Winnipeg Blue Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros, left, passes as Michael Couture (59) and Drew Desjarlais (61) hold off B.C. Lions' J.R. Tavai (10) during the first half of a CFL football game in Vancouver, on Friday, October 1, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

SURREY, B.C. - Michael Couture used to run down the concrete steps at the end of every B.C. Lions home game, eager to slap the hands of the players he idolized.

Now he'll be on the other side of those high fives.

The offensive lineman signed a two-year deal with his hometown Lions as the CFL's free agency window officially opened on Tuesday.

"Since I was a little kid, it was always a dream to play for this team," Couture said on a video call from a vacation in Mesa, Ariz. "And to wanted by this club at this point in my career was really important.”

Growing up in Burnaby, B.C., Couture's family had season tickets for the Lions.

He still has vivid memories of one game where running back Jamall Johnson, playing with a broken arm, came up to the stands and told Couture to pull off his orange Reebok glove. Couture still has the memento in his closet.

The prospect of creating those kind of memories for other kids is an exciting one, Couture said.

"It’s massive. I have goosebumps just thinking about it," he said. "To be able to run as a B.C. Lion, it sounds cliché, but a dream come true is literally what it is."

Drafted 10th overall by Winnipeg in 2016, Couture spent six seasons playing for the Blue Bombers and won Grey Cups in 2019 and 2021.

An arm injury limited him to seven regular-season games last year, but the six-foot-four, 307-pound lineman returned to help the Bombers to their third straight championship appearance.

B.C., though, has always been on his mind.

“We had a great thing in Winnipeg, but I always had it kind of in the back of my mind that this would be a place I might like to be my next chapter," the 29-year-old said. "I’d love to finish my career here and whatever else.”

There'll be plenty of familiar faces around when Couture heads to Lions' training camp in May.

B.C.'s offensive line coach Kelly Bates coached the lineman during his final year of college football at Simon Fraser University in 2015. He also played with veteran Lions' OL Sukh Chung and receiver Lucky Whitehead in Winnipeg.

Couture was among a number of new additions the Lions made Tuesday.

The club inked veteran quarterback Dominique Davis, offensive lineman Chris Schleuger, receiver Justin McInnis and running back Antonio Williams.

Davis joins B.C. on a one-year deal after spending last season with the Alouettes. In Montreal, the 33-year-old from Lakeland, Fla., connected on 19-of-25 pass attempts for 253 yards and three touchdowns, and added 163 rushing yards with another 13 TDs.

The six-foot-four, 215-pound East Carolina alumnus has played 106 CFL games, splitting his time between the Als, the Ottawa Redblacks and the Bombers.

Schleuger, a 27-year-old American, comes to B.C. on a two-year contract after playing 22 games over three seasons for the Alouettes.

McInnis also joins the Lions on a two-year deal.

The 26-year-old from was selected sixth overall by Saskatchewan in the 2019 draft and has played 33 games for the Roughriders.

Last year, the six-foot-five, 210-pound McInnis had the best season of his career, amassing 364 receiving yards and hauling in two touchdowns.

Williams comes to B.C. after spending 2022 on the New York Giants' practice roster. The five-foot-11, 215-pound North Carolina product was a member of the Buffalo Bills in 2020-21.

The Lions have been busy heading into free agency, locking up a number of key pieces, including quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. and receiver Dominique Rhymes.

There were others the club would have loved to keep, said Rick Campbell, B.C.'s head coach and co-general manager, but financial constraints prevailed.

"I think a lot of players on this team are in for pay raises because of the way they played last year," he said. "We couldn't re-sign everyone, but we feel very fortunate that we've retained a large core of guys."

Several of the new contracts are for two years — a rarity in the CFL, Campbell noted.

"We're trying to establish some consistency and continuity around here," he said, adding that some players like running back James Butler and offensive lineman Peter Godber wouldn't fit under the salary cap and ended up signing with other teams.

"There's a couple of guys that left today that deserve to pay raises and they got them," Campbell said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 14, 2023.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2023