Return to play honeymoon over for Roughriders

Outrage back in Rider Nation over losing

Cody Fajardo (#7) sets to throw a pass in 2019.

So do any Saskatchewan Roughriders fans remember missing the CFL a year ago at this time?

Judging by the reaction to the Roughriders 22-19 setback to the Calgary Stampeders on Saturday night at Mosaic Stadium, it appears the answer is no.

After jumping out to a 3-0 start, the Roughriders have lost four of their last six games. Fans consumed by ragehol have returned too.

The Roughriders sit second in the CFL’s West Division with a 5-4, but the hold on second spot is far from secure. The British Columbia Lions sit third at 4-4 and the Stampeders sit in fourth place with a 4-5 mark.

Having posted two straight wins over the Roughriders, the Stampeders have already claimed the seasonal series between the two clubs and hold the head-to-head standings tiebreaker.

With the way the records are shaping up in the East Division, it is conceivable the Roughriders could miss the playoff all together.

When the losing happens, the members of Rider Nation point the fingers in all directions. It is the fault of vice president of football operations and general manager Jeremy O’Day, head coach and special teams coordinator Craig Dickenson, franchise quarterback Cody Fajardo, the offensive line, the receivers who aren’t catching passes and the defence that gives up big plays at inopportune times.

The misfortune is a team effort.

Roughriders HC Craig Dickenson works the sidelines in 2019.

This type of outrage wasn’t even thought about a year ago at this time.

A year ago at this time, a lot of different public health orders were in place across Canada to combat the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. At the moment, the world is still firmly in the grips of the COVID-19 pandemic, but vaccines have allowed sporting events to be held in front of full capacity venues at a large number of places in North America.

The CFL wasn’t able to navigate the public health orders in 2020 and didn’t hit the field at all. A year ago at this time, there was a lot of speculation that the CFL might have played its last game and might become a pandemic casualty.

There was a lot of speculation that the financial losses the CFL’s nine teams would incur would end the league.

There were people who wondered if you would get to see a Roughriders game again at Mosaic Stadium.

For the longest time, the Bombers 33-12 Grey Cup victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Nov. 24, 2019 at McMahon Stadium in Calgary, Alta., stood as the last game played in the CFL.

As the calendar turned to 2021, news of team financial losses for 2020 came in.

In late March of this year, the community owned Winnipeg Blue Bombers, who won the Grey Cup in 2019, announced a loss of $6,982,217 for 2020. In May, the community owned Edmonton Elks announced a loss of $7.1-million for 2020.

Dan Clark calls signals at centre in 2019.

Just past the middle of June, the community owned Roughriders announced a loss of $7.5-million for 2020.

It is believed the six other CFL franchises posted bigger financial losses for 2020 than the three community owned teams did.

Somehow, the CFL returned.

On August 5 at IG Field in Winnipeg, the host Blue Bombers downed the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 19-6 before 29,376 spectators to open the CFL regular season.

I personally thought it was a miracle the CFL returned to play.

One day later on August 6, the Roughriders returned to a sellout crowd of 33,350 spectators at Mosaic Stadium to down the visiting Lions 33-29. 

Most in Rider Nation savoured this day as a sign that things were returning more to normal.

It was safe to say the fans were just happy to see the Roughriders play a game again.

Another normal also returned, as fans went crazy over analyzing and cutting down the team when losses started to happen. 

That was pretty evident in the aftermath of Saturday’s setback to the Stampeders.

Gainer the Gopher makes his rounds in 2019.

When you look at the complaining in comparison to what has happened in the world since March of 2020, the phrase “this is why we can’t have nice things” rings true.

On the bright side, attendance was still listed as a solid 27,964 to see the Roughriders fall to the Stampeders on Saturday.

For myself personally, I give the Roughriders a mulligan for everything that happens this season. They’ve already played nine more games than I thought they would play.

For a half glass full argument, at least Rider Nation has a team to complain about. That is better than not being able to complain, because the team ceased to exist.

Raiders stumble out of the gate, other thoughts

The Raiders have stumbled to an 0-4 start this season.

It appears the Prince Albert Raiders are on the road to a reload.

After topping the WHL regular season standings in 2018-19 and winning the league championship, the Raiders have stumbled out of the games to start the 2021-22 campaign dropping their first four games getting outscored 21-5 in the process.

On Saturday, the Raiders dropped an 8-0 decision to the Winnipeg Ice at the Wayne Fleming Arena in the Manitoba capital. The Ice, who improved to 4-0, appear to be the powerhouse team for the current campaign.

Right-winger Connor McClennon had a hat trick for the Ice, while centre Matthew Savoie had three assists. Savoie appears ready to take on star status fitting the fact he was selected first overall by the Ice in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft, which is now known as the WHL Prospects Draft.

Jakin Smallwood had a pair of goals for the Ice, while Mikey Milne, Conor Geekie and Zachary Benson had singles.

Ronin Geraghty went the distance in goal for the Raiders turning away 26 shots. Gage Alexander turned away all 13 shots he faced to pick up the shutout for the Ice.

The Raiders have had to deal with the fact they have had guys away at NHL training camps. At the moment, they are still missing star defenceman Kaiden Guhle, who is still at camp with the Montreal Canadiens.

By the sound of media reports coming out of Montreal, Guhle is having a great camp with the Canadiens. Due to the fact Guhle is 19-years-old, he has to be returned to the major junior ranks unless he cracks the Canadiens NHL roster.

