Jennings, Lions rally past slumping RedBlacks

Jonathon Jennings and the BC Lions found a way to beat the Ottawa RedBlacks, in spite of the young quarterback getting sacked seven times.

For the second time in three games, the 24-year-old Jennings pieced together a victory drive, marching the Lions 75 yards for the late go-ahead touchdown in a 29-23 victory at TD Place on Thursday. After Ottawa went ahead with 3:46 left, Jennings responded with two big second-down conversions, a 24-yarder to Emmanuel Arceneaux on a crossing route and a perfectly thrown bubble screen that Bryan Burnham turned into a 34-yard reception on a second-and-13.

Travis Lulay's second rushing touchdown of the night and an Arceneaux two-point convert put the Lions (6-3) ahead for good with 1:34 left, marking the sixth lead change. Left with time to respond, Ottawa (4-4-1) and Trevor Harris reached the Lions' 38-yard line. Lions defensive end Alex Bazzie sacked Harris on a second-down rollout, though, and Ronnie Yell batted down a sideline throw to seal the victory.

Jennings was 23-of-31 for 289 yards and one touchdown, to Chris Rainey, who also set up another TD with a 41-yard punt return. Arceneaux made seven receptions for 96 yards and Burnham had six for 86. Anthony Allen had a game-high 76 rushing yards on 13 carries, as the ground game helped slow down Ottawa's pass-rush. Richie Leone was 1-of-2 on field goals with two singles, including one via an 82-yard punt.

Harris, the CFL's highest-rated quarterback, was 23-of-30 for 352 yards and one TD in his first start since injuring his left leg on July 8. Ernest Jackson and Travon Van scored Ottawa's touchdowns. Greg Ellingson had five receptions for 142 yards and Chris Williams added five for 116. Christopher Milo was 3-for-3 on field goals.

In spite of the impressive passing stats and the seven sacks, including two from Ottawa-born defensive tackle Ettore Lattanzio, Ottawa was unable to win. The RedBlacks are 1-3-1 at home, compared to 7-2 in 2015.

Harris and centre Jon Gott got crossed up twice on shotgun snaps. The first derailed a scoring opportunity. The second resulted in a go-ahead safety with 10:38 left. Moments after a red-zone fumble recovery, Ottawa had a chance to get out of a hole. However, Harris could only get one hand on a high snap and was sacked in the end zone by David Menard.

The Lions' defence and special teams also created short fields for their first two touchdowns, with speedster Rainey factoring in both.

The Lions' only first-half TD came about after their offence was set up on Ottawa's 8-yard line through Rainey's 41-yard runback, which was garnished by two RedBlacks penalties. The Lions' return ace got a do-over after Ottawa was flagged for an illegal man downfield. On the re-punt, Rainey broke free and a late-hit penalty on Dan West extended the length of the return.

Rainey's 10-yard TD catch also capped a quick 45-yard drive in the third quarter.

The Lions finish a two-game Ontario trip against the Toronto Argonauts on Wednesday. On Thursday, Ottawa has its third and final game against the Montreal Alouettes, who defeated the RedBlacks 43-19 on Aug. 20.