1995

The Lions entered the 1995 season with a new starting QB. Grey Cup hero Danny McManus became the new starting pivot as Kent Austin was sent to Toronto. Shelton Quarles is added to a strong linebacker corps. Season starts out the way 1994 finished with an exciting late come from behind victory over the Baltimore Stallions at home 37-34. The Lions go on to win their first three contests before suffering a set back in Calgary. The Leos got back on track with a strong performance over the eastern Riders and went on to a 7-1 record challenging the Stampeders in the North Division. The injury bug caught up to the Lions during a three game in 10 days road trip which resulted in several key players being sidelined. It was a situation the team couldn't recover from. A victory over Saskatchewan at home in the final regular season contest solidified 3rd place in the rugged Northern Division and a trip to Edmonton for the Play-offs. It wasn't a repeat of last year's playoffs as the Lions' season came to an end in a 26-15 loss to the Eskimos. Season highlights saw running back Cory Philpot break the CFL record for touchdowns in a season with 22. Lui Passaglia ended the season with 3,160 career points. Jamie Taras was named the Northern Division's Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman. General Manager Eric Tillman resigned in December starting a complete restructuring of the Football Operations of the Lions.

1995



NORTHERN DIVISION                        SOUTHERN DIVISION



       W.  L.  T.   F.    A.    Pts.           W.  L.  T.   F.    A.    Pts.

Cal.   15   3   0   631   404   30      Balt.  15   3   0   541   369   30

Edm.   13   5   0   599   359   26      S.Ant. 12   6   0   630   457   24

B.C.   10   7   0   535   470   20      Birm.  11   7   0   548   518   22

Ham.    8  10   0   427   509   16      Mem.    9   9   0   346   364   18

Wpg.    7  11   0   404   653   14      Shvpt.  5  13   0   465   514   10

Sask.   6  12   0   422   451   12

Tor.    4  14   0   376   519    8

Ott.    3  15   0   348   685    6

Semi-Finals                             Semi-Finals

  - Calgary 30, Hamilton 13               - Baltimore 36, Winnipeg 21

  - Edmonton 26, B.C. 15                  - San Antonio 52, Birmingham 9

Final                                   Final

  - Calgary 37, Edmonton 4                - Baltimore 21, San Antonio 11



                    Grey Cup - Baltimore 37, Calgary 20

It was a season of change and instability for the Lions. Former quarterback and fan favourite Joe Paopao returned to the Lions from the Edmonton Eskimos as the new Head Coach, replacing Dave Ritchie. The biggest change came on March 11th. That was the day owner Bill Comrie announced that the club had been sold to a group of 10 local businessmen headed by Nelson Skalbania and Michael Jensen. The Lions held training camp at UBC with over a hundred players invited. Mike McCarthy arrived in Vancouver to become the new Lions' President. On the field, the BC Lions started the season with 18 new faces in the lineup. Heisman Trophy winner Andre Ware was the new starting quarterback. The club went 0-4 to start the season. Damon Allen was signed to become the new QB. Once more the club lost, this time at home against Hamilton, but won in Hamilton the following week. Generally, it was a season of turmoil. August 31 marked the end of Nelson Skalbania and his group as owners of BC Lions. The team went into receivership. The bright spot of the season was an incredible against-all odds 35-11 victory over Doug Flutie and the Toronto Argonauts in September. On October 31st, Hamilton Businessman David Braley announced his intention to buy the football team. November 2nd marked the end of the season as the Lions defeated Ottawa 35-24 in what was the Rough Riders' final game in club history. December came and the Lions announced Glen Ringdal as the new team President. A season ticket campaign was started with the need to increase awareness and revenue for the franchise.