I still would like to see what the Raiders would look like with Guhle and Nolan Allan as a top defensive pairing.

If the season turns into a reloading campaign, general manager Curtis Hunt and head coach Marc Habscheid are the right guys to have in their respective places to guide the club through rough waters.

They are both experienced hockey leaders who have seen and dealt with all types of scenarios before. The Raiders will always be in good hands with Hunt and Habscheid on board.

During my 10 seasons covering the Medicine Hat Tigers for the Medicine Hat News from 2004 to 2014, I saw how key it was to have good people in those leadership positions as Willie Desjardins and Shaun Clouston ensured the Tigers kept being an elite franchise over that time period.

After the Raiders won the WHL title in the 2018-19 campaign, they captured a banner for finishing first in the East Division in a 2019-20 that got cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic.

They finished fourth in the seven-team WHL East Division bubble last season.

With the way junior hockey cycles go, it is hard to avoid the reload year after having highly successful seasons.

• The Saskatoon Blades have started out 2-1 thanks to a familiar sight. Veteran 19-year-old left-winger Kyle Crnkovic has three goals and two assists, and veteran centre Tristen Robins, who will turn 19-years-old in November, has one goal and four assists.
• Can you see the Calgary Stampeders running the table to win their last five straight games to running their current winning streak to seven games and finish the regular season 9-5 after a 2-5 start? If any team can do that in the CFL, it is the Stampeders quarterbacked by Bo Levi Mitchell.
• Could this be a big year for football in Winnipeg? The Blue Bombers sit first overall in the CFL with an 8-1 record, and the University of Manitoba Bisons football team has started the U Sports regular season 2-0 to sit first in the Canada West Conference. If both the Grey Cup and Vanier Cup end up residing in Winnipeg in December, you can bet you will hear all about it.
• The University of Saskatchewan Huskies and University of Regina Rams have both started their U Sports regular seasons with 1-1 records. It would be fun if one of those teams could have a special campaign in 2021 with a Vanier Cup win.
• One of the most fun moments this season might occur if Saskatoon Blades general manager Colin Priestner makes a visit to Prince Albert in the role as president and governor of the NLL’s Saskatchewan Rush. In branding themselves as Saskatchewan’s team, the Rush like visiting communities across the province, and I suspect Priestner would be able to ham it up with Raiders fans being on the same side when it comes to the Rush.

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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“The Golden Boy” of the Huskies

Nyhus’s highly anticipated time as starting QB arrives

Mason Nyhus takes over as the Huskies starting quarterback.

    Mason Nyhus was ready for the joking jabs to be fired his way from his teammates.

    The 21-year-old was answering a question about not only taking over as starting quarterback of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies football team, but also being hyped as the signal caller that could potentially take the team all the way when he first stepped foot on campus in 2016.

    A quartet of Nyhus’s teammates walked past, and they sent off good-natured shots about him being the superstar and bowing towards him.

    Nyhus chuckled at the scene.

    “I’ve got great teammates obviously that are going to help me out,” said Nyhus. “We have a great defence, so I basically get to go out there and make the right throws and get the ball to my playmakers and let them do the work for sure.”

    Back in 2016, Nyhus, who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 195 pounds, came to the Huskies as highly-touted prospect from the Riffel High School Royals football team in Regina. He was the gem in the final recruiting class brought in by now retired Huskies head coach and Canadian Football Hall of Fame member Brian Towriss.

    Nyhus quarterbacked Saskatchewan’s provincial team to a bronze medal win at the 2015 Football Canada Cup in Saint Jean, Que. At the International Bowl series that ran Jan. 31 to Feb. 1, 2016 in Arlington, Texas, Nyhus was calling signals for Canada’s under-18 team.

Mason Nyhus (#8) throws a pass in a controlled scrimmage in 2016.

    In July of 2016, Nyhus was a member of Canada’s Junior National Team that won the International Federation of American Football under-19 World Championship in Harbin, China.

    Since Nyhus stepped foot on the U of S campus, there has been anticipation among football followers in Saskatchewan to see what he could do as the starting quarterback of the Huskies.

    There were visions of Nyhus taking the Huskies on a long playoff run and potentially winning the Vanier Cup as U Sports champions for the first time since 1998.

    While Nyhus does have confidence, he has humbleness too and is quick to downplay the noise. Going through his first Huskies training camp in 2016, he was playing behind veterans Kyle Siemens and Drew Burko and ultimately red shirted that campaign.

    Nyhus said that was where he should be in the pecking order at that time.

    “I just remember they had really big arms,” said Nyhus, who is in his third year of U Sports eligibility. “Kyle was a two-year junior guy, and then he had two years with the Huskies.

    “He was the same age as my older brother, so I always thought that was bizarre. Burko was a year older than him. They were just big, strong guys, you know what I mean.

Mason Nyhus at Roughriders training camp in 2018.

    “They’ve been out of high school for a long time. I just remember them throwing 60-yard bombs. Now here I am trying to do that now.”

    Siemens beat out Burko for the starting spot in 2016, and Burko exhausted his U Sports eligibility following that campaign.

    Nyhus was the backup behind Siemens the past two seasons. Nyhus saw Siemens set the Huskies records for most pass completions (201) and passing yards (2,570) in one regular season in the 2017 campaign.

