Can someone give me history on the BC lions?

Question

Can someone give me history on the BC lions?

Answer 1

Here's a link to all that info:

Have a great one!

Answer 2

The first annual meeting of the B.C. Lions took place on January 22, 1953. Although an earlier attempt at a franchise had been thwarted, the Western Interprovincial Football Union granted a team to Vancouver in time for the 1954 season. The team would play in the newly constructed Empire Stadium, built for the 1954 British Empire Games.

Annis Stukus was named the team’s first head coach. The Lions played their first regular season game on August 28, 1954 against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. By Bailey scored B.C.’s first-ever touchdown in an 8-6 loss.

It wasn’t until the seventh game of the year that the Lions recorded their first, and only win of their initial season. Bailey scored the winning touchdown in a 9-4 triumph over Calgary, setting off a night of celebration in the streets of Vancouver.

The Lions first winning season came in 1959. With new head coach Wayne Robinson, rookie running back Willie Fleming and a group of veterans, a final game triumph at home over Calgary gave the Lions their first playoff spot and a record of 9-7. Two straight losses to Edmonton ended their playoff debut.

The Lions returned to the playoffs in 1963, finishing in first place in the West with a record of 12-4. A 2-1 series victory over Saskatchewan put the Lions in the Grey Cup for the first time in their history, a game played at Empire Stadium. With Fleming sent to the sidelines early by Angelo Mosca, Hamilton took home the title with a 21-10 victory.

The teams were destined to meet again the following year. In just their 11th season the Lions reached the pinnacle of Canadian football, winning the Grey Cup by a 34-24 score.

After two consecutive Grey Cup appearances and one title, the Lions immediately receded backwards to the basement of the West Division. They would make the playoffs only three times in the next 12 seasons, failing to advance on all three occasions.

In 1977 Vic Rapp was hired as head coach with a revamped line-up which included rookies Leon Bright, John Blain, Ken Hinton, and Jerry Tagge, and several newly acquired veterans. The Lions last-minute heroics earned them the label ‘The Cardiac Kids’. Their 10-6 record vaulted them to second place and a playoff upset over Winnipeg before losing the West Championship in Edmonton.

Following a fourth place finish in 1978 the Lions, led by quarterback Joe Paopao, finished third the following season before bowing out to Calgary in the semifinal. Despite a winning record of 8-7-1 to begin the 1980s, B.C. missed the post-season.

The Lions returned to third place with 10-6 mark in 1981, again upsetting Winnipeg in the semifinal before losing a 22-16 heartbreaker to the dynasty Eskimos in the West Championship. Despite a 9-7 record in 1982, the Lions again finished in fourth out of the playoffs.

The Lions moved out of Empire Stadium and into B.C. Place Stadium in June, 1983. With Don Matthews as head coach, the Lions returned to first place in the West Division for the first time since 1964. The Lions defeated Winnipeg in the West Championship, and faced Toronto to end a 19-year Grey Cup absence. The Argonauts took the title in an 18-17 victory on B.C.’s home turf.

After losing to Winnipeg in the playoffs the following season, the Lions set a club record for wins with a 13-3 record in 1985, their third consecutive first place finish in the West. After winning the rubber match against Winnipeg in the West Championship, the Lions ended a 21-year Grey Cup drought at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium with a 37-24 win over Hamilton.

Edmonton ended the Lions string of first place finishes in the West in 1986, and prevented a Grey Cup repeat with a win over B.C. in the West Championship. The Lions returned to the penthouse in 1987, but home field advantage wasn’t enough to stave off the eventual Grey Cup champion Eskimos.

With Matt Dunigan as quarterback, the Lions had a 10-8 record in 1988, defeating Edmonton and Saskatchewan to reach the Grey Cup against Winnipeg. B.C. drove to the Winnipeg seven-yard line in the dying minutes only to have Dunigan’s pass deflected by two defenders and intercepted to snuff out the drive. Winnipeg went on to win the contest 22-21. The Lions missed the playoffs the next two seasons.

Under the leadership of CFL Most Outstanding Player Doug Flutie, the Lions returned to the post-season in 1991 only to lose to Calgary in the semifinal by a 43-41 count. The Lions would fail to make the playoffs in 1992 with a 3-15 record.

Following a semifinal loss to Calgary in 1993, the Lions would reach the championship the following season in the first-ever international Grey Cup at B.C. Place Stadium. Lui Passaglia kicked the winning field goal with no time remaining to lift the Lions past Baltimore 26-23 for the team’s third Grey Cup title.

After losing to the Eskimos in the semifinal in 1995, the Lions fell on hard times posting a 5-13 record the following season. The Lions went into receivership, and on October 31, 1996, David Braley announced his intention to buy the team.

The Lions responded by making the playoffs for the 20th time in 1997, crossing over to face Montreal in the East Semifinal with an 8-10 record. Although they lost that game 45-35, it would mark the beginning of a string of nine consecutive trips to the post-season.

B.C. returned to the Grey Cup in 2000 and became the first team with a losing record in the regular season (8-10) to win the title. Passaglia ended his 25-year career with the Lions, kicking a late field goal to secure a 28-26 upset victory over Montreal.

After losing in the semifinal the next three years, the Lions returned to the Grey Cup in 2004 with a 13-5 record and a first place finish in the West. Following an overtime victory over Saskatchewan in the West Championship, the Lions lost 27-19 against Toronto in the final.

The Lions were denied another trip to the Grey Cup in 2005 despite an 11-game win streak to begin the season and another first place finish in the West. The Lions lost to the eventual Grey Cup champion Eskimos 28-23 in the Scotiabank West Championship.