Back-up quarterback Travis Lulay ran in a touchdown with 2:43 left to play to snap a tie and lift the B.C. Lions to a 23-16 victory over the Montreal Alouettes on Thursday night.
Jeremiah Johnson scored a pair of touchdowns and Ty Long added a field goal for the Lions (2-1), who stayed east and practised in Kingston, Ont., this week with only six days since their victory last Friday in Toronto.
Tyrell Sutton had a TD and Boris Bede kicked three field goals for Montreal (1-2), which has lost their last four meetings against the Lions.
The Montreal attack under new quarterback Darian Durant has yet to put up 20 points in a game.
New CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie was among the 18,728 at Percival Molson Stadium to watch the teams struggle to 6-6 tie in an uneventful first half and reach only a 9-6 score by the end of the third quarter.
B.C. started out on fire, with Jonathon Jennings leading an 11-play, 81-yard drive capped by a nine-yard touchdown pass to Johnson 5:30 into the game.
The two-point convert attempt failed and the Lions didn't threaten to score the rest of the half.
Montreal needed three possessions to get a first down, but Durant began moving the ball in the second quarter. A long completion to B.J. Cunningham with a roughing the passer call put the ball on the B.C. 30.
Three plays later, Bede was good from 29 yards at 7:42.