    During his five seasons with the Huskies from 2014 to 2018, Siemens completed 604-of-998 passes for 7,932 yards, 55 touchdowns and 23 interceptions. His 604 completions are a career regular season record for the Huskies, and his 7,932 yards is second on the Huskies career regular season yardage list.

    Siemens capped his career guiding the Huskies to their first Canada West Conference title by winning the Hardy Cup and berth to a U Sports semifinal bowl game since 2006. The Huskies fell 47-24 in the Mitchell Bowl to the University of Western Ontario Mustangs in London, Ont.

    Siemens prepared for his years with the Huskies toiling on the Canadian Junior Football League roster of the Regina Thunder in 2012 and a CJFL championship campaign in 2013.

    “I couldn’t ask for a better guy to play with,” said Nyhus. “He (Siemens) is one of my best friends here in Saskatoon.

Kyle Siemens (#19) was a big influence in helping Mason Nyhus.

    “I still hang out with him a lot. I learned a lot from him, so I will definitely cherish the memories playing on this team with Kyle (Siemens) for sure. I pride myself on being kind of a calm, cool, collected guy.

    “I try to stay calm out there, and I definitely learned a lot from Kyle (Siemens) in that matter. He is a very poised quarterback. I definitely took that with me a lot.”

    The Huskies return a number of veterans on offence along the offensive line and at receiver.

    The running game will be paced by running backs Adam Machart, who is in his second year with the team and third in U Sports eligibility, and Josh Ewanchyna, who comes over from starring with the CJFL champion Saskatoon Hilltops and is in his second year of U Sports eligibility.

    Nyhus said he has inherited a pretty good situation.

    “Our O-line, across the board we’re big, strong and fast,” said Nyhus. “We’re going to have time to throw the football, which is very exciting.

    “We’re going to be able to run the ball with those guys, especially with Adam (Machart) and Josh (Ewanchyna). They are two powerful guys in their 20s. They can run hard, (and) they are fast.

    “Even at the receiver position, we can execute out there for sure. They are running crisp routes and catching the football. It is definitely helpful out there to have those guys.”

    Huskies head coach Scott Flory said Nyhus is ready to be the leader of the team.

    “I’m just so excited for his opportunity to show what he can do,” said Flory. “I get front row seats.

Mason Nyhus has prepared to be in the spotlight with the Huskies.

    “That is just what it is about. That kid, he is phenomenal. I can’t say enough good things about him.

    “He is the face of our team, and he should be. He is going to have a tonne of success.”

    Flory said Nyhus benefitted from attending two straight CFL training camps under the Canadian quarterback internship program. Nyhus was in Saskatchewan Roughriders camp last year and in Calgary Stampeders camp in late May and early June of this year.

    “If anything, you are just soaking in just being around it, just being around that high level of athleticism and guys are really preparing in what they do,” said Flory. “Just being there helps.”

    In 2017, Nyhus came off the bench completing 15 of 22 passes for 243 yards, two touchdowns and one interception for the Huskies. Last season, he completed 28-of-47 passes for 448 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions.

    Nyhus said he benefitted from the two CFL training camps he attended. He is looking forward to the season with focus on the present and not looking too far into the future.

    With that said, Nyhus has high expectations of what his team can do game in and game out.

    “Definitely confidence, but we respect every opponent no doubt about it,” said Nyhus. “We expect to win every game we play in, but we have to go out there and execute.

    “I think we have a very good team. As long as we execute what coach Flory puts out for us, I think we will be alright. We just have to play hard and let the score take care of itself.”

QB Mason Nyhus is confident the Huskies will do great this season.

    The Huskies opened training camp on Aug. 12 and conclude camp activities with the green and white intrasquad game on Friday at 3 p.m. at Griffiths Stadium.

    U of S opens the regular season on Aug. 30 traveling to Winnipeg to face the University of Manitoba Bisons. The Huskies host their home opener on Sept. 6 at 7 p.m. against the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds at Griffiths Stadium.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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New Gainer – marketing genius or marketing bomb?

Gainer looks like he had a hell of a rough long weekend and then had to report to work on Monday. #newgainer #notafan pic.twitter.com/RwhmNqDSp9

— Michael Scissons (@mrscizz) July 2, 2019

    It is the biggest gopher controversy since the Calgary Stampeders “Gainer ban” in 2006.

    Back in 2006, the Stampeders hosted the Saskatchewan Roughriders in a CFL west semifinal playoff game on Nov. 5 of that year. Early in the week leading up to that contest, the Stampeders said the Rider Cheer Team was allowed to come, but Gainer, who was the Roughriders lovable mascot, was banned.

Classic Gainer at the 2018 Labour Day Classic.

    The Stampeders thought Gainer would do too good of a job of exciting Rider Nation causing the Calgary side to lose their home field advantage.

    About a couple of days later, the Stampeders recanted saying Gainer wasn’t banned from the facility, but he could not be on field level. Gainer could come to the game, but he had to sit in the stands.

    Politicians even got into the fray with then Alberta Premier Ralph Klein issuing a press release stating he supported the Stampeders “Gainer ban,” noting he appreciated the team’s efforts to keep Alberta free of “imported pests.”

    A number of Roughriders fans attended that game wearing buttons or messages on their clothes that said, “Free Gainer.”

    The odd person came to the facility dressed as the gopher mascot.

    The Roughriders ultimately won that contest 30-21.

    In the current day, that gopher controversy looks small compared to the one in the present day.

