Whyte boots club-record eight field goals to earn Lions 24-17 win over Argonauts

TORONTO – Sean Whyte and a stout defence were a deadly combination for the B.C. Lions on Saturday afternoon.

Whyte kicked a club-record eight field goals before B.C.’s defence made a huge goal-line stand late in the game, giving the Lions a 24-17 win over the Toronto Argonauts. It was their first victory at BMO Field since 2019.

Twice the Lions’ defence stopped Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle at the B.C. one-yard line, the last coming on third down with 11 seconds remaining. Earlier, T.J. Lee intercepted Arbuckle at the visitors’ 11-yard line with 2:38 to play.

“We preach having grit and fighting for anything we can do to win the game for our team,” Lee said. “It (two late Arbuckle sneaks) was an opportunity for them to score but it’s also an opportunity for us to stop them.

“Anytime we get on the field our defence has the mindset that it’s an opportunity and we took advantage of it today.”

B.C. forced three Toronto turnovers.

Lee also had plenty of love for Whyte, 40, who has made 40-of-43 attempts (93 per cent) this season.

“Sean Whyte, we know he’s clutch,” Lee said. “It’s like a free throw for him, every kick is a free throw.”

Whyte finished one field goal short of the CFL record held by Edmonton’s Vincent Blanchard.

Arbuckle’s 36-yard TD strike to David Ungerer III at 5:30 pulled the Argos to within 21-17. Whyte’s 29-yard field goal at 2:33 put B.C. ahead 21-10 after Toronto’s Shawn Lemon sacked Lions starter Nathan Rourke for a 13-yard loss.

Arbuckle completed 27-of-33 passes for 292 yards and two TDs with two interceptions. He was making his first start of the season with incumbent Chad Kelly (right hand) out.

“It’s a tough loss, any loss is tough,” Arbuckle said. “Losing by one yard, or half a yard, on the last play is devastating.

“I felt like our defence played really well against a high-powered offence and gave us an opportunity there at the end to win it.”

B.C. (9-6) earned a third straight win and seventh in eight games as Whyte broke the club mark he and Lui Passaglia held jointly. The Lions moved two points ahead of third-place Calgary (8-8) and Saskatchewan (8-7) in the West Division and trail first-place Edmonton (11-4) by four points with both teams having three regular-season games remaining.

“Throughout the course of this last little stretch (the Lions’ defence) has been fantastic,” said B.C. head coach Buck Pierce. “It was fitting the way that game ended because of how well they’ve played … I couldn’t be more proud of the group.”

Offensively, B.C. had the ball over 35 minutes and the Lions only had to punt three times. However, Rourke was 15-of-32 passing for 254 yards before 13,974 spectators at BMO Field.

“I feel like two out of the three facets of our team really played extremely well,” Rourke said. “Offensively we’ve got to do better and it starts with me.

“This time of year we’ve got to be playing better, we can’t expect to play like that and win. Things to clean up but it’s always good when you can learn from a win rather than a loss.”

Pierce credited Toronto’s defence for keeping B.C.’s offence out of the end zone. But he also said the Lions’ unit has work to do.

“What concerns me is a lack of focus, having some errors mentally and physically,” Pierce said. “We just have to make sure offensively we continue to strive to put our best foot forward at all times.

“I think the biggest takeaway is the resilience and how the team responded in all phases.”

Toronto (9-7) had its four-game win streak snapped and also suffered its first loss in five contests at BMO Field. The Argos will also finish second in the East Division behind Montreal (12-4), which clinched top spot with a 37-10 home win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Saturday night.

Makai Polk had Toronto’s other touchdown. Lirim Hajrullahu added two converts and a field goal.

Whyte’s 40-yard field goal at the 11-minute mark of the third quarter moved B.C. ahead 18-10. He connected from 19 yards out at 4:19 after Deontai Williams’s 17-yard interception return to the Toronto 29-yard line. 

Whyte’s 12-yard field goal to end the second quarter gave B.C. a fortunate 12-10 halftime lead. Time appeared to run out on Rourke’s scramble to the Toronto four-yard line but he was deemed down with one second remaining.

Polk gave Toronto a 10-9 lead with a five-yard TD grab at 13:25. It ended a seven-play, 70-yard drive.

Whyte put B.C. up 9-3 with a 32-yard field goal at 12:05.

Hajrullahu’s 18-yard field goal at 9:27 of the first quarter made it 3-3. But Whyte countered with a 26-yard boot at 13:53 to put B.C. ahead 6-3.

Whyte opened the scoring with a 39-yard field goal at 4:53. Lemon recovered a Lions fumble on the drive, but it was nullified by an offside call.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct, 3, 2026.