yard line.
Winnipeg took a 10-0 lead when Jyles threw a TD pass to Terrence Edwards and Justin Palardy kicked a 17-yard field goal.
Palardy also connected from 26 yards to give the Bombers a brief lead but missed another from 29 yards that went for a single.
The Lions, however, were able to come back in the second half thanks to field position provided by kick returner Yonus Davis.
B.C. won for the fourth time in five games to improve to 5-8, consolidating their hold on third place in the West Division and moving four points ahead of Edmonton.
The Eskimos play host to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Sunday.
The Bombers, winless in seven road games, slipped to 3-10 and dropped four points behind the Lions in their bid to become the first East Division playoff team to cross over to the West.
Winnipeg, which has lost eight of their last nine games, face B.C. again at home on Oct. 11. Another loss would likely end their playoff aspirations.
Winnipeg took their first-half lead by scoring on two of their first three possessions.
The key play was a 58-yard touchdown strike from Jyles to Edwards who blew by Anthony Reddick in the Lions secondary.
The catch for his 10th touchdown of the season put the Winnipeg slotback over 1,000 receiving yards.
Jyles unleashed his bomb on the first play after Simon's fumble was recovered by linebacker Marcellus Bowman at the Bomber 52-yard line.
The veteran B.C. slotback was trying to stretch a short gain after catching a 15-yard aerial from Lulay on the previous play.
That catch gave Simon a reception in 137 consecutive games to tie Tony Gabriel for third in that category's all-time list.
Lulay, starting in place of the turnover-prone Casey Printers, could only generate six first downs in the opening half where the Bombers controlled the ball, field position and the clock.
The Lions had one opportunity to scrimmage from midfield late in the half when Korey Banks forced a Jyles fumble.
The ball was touched by several players before Jyles himself batted the ball out of bounds to retain possession.
The Lions tied the game in the third quarter, generating a touchdown of their own off a turnover.
Safety David Hyland intercepted a Jyles aerial at his 37-yard line and returned it to midfield.
After a 29-yard pass to Emmanuel Arceneaux, Lulay scrambled twice, and the second run of 10 yards saw him dive over a would-be tackler and into the end zone.