    On Monday during a 32-7 regular season home opening victory over the Toronto Argonauts at Mosaic Stadium, the Roughriders unveiled a new trimmed down Gainer to the shock of those in attendance and those seeing pictures on social media platforms.

    It was more surprising considering classic Gainer appeared at a wedding reception two nights earlier on June 29 at Mosaic Stadium.

Classic Gainer makes a last ride at Taylor Field in 2016.

    The new Gainer had a much different head too displaying a huge smile and bright white, green and black coloured eyes. The green colour in the eyes was the most jarring site, and classic Gainer’s eyes had always been all black.

    The new mascot sparked about 80 per cent outrage, while about 20 per cent said they either liked the new mascot or it was growing on the. The percentage of people that like the new Gainer seems to be going upwards at a snail’s pace.

    Complaints range from the new mascot looking either crazed or drugged out.

    It appears the Roughriders are going to stick with the new Gainer. You had to expect there would have been a contingency in place for a backlash.

    While this may sound crazy, the change in Gainer might ultimately be a move of “marketing genius” by the ’Riders. Yep, you just read that correctly, “marketing genius.”

After some deep soul searching and weighing the pros and cons - I have decided to be PRO-GAINER AF.

We all evolve.

Gainer lost MAD weight & went #MichaelJackson on his face.

If it makes him happy - I am happy.

His 💚 remains epic as ever.

I support the #IntenseAFGainer pic.twitter.com/gYbq3IM7If

— ●■fakeGAINER ●■●■●■●■ (@fakeGAINER) July 3, 2019

    Gainer is the most iconic mascot in the CFL, and arguably the most famous sports mascot in Canada. He ranks up there in fame department with Youppi!, who started as the mascot of the MLB’s Montreal Expos and is now the mascot of the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens, and Calgary Flames mascot Harvey the Hound.
    The Roughriders were looking to tweak their game day experience.

Classic Gainer gives kids “fives” at Taylor Field in 2016.

    The biggest way to shake things up on that front was to change the look of Gainer, because that was still thought of as being unconceivable, despite the fact we seemingly live in a world where all manner of crazy things can happen.

    There is a phrase in marketing that there is no such thing has bad press. In an era where attention cycles seemingly last less than 30 seconds at a time, new Gainer has been in the news cycle for days.

    Actually, a large number of social media posts related to new Gainer could make up comedy hour, if you read them all. They will keep you laughing for hours on end.

    Michael Scissons, who is the business manager of the WHL champion Prince Albert Raiders, started things off on Monday night with a beauty tweet that said Gainer looked like he had a rough weekend.

    Scissons said in a story in paNOW.com he believes people will get used to the new Gainer in time.

    New Gainer has drawn the approval of the two most famous Gainer parody accounts on Twitter in “Fake Gainer” and “Bitter Gainer.”

Luc is my spirit animal. https://t.co/xI8wkzFFye

— Bitter Gainer (@BitterGainer) July 4, 2019

    Some people might check out Saturday’s home game at 8 p.m. against the Calgary Stampeders to see what all the fuss is about.

    Still, this move could prove to be a “marketing bomb” by the Roughriders.

    Out of all the things in the game day experience, Gainer was the one thing that didn’t need to be changed. That increases risk in the public relations gamble when you actually do change Gainer.

Classic Gainer was always popular with the ladies.

    Seeing the lovable and plump classic Gainer was something you always expected to see from the Roughriders brand.

    For myself, I prefer classic Gainer, but changing the mascot won’t affect my decision to attend Roughriders games at home or on the road.

    Fans need those familiar points that link them with the experience of cheering for a team, which never seem to change.

    It is like going to a hockey game and hearing “The Hockey Song” by Stompin’ Tom Connors or “Clap Your Hands” by the Beau Marks. It is like seeing the “White Out” during a Winnipeg Jets NHL playoff game.

    While many on social media noted their kids liked the lovable classic Gainer, it feels like the female fan base loved the classic Gainer more than the new Gainer. That includes the 18-year-old millennials who recently graduated high school to seniors who are young at heart.

    They seem to have the urge to hug classic Gainer.

    Time will tell if new Gainer grows on Rider Nation.

Classic Gainer doing his thing at Mosaic Stadium in 2017.

    With the passage of time, it will become clearer if this was an act of “marketing genius” or a “marketing bomb.”

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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The curious case of the Saskatchewan Roughriders

CFL team’s season could go in many directions

QB Brandon Bridge (#16) calls a play in the huddle for the Roughriders.

    REGINA - The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a 3-3 middle of the pack team like their record says.

    Over their first six outings, they have often been a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde type of squad being at their best and at their worst in the same game regardless if they win or lose. Saturday’s 34-22 setback to the 6-0 Calgary Stampeders at Mosaic Stadium proved to be another example of that trend for the Green and White.

    The Roughriders were at their best on the defensive side of the ball. They limited the powerful Stampeders offence to just 242 total yards for the entire game.

Terry Williams, left, celebrates a punt return TD with Richard Sindani.

    Veteran star defensive end Charleston Hughes, who spent his first 10 CFL campaigns with the Stampeders, is still a beast at age 34. He recorded two sacks for the Roughriders and leads the entire CFL with eight sacks.

    Defensive lineman Tobi Antigha, who stands 6-foot-2 and weighs 223 pounds, proved he is a heck of an athlete. Dropping into pass coverage, he collected his second interception of the season in the second quarter of Saturday’s game. This time, he returned the ball back 52 yards to the end zone for a pick-six.

