Tigers are dangerous. When they are desperate to keep their jobs, or make an impression on others, they can be downright ornery. And if the opposition happens to be a fat and sassy 11-5, and only feel that they need to play “Ok” in order to win (SO said Dave Dickenson on Monday on Team1040) then you have the makings of an upset. And so it was on Saturday night at BC Place. A 4-13 team looking to end their season on a winning note, and get some brownie points in front of rookie GM Eric Desjardins, and an 11-5 BC squad that felt no great need to perform met on the turf at 7 PM last Saturday, and the upset of the season began; or so we thought.

The first quarter was the Kevin Eakin show, where he effortlessly moved the TiCat Offence up and down the fieldturf with effortless glee. Lions Defence had already gone on vacation it seemed, and while Kevin would no doubt one day have been a starter in the CFL, he wasn’t yet on the elite quarterback list. BC’s defence looked amateurish at best, with only a hint of an effort being made in the entire first half. On Offence. Buck Pierce struggled, and was 8 of 12 for 91 yards, and an interception, The much ballyhooed Geroy Simon reach for the single season receiving yards record died with a whimper in the first half, with Pierce connecting with Simon only twice for twenty yards and no TDs. He never saw the ball again that game. Lions trailed at the half 10-3.

The faithful at halftime displayed incredulity, rage, and even tears of frustration. We had seen this all too often before, most notably last season after the Lions went 11 and 0, and decided that they no longer needed to put in an effort each game, because they were just so much better than everyone else. Yes, this was the team that needed Calgary to defeat Edmonton late last year to vault the Leos onto first place and hosting the Western Final. And the ghost of 2005 past was alive and well, even though the Lions had already secured the 2006 West Final at home.

We also knew that Coach Chapdelaine would not adjust the Offence at halftime enough to defeat the TiCats, because Jacques doesn’t “adjust”. He knows that his offence is perfect, and that if the players execute, then the offence will be successful. This leaves Lions fans in a wait and see attitude for every single game.

Lions came out a different club in the second half because of one man: Dave Dickenson. This man IS the BC Lions, and can motivate them like no one else can. SuperDave went 11 of 15 for 152, and had two dropped on him, and no TDs. He engineered the points needed to win, and the Defence responded with an interception return for a Touchdown. Final was Lions 23, TiCats 17, but it was really much closer than that.

If the BC Lions decide that another meaningless game on Saturday means that they need only show up, then Winnipeg will destroy them in a rout.  Winnipeg is playing for a home playoff game, and they know how much that means to their organization and their fans.

Lions don’t seem to care. If they play the way they did against Hamilton, then not only do the Blue Bombers get a home playoff game, either Saskatchewan or Calgary is going to the Big Dance on November 19^th.