Lions go with Pierce for CFL opener
Jackson will wait patiently after signing lucrative contract
Last Updated: Tuesday, June 24, 2008 | 3:29 PM ET
CBC Sports
Buck Pierce's 2007 season with the Lions was hampered by shoulder woes. (Darryl Dyck/Canadian Press)Jarious Jackson was given starter's money in February but the B.C. Lions quarterback will play backup to Buck Pierce, at least to start the Canadian Football League season.
General manager and head coach Wally Buono on Monday gave Pierce the nod for Thursday's season opener against the hometown Calgary Stampeders.
"It means a lot to be named the starter, but honestly it's not a whole lot different," said Pierce, who racked up 1,013 passing yards in 2007 mainly as a backup when he wasn't dealing with a bad shoulder.
"I think in this business it's a week-to-week job," he told Vancouver reporters. "We're paid to win games, if we don't we won't be the guy."
Jackson, the guy for most of last season while No. 1 signal-caller Dave Dickenson recovered from post-concussion syndrome, expressed disappointment at the latest news.
"Everybody wants to start because you want to be the guy," he said. "But I'm a professional. I'm not going to drop my head about it."
Buono said Pierce's and Jackson's level of consistency in training camp and two pre-season games factored into his decision,
Last season, Jackson posted an impressive 9-2 record as a starter, completing 54.9 per cent of his pass attempts (167 of 304) for 2,553 yards and 18 touchdowns.
He also scrambled 49 times for 265 yards and three touchdowns as the Lions set a franchise record with 14 wins (14-3-1), only to lose 26-17 to the eventual Grey Cup champion Saskatchewan Roughriders in the West final.
On Feb. 4, B.C. rewarded Jackson with a two-year contract worth a reported $200,000 a season, with an option for the 2010 season.