    On defence, a myriad of players proved they can continually get the job done like Samuel Eguavoen, Ed Gainey, Mike Edem, Eddie Steele, Zach Evans, Jovon Johnson and Willie Jefferson. Duron Carter, who is normally a receiver on offence, is improving each game since being inserted at defensive back full time in Week 2.

Eric Rogers (#15) reacts to scoring a touchdown for the Stampeders.

    Place kicker Brett Lauther had a monster game on Saturday hitting all five of his field goal attempts including a monster shot from 56 yards out shortly before the end of the first half. The Truno, N.S., product also connected from 35, 48, 32 and 47 yards out.

    The Roughriders were at their worst in the first quarter of Saturday’s game making a bunch of gaffs to fall behind 24-0.

    The surge started early in that frame, when Roughriders running back Marcus Thigpen fumbled the ball away. It took the Stampeders just one play to score, when star quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell hit receiver Marken Michel on a deep corner route for a 41-yard touchdown pass.

The Roughriders celebrate Tobi Antigha’s pick-six.

    After Rene Paredes booted a 52-yard field goal to put the Stampeders up 10-0, the visitors went ahead 17-0 when Terry Williams returned a punt 78 yards for a touchdown.

    The bleeding didn’t stop there for the Roughriders. Running back Jerome Messam fumbled the ball away, and the Stampeders recovered it at the Saskatchewan 40.

    Calgary drove that distance in four plays to score another touchdown, when Mitchell hit receiver Eric Rogers with a 15-yard scoring toss.

    The Roughriders offence was not a pretty sight gaining just 247 yards on the night, fumbling the ball away a total of four times and turning the ball over on downs once.

Charleston Hughes hit the big screen with a couple of sack celebrations.

    Thanks to a defensive score and four field goals, the Roughriders were able to trim the Stampeders lead to 24-19 with 5:20 to play in the third quarter. One of those field goals came after Williams fumbled away a punt return.

    Saskatchewan’s offence couldn’t sustain any drives or make any big plays to create some much needed major scores. Running back Tre Mason had the longest play from scrimmage for the Roughriders with an 18-yard run.

    Roughriders quarterback Brandon Bridge fulfilled the role of game manager completing 19-of-29 passes for 147 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions, and he wasn’t responsible for any of Saskatchewan’s four fumbles. The Saskatchewan coaching staff didn’t call any plays which would allow Bridge to stretch the field.

Rider Nation signals a first down for the hosts at Mosaic Stadium.

    The breaks didn’t go the Roughriders way either. With the Stampeders holding a 24-19 lead, the Roughriders had an interception from defensive back Crezdon Butler negated by a tough illegal contact on the receiver penalty on Johnson that could have gone either way.

    On the ensuing play after Butler’s interception was taken away, Mitchell hit receiver DeVaris Daniels with a 15-yard touchdown toss to put the Stampeders up 31-19.

    To make things worse on Saturday, the Roughriders couldn’t deliver a win before a sellout crowd of 33,350 – most of whom wanted to see the host side defeat one of their biggest rivals outside of a few pockets of Stampeders supporters.

Mascot “Gainer the Gopher” circles the field.

    Over the first third of their regular season schedule, the Roughriders have hit equal parts of the spectrum of being good and bad. Despite their inconsistencies, they could possibly be 5-1.

    Back on June 30, the Roughriders dropped a 23-17 decision to the Montreal Alouettes, who are 1-5 on the campaign. That was a game that slipped away.

    On Saturday, the Stampeders did not look indestructible like they have at points in the past decade and appeared very beatable. That contest in the end was another that got away from Saskatchewan.

    The Roughriders defence has found its groove. The Roughriders offence looks to be hurt by the fact the deck might have been shuffled too much from last season.

    Bakari Grant, Rob Bagg and Nic Demski, who missed a lengthy stretch due to injury, were all regular receivers last season, and all are no longer with the team. Carter, who had 1,043 yards receiving last season for the Roughriders, has been used sparingly on offence.

    The Roughriders offensive line has had struggles but is getting better. Saskatchewan could draw from the steady influence of veteran quarterback Kevin Glenn last season, but he is now with the Edmonton Eskimos.

QB Bo Levi Mitchell and the Stampeders were opportunistic.

    On the injury front, the Roughriders are due to get defensive back Nick Marshall back off the six-game injured list after he sits out one more contest. Starting quarterback Zach Collaros has spent four contests on the six-game injured list with a concussion.

    When both return, the Roughrider deck will be shuffled in a way that might help the offence. Both will be missing, when the Roughriders travel to Edmonton to face the Eskimos (4-2) this coming Thursday.

    At the moment, the Roughriders are an average team in the CFL. They still can potentially be really good, really bad or finish out the regular season at 9-9.

    They are at a crossroads, and no one can predict with certainty how they will finish.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Roughriders’ Bridge is still the great Canadian QB hope

Brandon Bridge (#16) fires a pass downfield for the Roughriders.

    If you’re a Canadian quarterback, you likely have your figures crossed for Brandon Bridge.

    The 26-year-old Toronto, Ont., product is still the biggest hope of proving to management and coaches in the CFL that a Canadian can be the starting quarterback in the league. Since the legendary Russ Jackson led the Ottawa Rough Riders to a Grey Cup title in his final game in 1969, the CFL has been looking for the next great Canadian star starting quarterback.

