Elks punch ticket to 113th Grey Cup with win over Lions in Western Final presented by Wegovy®
EDMONTON -- The Edmonton Elks are heading to the 113th Grey Cup.
In what started as a defensive battle at Commonwealth Stadium, it was Cody Fajardo and his Elks that outlasted the BC Lions 28-16 in the Western Final presented by Wegovy®.
It took until the third quarter for a touchdown to be put on the board, with the teams trading back-to-back majors. Cody Fajardo rushed into the end zone near the end of the frame and Rourke scored a rushing major on the Lions' ensuing drive to start the fourth.
Edmonton's defence then showed why it led the CFL in takeaways late in the fourth quarter. On Lions third-and-10, with BC trailing by nine, linebacker Joel Dublanko stopped the visitors from getting a first down and forced Justin McInnis to fumble. Defensive back JJ Ross recovered the ball and ran down to the Lions' 10-yard line. That led to Vincent Blanchard's fifth field goal of the game, giving Edmonton a 12-point lead with three and a half minutes left.
BC tried to start a comeback inside the three-minute warning, but turned the ball over on downs after Rourke missed Stanley Berryhill III in the end zone, sealing the game for the home team.
Fajardo finished the game as the game's leading rusher, tallying 84 yards on 10 carries, while also completing 83.3 per cent of his passes for 274, a touchdown and no interceptions. Austin Mack scored the only passing major for Edmonton, while also hauling in 85 yards on six receptions.
The Elks had an impressive opening drive, with Cody Fajardo completing seven-of-seven passes on the possession, before Vincent Blanchard put the first points on the board with a 21-yard field goal. Edmonton's defence did its job on the Lions' opening drive, holding Nathan Rourke and co. to a two-and-out.
Edmonton kept the momentum on their side on their ensuing drive, with Fajardo continuing to move the chains. Not only did he use his arm, he used his legs, taking off for a 13-yard gain to bring the Elks down into BC territory. After Fajardo started the contest nine-of-nine passing, he threw his first incompletion, setting up Blanchard to boot his second field goal of the night. Blanchard's 48-yard attempt was good and Edmonton increased their lead to 6-0.
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Aided by a roughing the passer penalty against Edmonton's Malik Carney, the Lions moved into field goal range, but Sean Whyte missed his 50-yard attempt with 1:22 left in the first quarter. Whyte had another field goal attempt to start the second quarter and he connected from 13 yards for the Lions' first points of the game.
Inside the three-minute warning, the BC Lions were driving after Rourke found Jevon Cottoy for a 25-yard gain. But Edmonton's defence was once again up for the task, as Noah Taylor sacked Rourke for a loss of nine and on second-and-19, the Lions weren't able to earn a fresh set of downs and settled for a 29-yard field goal to tie the game 6-6. Following an Edmonton two-and-out, BC secured their first lead of the game, with a 42-yard field goal to take a 9-6 lead as time expired.
It was a defensive battle for most of the first half with both teams' defences showing why they were ranked the No. 1 and No. 2 units in the CFL in the regular season. The 2026 Most Outstanding Defensive Player Darnell Sankey led the way in the first 30 minutes for the Lions, tallying two sacks and six tackles. He finished the game with 11 tackles, a tackle for loss and the pair of sacks.
On BC's first possession of the second half, the Elks defence had yet another big play. On second-and-inches, the Lions looked to throw the ball and Edmonton defensive end Malik Carney got around the edge and sacked Rourke, forcing the Lions to punt the ball away.
Fajardo used his legs once again on the Elks' first drive of the third quarter, dashing through the Lions defence for a 29-yard gain down to the BC 32-yard line. Edmonton had to settle for yet another field goal to cap the possession, this one from 35 yards out, tying the game 9-9.
The game's first touchdown came late in the third frame with Fajardo calling his own number and running into the end zone for the five-yard score. At one point on the drive the Elks were facing a first-and-30, following back-to-back penalties. But the Elks recovered, with a 15-yard rush by Fajardo and an unnecessary roughness penalty on Mathieu Betts helping to move the sticks. After the convert, the Elks re-took the lead (16-9) with just over a minute left in the third.
Edmonton didn't have much time to feel comfortable with the lead, however. BC responded quickly, moving the chains down into Edmonton territory. Rourke matched Fajardo's rushing major with one of his own, pushing through the Elks defence and stretching out to cross the goal line. Along with the point after by Whyte following the eight-yard score, the game was tied once again (16-16).
The next time the Elks hit the turf, Edmonton moved into field goal range and Blanchard was good on a 46-yard attempt. That gave the lead back to the Elks with 12 minutes left in the contest (19-16).
Austin Mack was on the receiving end of the game's first passing touchdown, adding to Edmonton's lead with just over seven minutes left in the game. Blanchard missed his point after try, making it a nine-point game.
On the next drive, the Lions went for it on third-and-10, but Edmonton's defence held strong. Dublanko forced Justin McInnis to fumble and JJ Ross picked it up and returned it down to the Lions' 10-yard line. Blanchard was good on his 27-yard field goal to make it a 12-point lead with just over three minutes left in the contest.
On the Elks' 18-yard line, Rourke and the Lions went for it on third down. Rourke looked for Stanley Berryhill III in the end zone, but missed, giving the ball back to Fajardo and co. to finish out the game and the win.
SCORING PLAYS
Vincent Blanchard 21-yard field goal (8:33, Q1) | EDM 3, BC 0
Vincent Blanchard 48-yard field goal (3:26, Q1) | EDM 6, BC 0
Sean Whyte 13-yard field goal (11:04, Q2) | EDM 6, BC 3
Sean Whyte 29-yard field goal (2:11, Q2) | EDM 6, BC 6
Sean Whyte 42-yard field goal (0:00, Q2) | BC 9, EDM 6
Vincent Blanchard 35-yard field goal (6:14, Q3) | BC 9, EDM 9
Cody Fajardo five-yard rushing touchdown (1:16, Q3) | EDM 16, BC 9
Nathan Rourke eight-yard rushing touchdown (14:26, Q4) | EDM 16, BC 16
Vincent Blanchard 46-yard field goal (11:45, Q4) | EDM 19, BC 16
Cody Fajardo 23-yard touchdown pass to Austin Mack (6:59, Q4) | EDM 25, BC 16
Vincent Blanchard 27-yard field goal (3:27, Q4) | EDM 28, BC 16
NEXT UP
Now the Edmonton Elks will make the trip to Calgary for the 113th Grey Cup where they will meet the Montreal Alouettes on Sunday, November 15.
The Als defeated the Winnipeg Blue Bombers earlier on Saturday afternoon in the Eastern Semi-Final presented by Wegovy®.