Grey Cup - Toronto 43, Edmonton 37

The Lions made the playoffs for the 20th time in the 43 year club history. This is the second time in club history that the Leos made it into the playoffs finishing fourth in the West but the first time they traveled east to play in the Eastern Conference round. The last time the Leos played a playoff game was in 1995 at Edmonton where they were defeated 26-15 by the Eskimos. The Lions are 5-9 in Semi-Final Games. 3-9 on the road and 2-0 at home. The last time the Lions won a Semi-Final contest was in Edmonton while on their way to their third Grey Cup in 1994. Lions overall playoff record is 12-17 (1963 and '64 Western Finals were best of 3) and 7-11 on the road. Today's game is the first time in CFL history that a Western Conference team is participating in the Eastern Semi-Final. The Lions finished in fourth place in the West with an 8-10 record. BC concluded their season losing their last four games and final six road games. BC was 3-5 against Eastern opponents, beating Hamilton twice and Winnipeg. The Alouettes finished with the second best record in the CFL and second in the East with a 13-5 record. They were 8-1 at home (Loss against Edmonton) and 5-3 against Western opponents including two victories over the Lions.

1998

The BC Lions started the 1998 season off on the wrong foot, losing there first three games, before finally beating Saskatchewan in Week 4. The defense was holding their own, but the offensive side of the ball seemed to be struggling. August 9, was a low point for the year when the eventual Grey Cup champions came into BC Place Stadium and beat the home town Leo's 55-9. With a record of 3-6-0, Head Coach Adam Rita resigned himself, and gave the job to Greg Mohns. The no nonsense attitude of Mohns, seemed to spark the team as they went on a memorable six game winning streak (which the team had not done since 1986) and the hottest team in the CFL heading into the playoff's. The Lions lost the play-off game to Edmonton in heartbreak fashion but promised they would be the team to beat once 1999 rolled around. Head Coach Greg Mohns let the CFL no his team was for real, and would be back to finish some un-finished business.

1998 Grey Cup - Calgary 26, Hamilton 24

1999

Following the team’s outstanding finish in 1998 and with the Grey Cup game to be played in Vancouver, expectations were high for the Lions in 1999. Quality free agents such as slotback Don Blair and cornerback Eric Carter were brought in to add depth to an already impressive lineup, and with the likes of Robert Drummond and Jimmy "The Jet" Cunningham back in form following injury-plagued 1998 seasons, the team looked ready to roll. And roll it did right out of the gate, winning its first three games to set a new club record with nine straight regular season wins. Although the team would stumble at times and play down to its more weaker opponents, the Lions either held sole possession of first place or were tied with Calgary throughout the season.  In the pivotal matches against the Stamps, the Lions won the first three and then lost in week 16 to tie things up again. But the Lions won the final two games at home and finished in first with a 13-5 record, the best since 1985. 

They won the Western Division for the first time since 1987 and would host their first playoff game in 12 years. Unfortunately, the dream season came to a premature end, as the Stamps beat the Lions 26-24 in an exciting but heartbreaking contest. 

Once the depression subsided, the club could look back in retrospect at the season and be proud for its accomplishments. There were 11 Western and four CFL all-stars on the team, Paul Lacoste was voted the CFL’s top rookie, Daved Benefield was the West’s top defensive player, and Jamie Taras was the West’s top offensive lineman and won the Tom Pate Award for community service. But the year was not complete without a Grey Cup win, and the Lions are hoping the final piece of the puzzle comes together in Calgary on November 26, 2000.

1999

East Division GP W L T F A P Montreal 18 12 6 0 495 395 24 Hamilton 18 11 7 0 603 378 22 Toronto 18 9 9 0 386 373 18 Winnipeg 18 6 12 0 362 601 12

West Division GP W L T F A P B.C. 18 13 5 0 429 373 26 Calgary 18 12 6 0 503 393 24 Edmonton 18 6 12 0 459 502 12 Saskatchewan 18 3 15 0 370 592 6

Divisional Semifinals -  Toronto 6, Hamilton 27	Divisional Semifinals -  Edmonton 17, Calgary 30
Divisional Finals -  Hamilton 27, Montreal 26	Divisional Finals -  Calgary 26, B.C. 24