    Bridge came into the 2018 campaign riding a lot of momentum from his performance with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the 2017 season.

    Last season, Bridge won his one start and came off the bench in numerous other contests completing 92-of-138 passes for 1,236 yards, 10 touchdown passes and four interceptions. He also ran the ball 20 times for 127 yards and scored one major.

    During last year’s 25-21 Eastern Final loss to the eventual Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts, Bridge came off the bench for the Roughriders completing 11-of-21 passes for 141 yards and one touchdown.

    Last December, Bridge signed a one-year contract to remain with the Roughriders. At the time, it appeared he might be the favourite to be the club’s starting quarterback.

Brandon Bridge (#16) calls a play in the huddle.

    That changed in early January when the Roughriders made a trade with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats to acquire veteran starter Zach Collaros and signed him to a restructured contract.

    Collaros guided the Roughriders to a 27-19 victory in their regular season opener on June 15 against the defending Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts at Mosaic Stadium. In a 40-17 drubbing in Week 2 at the hands of the Redblacks in Ottawa on June 21, Collaros was lost after sustaining a concussion injury and was placed on the six-game injured list.

    Due to that development, Bridge gained the opportunity to lead the Roughriders as the starting quarterback over a sizable sustained period of time.

    In the three games that followed, Bridge did indeed start each contest, but he was often rotated with another young signal caller in David Watford, who is a 25-year-old product from Hampton, Virginia.

    The results for Bridge were mixed. He showed brilliance at times, but his inexperience also came to the surface as well.

    So far in 2018, Bridge has completed 49-of-75 passes for 522 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. On the ground, he has carried the ball 16 times for 79 yards.

Brandon Bridge (#16) calls signals at the line of scrimmage.

    The Roughriders fell in Bridge’s first start of the season 23-17 to the lowly Montreal Alouettes at Mosaic Stadium on June 30. Saskatchewan proceeded to pull out an 18-13 win in Bridge’s second start on July 5 at Mosaic Stadium against the Tiger-Cats.

    Those two clubs went at it again on July 19 in Hamilton, and the Roughriders pulled out a 31-20 victory in Bridge’s third start of the campaign.

    Adding difficulty to the evaluation of Bridge is the fact the Roughriders offensive line has been suspect for most of the first five games. There is a fear things could really go down in that department if Canadian veterans in guard Brendon LaBatte or centre Dan Clark are ever lost to injury.

    Evaluation of Bridge also has to take into account he is working with some new receivers. Rob Bagg and Bakari Grant were both regular receivers in 2017 and are no longer with the Roughriders this season. Star receiver Duron Carter has mainly been employed by the Roughriders on defence due to injuries and lack of personnel in the defensive backfield.

    Still, there are signs Bridge is finding his groove. He guided the game-winning 77-yard touchdown drive late in the fourth quarter that allowed the Roughriders to beat the Tiger-Cats by five points on July 5.

    During Saskatchewan’s win in Hamilton on July 19, Bridge took the bulk of the snaps under centre completing 17-of-22 passes for 165 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. He ran the ball five times for 17 yards.

    These are the signs of growth you want to see from the young inexperience quarterback.

    Tonight, Bridge faces his biggest test. He leads the 3-2 Roughriders against the undefeated 5-0 Calgary Stampeders, who have won 10 or more games a season since the start of the 2008 campaign. 

The Roughriders need to protect Brandon Bridge (#16) in the pocket.

    The two sides go at it at 7 p.m. local time at a sold out Mosaic Stadium.

    The Roughriders defence has played lights out, and that has bought the club’s offensive time to get on track.

    Bridge will have an opportunity to make another step forward. If the Roughriders stumble, he will likely have to more chances to guide the team after the Saturday’s clash with the Stampeders before Collaros is scheduled to come off the injured list.

    The CFL may still get its Canadian star quarterback, but the path in that journey will have its bumps.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Stampeders star QB Mitchell is great for the CFL

Signal caller entertains mixing it up with Roughriders fans

Stampeders QB Bo Levi Mitchell is one of the best players in the CFL.

    Saskatchewan Roughriders fans may want to sit down before they read the following line.

    Calgary Stampeders quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell is great for the CFL.

    He might be even better for the CFL when he is exchanging beaks with Roughriders fans. It is too bad he deleted his Twitter account during the off-season. The Katy, Texas, product was good at using that social media platform to get Rider Nation all worked up.

    Last season after Roughriders receiver/defensive back Duron Carter returned a Mitchell interception for a touchdown, Saskatchewan play-by-play voice Rod Pedersen made his famous “Bo Levi, shut your mouth” call. Saskatchewan won that contest 30-7 on Oct. 20, 2017 in Calgary.

Stamps QB Bo Levi Mitchell,  left, escapes a Roughriders pass rush in 2016.

    On Saturday, Mitchell, who stands 6-foot-2 and weighs 198 pounds, will once again likely exchange barbs with his favourite opposing fanbase as the Stampeders (5-0) travel to Mosaic Stadium to take on the Saskatchewan Roughriders (3-2) at 7 p.m. The Roughriders announced on Wednesday the game was sold out, and tickets on the team’s verified resale channel are starting at $73.

    Mitchell, who hasn’t missed a start this season, was playing things cool in front of the media in Calgary on Thursday saying a knee he injured in a 27-3 victory over the Redblacks in Ottawa on July 12 feels great.

