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But after a shaky start, Parker received positive reviews from Buono for his performance the rest of the night, which included knocking down another Ray pass to the end zone in the fourth quarter, limiting Toronto to a field goal.

“I thought he handled it very well,” said Buono. “After the first series, he settled down and … made a critical play in the end zone and had two critical tackles to prevent first downs. When a player can contribute like that, he’s got to feel good about his performance.”

The Lions improved their record to 7-3 thanks to a 16-13 win.

“It was pretty last minute,” said the 25-year-old Parker. “Definitely, the first series there, I was getting my feet wet a little bit. But after that, I was good. You’ve just got to go out there and get your reps on and you find your rhythm.”

An accomplished collegiate track and field athlete with Oregon State before he transferred to SFU to join the Clan’s NCAA football team, Parker has raced the 100-metre dash on short notice before — he said he had about a week’s worth of training — and crossed the finish line in under 11 seconds.

There may be the perception that because he was facing one of the best passers in the Canadian game, his task last week with very little time to prepare would be far more difficult than running in a straight line for fewer than 12 seconds.

But, says Parker, that’s not necessarily the case.

“For track, it’s a lot harder … because it’s so technical and there are so many things about muscle memory,” he said. “Whereas football, it’s not so much like that. You go out there, know what you’ve got to do and you kind of just play.”