# 1961 BC Lions season

The 1961 BC Lions finished the season in fifth place in the Western Conference with a disappointing 1–13–2 record and failed to make the playoffs.
There was, however, a bright side to the season as fundamental building blocks were in place. In the off-season, the Lions signed Linebacker/Guard Tom Brown who would become an important part of the Lions' defense. On August 24, the Lions traded four players to Calgary for Quarterback Joe Kapp and while the results were not immediate they would prove to be critical in future seasons.
Due to the poor record and play, fan attendance dropped drastically, as the Lions averaged 24,000 fans per game. It also cost head coach Wayne Robinson his job as he was fired after winless first seven games in favour of Dave Skrien on September 12.
This was also the first season that the CFL introduced inter-conference games, with the first regular season games against the Ottawa Rough Riders, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Montreal Alouettes and Toronto Argonauts coming in 1961.

## Preseason

| Game | Date | Opponent | Results | Results | Venue | Attendance |
| Game | Date | Opponent | Score | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| A | Thu, July 20 | at Toronto Argonauts | L 17–28 | 0–1 | Exhibition Stadium | 22,415 |
| B | Mon, July 24 | vs. Hamilton Tiger-Cats | W 38–27 | 1–1 | Empire Stadium | 18,769 |
| C | Sat, July 29 | vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders | W 13–3 | 2–1 | University of Washington Stadium* | 28,000 |
| D | Tue, Aug 1 | vs. Ottawa Rough Riders | L 14–22 | 2–2 | Empire Stadium | 17,988 |
* Game played in Seattle.

## Regular season
### Season standings

Western Football Conference :
| Team | GP | W | L | T | PF | PA | Pts |
| Winnipeg Blue Bombers | 16 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 360 | 251 | 26 |
| Edmonton Eskimos | 16 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 334 | 257 | 21 |
| Calgary Stampeders | 16 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 300 | 311 | 14 |
| Saskatchewan Roughriders | 16 | 5 | 10 | 1 | 211 | 314 | 11 |
| BC Lions | 16 | 1 | 13 | 2 | 215 | 393 | 4 |

### Season schedule

| Game | Date | Opponent | Results | Results |
| Game | Date | Opponent | Score | Record |
| 1 | Aug 7 | vs. Edmonton Eskimos | L 19–29 | 0–1 |
| 2 | Aug 12 | at Ottawa Rough Riders | L 7–41 | 0–2 |
| 3 | Aug 15 | at Hamilton Tiger-Cats | L 21–30 | 0–3 |
| 4 | Aug 21 | vs. Montreal Alouettes | T 7–7 | 0–3–1 |
| 5 | Aug 24 | at Saskatchewan Roughriders | L 6–25 | 0–4–1 |
| 6 | Aug 28 | at Edmonton Eskimos | L 20–21 | 0–5–1 |
| 7 | Sept 9 | vs. Calgary Stampeders | L 17–35 | 0–6–1 |
| 8 | Sept 14 | at Winnipeg Blue Bombers | L 15–36 | 0–7–1 |
| 9 | Sept 18 | vs. Toronto Argonauts | L 7–15 | 0–8–1 |
| 10 | Sept 23 | at Calgary Stampeders | L 9–28 | 0–9–1 |
| 11 | Sept 30 | vs. Edmonton Eskimos | W 21–9 | 1–9–1 |
| 12 | Oct 7 | at Winnipeg Blue Bombers | L 20–24 | 1–10–1 |
| 13 | Oct 9 | at Saskatchewan Roughriders | L 7–17 | 1–11–1 |
| 14 | Oct 16 | vs. Winnipeg Blue Bombers | L 15–16 | 1–12–1 |
| 15 | Oct 28 | vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders | T 17–17 | 1–12–2 |
| 16 | Nov 5 | vs. Calgary Stampeders | L 7–43 | 1–13–2 |

### Offensive leaders

| Player | Passing yds | Rushing yds | Receiving yds | TD |
| Joe Kapp | 1719 | 127 | 0 | 0 |
| Nub Beamer | | 878 | 108 | 9 |
| Willie Fleming | | 468 | 680 | 9 |
| Dick Johnson | | 0 | 645 | 4 |
| By Bailey | | 386 | 125 | 1 |
| Pat Claridge | | 0 | 327 | 0 |

## 1961 CFL Awards

None