Stamps QB Bo Levi Mitchell, centre, burst into the open field in 2016.

    Here is hoping he is saving some verbal jabs for the pre-game press conferences and scrums that will be held in Regina on Friday.
    Even if Mitchell keeps his mouth shut, Rider Nation will likely give him a welcome worthy of a wrestling heel worthy of Ric Flair or the late Nick Bockwinkel in their “bad guy” primes.

    Like Flair or Bockwinkel in wrestling, Mitchell, who turned 28-years-old in March, will likely become a baby face for Rider Nation the longer he keeps playing in the CFL at a high level. Heck, you might like Mitchell right now, if you are a Roughriders supporter. You just don’t want to say it.

    Fans that spend a lot of time getting their “hate on” for a player on an opposing team doing research for heckles, making signs or creative props usually deep down find they actually like that player.

Bo Levi Mitchell gets set in the pocket in 2016.

    You would be hard pressed to see a Roughriders fan say they hate defensive end Charleston Hughes now that he plays for Saskatchewan. Hughes used to be a target for taunts from Roughriders fans, when he suited up for the Stampeders.

    Part of the reason you get your hate for Mitchell if you are a fan of the “green and white” is because he is a good player. Actually, Mitchell might be one of the best in the entire CFL.

    Now in his seventh campaign in the league, Mitchell has a 61-10-2 record in the regular season as a starting quarterback, and he has completed 1,592 of 2,428 career pass attempts for 20,679 yards, 124 touchdown passes and 48 interceptions in regular season play.
    Mitchell was named the CFL’s most outstanding player in 2016.

    He has guided the Stampeders into the Grey Cup game on three occasions winning in 2014 and falling in 2016 and 2017. The haters will likely take glee in the two title game losses.

Bo Levi Mitchell fires a pass downfield in 2016.

    Had the Stampeders won those latter two Grey Cup appearances, Mitchell would be the CFL’s version of Tom Brady of the NFL’s New England Patriots.

    While Brady makes much more money in the NFL than Mitchell does in the CFL, the Stampeders signal caller has a pretty good life.

    Mitchell met his wife, Madison, while attending Eastern Washington University in Cheney, Wash., and playing for the Eagles football team. Madison would become the captain of the school’s cheerleading team.

    They make their home year round in Calgary, are involved with many charitable endeavours there and have a baby daughter named Ele. They are one really great looking family.

    It feels like if you sat down and talked to Mitchell, it would be really tough to actually hate him.

The veteran pivot will dish out respectful complements to opponents too, which another fact that shouldn’t be forgotten.

    During the current campaign, Mitchell is playing out the final year of his contract with the Stampeders. If he continues to have the success he has had, the NFL could come calling.

Bo Levi Mitchell, centre, knows how to escape trouble.

    Like former CFL star quarterbacks of the past like Warren Moon, Doug Flutie and Jeff Garcia, Mitchell is ready for that step.

    For present day, Mitchell, who has a radio show in Calgary, is an established star in the CFL. The colour he can bring with his gift for the gab adds interest to the circuit and to games that involve the Stampeders.

    The antics that could occur on Saturday will likely have more of a fun twist to them.

    Besides the colour, Mitchell has been a leader on the field and in the community for the Stampeders.

    He is one of those guys you want to be an ambassador for your league.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Rageahol runs through Rider Nation when Roughriders lose

Head coach and GM Chris Jones, centre, and the Roughriders lost a bad one.

    It is almost comical the way rageahol runs through Rider Nation when the Saskatchewan Roughriders lose.

    On June 15, the Roughriders opened the CFL regular season with a 27-19 victory over the defending Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts in the friendly confines of Mosaic Stadium. Everything was great, and Roughriders fans seemed to have visions of a memorable campaign ending in a Grey Cup triumph.

    On Thursday, the Roughriders played their second regular season game traveling to Ottawa to face the host Redblacks. Before 24,224 spectators at TD Place Stadium, the Redblacks rolled to a 40-17 victory.

    The Redblacks played great, but the Roughriders put on one of their classic stinkers. It seems like Saskatchewan is good for three of those a season even in championship campaigns.

    All of a sudden, it seems like a huge vocal group of Roughriders fans collectively push the panic button. The comments on sports talk radio and social media lines seems to be similar every time the Roughriders lose.

    There are calls for players to be traded and coaches and managers to be fired. At times, it seems like no one is immune to criticism in the Roughriders organization.

    If you search hard enough, you will probably find blame getting spread to the waterboy, Gainer the Gopher and the Rider Cheer Team.

    When you look at the schedule, the Roughriders were heading into a buzz saw in their match with the Redblacks.

Charleston Hughes (#39) and the Roughriders had a rough day in Ottawa.

    Saskatchewan was going into that contest on a short week with five off days between games and had to travel. Ottawa had a bye to start the 2018 campaign resulting in the benefit of an extra week to prepare for Saskatchewan.

    In most incidents where that type of situation occurs in professional football, a blowout occurs where the club with the extra rest wins by a lopsided score.

    For those that are part of Roughriders organization, it becomes a daily part of life seeing fans react in extremes with their emotions. The players try not to get too caught up in how the fans react and work on getting better for the next game.

    Thursday’s loss made me flashback to a bad setback the Roughriders had in the 2008 CFL season. On Oct. 13, 2008, the Roughriders were heading to Calgary to play the host Stampeder at McMahon Stadium.

    Both teams went head-to-head 10 days earlier at Taylor Field in Regina, where the Roughriders pulled out a 37-34 victory.

    Both clubs were sporting 9-5 records and the winner would sit alone in first place in the West Division. The squad that lost would fall in a three-way tie for second to fourth in the division with the Edmonton Eskimos and British Columbia Lions, who were both 9-6.

    It felt like the clash on Oct. 13, 2008 at McMahon Stadium was over minutes into the first quarter. The Stampeders romped past the Roughriders by a 42-5 final score.

    At the time, I had a number of friends who were playing for the Roughriders. After the game, I visited with a few of them outside the stadium where they boarded the bus.

Rider Nation had a tough day in Calgary on October 13, 2008.

    One friend, who was a fan favourite and a regular starter, came to me and he said he didn’t know why the team played so flat. He said everyone was pumped up and motivated for the game and the wheels basically fell off.

    The social media platform Facebook was still fairly new at this time and a lot more basic than it is now. My friend mentioned early in the season he went into Facebook after a loss and there were 30 direct messages waiting for him.

    He pretty much knew most of the messages would be negative so he selected all of them and hit delete. He expected he would have to do the same thing after that loss to the Stampeders.

    My friend on the team said you just had to correct mistakes and move on as nothing could be done to change the outcome of that defeat to the Stampeders.

    To show how long ago that was, most professional squads and high level amateur teams didn’t have policies regarding social media. Twitter was around but wasn’t widely used and Instagram didn’t exist.

    In the current day, most of the fans do their social media venting on Twitter and Facebook. There might be some harsh words in the comments section in the pictures teams post on their Instagram sites, but that isn’t a regular place where displeasure is shown.

    On a side note, I remember one other friend taking that loss in 2008 hard in Roughriders special teams coach Alex Smith. He came out of the stadium door, said “hi” and walked aimlessly into the distance.

    To this day, I think he came back to one of the two team busses, but I am not sure.

Members of Rider Nation leave McMahon Stadium on October 13, 2008.

    Whether it be 2008, 1958, 1968 or 2018, fans in Saskatchewan seem to project getting too high emotionally when the Roughriders win and too low emotionally when they lose.

    What seems to be forgotten is that when the Roughriders win, they still aren’t going to be the second coming of Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers NFL dynasty teams. When the Roughriders lose, they won’t be the current day version of the 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers sad sack NFL expansion team.

    All that matters is the 2018 CFL season still young.

    The Roughriders get to go out and try to be a little bit better in their next game on June 30, when they host the Montreal Alouettes (0-2) at 7 p.m. at Mosaic Stadium.

Awards loss by Rams’ Cross a “ho-hum” thing

Rams LB Nick Cross (#9) runs down Thunderbirds QB Cole Meyer.

    University of Regina Rams linebacker Nick Cross had a bit of an awkward week.

    During the 2017 U Sports football season, Cross entered his rookie campaign for the Rams starting at outside linebacker right out of high school. He appeared in all eight of the Rams regular season games recording 46 tackles, three tackles for a loss including a sack, two pass break ups, a forced fumble and an interception.

    For his efforts, he was awarded the Peter Gorman Trophy as the U Sports rookie of the year and a second team U Sports all-Canadian all-star.

    On Wednesday, Cross was stripped of both of those honours by U Sports due to testing positive for cannabis. The graduate of Regina’s Dr. Martin LeBoldus High School was subjected to a random drug test following the Rams final regular season game on Oct. 28, 2017, when they dropped a 44-15 decision to the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds in Vancouver.

    While cannabis will soon be legal, it is still on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s prohibited list. It will still be a banned substance during the U Sports competitive season when it becomes legal.

    Cross was suspended two months, and he became fully active to return to team activities on Jan. 4.

    Before being suspended, Cross appeared in the Rams 28-21 Canada West semifinal playoff loss to the Thunderbirds in Vancouver on Nov. 4, 2017.

    Cross was also stripped of his Canada West rookie-of-the-year award and his Canada West all-star honour.

    The Canada West reward the rookie of the year award to University of Calgary Dinos offensive lineman Tyler Packer and the all-star award at linebacker to Cyril Iwanegbe, who is also from the Dinos.

    At the U Sports national level, quarterback Tre Ford of the University of Waterloo Warriors became the new rookie of the year. The second team U Sports all-Canadian all-star award at linebacker went to Bailey Feltmate of the Acadia University Axemen.

    Of course, Cross tested positive for a drug that doesn’t enhance on field performance. If he battles with mental health issues regarding anxiety, it is possible cannabis might help him get calm before a game, so that technically would help improve performance.

    There would have been a time in the late 1990s and the early 2000s, when this would have been a more major story. In Saskatoon, the sanctions against Cross would have been well known due to the fact he played for the Rams, the Rams had an intense rivalry with Saskatoon and there were more people in the mainstream media that would track such a story.

    The fans in Saskatoon would be out in full force to heckle the Rams the next time they played the University of Saskatchewan Huskies at Griffiths Stadium, and Cross would have been a target. The rivalry between Saskatoon and Regina was very heated back then.

    These days, there likely aren’t very many people in the general public in Saskatoon who know Cross is. The news of the sanctions against him are pretty much “ho-hum” thing.

    A year ago, Rams linebacker Michael Stefanovic removed himself from the 2017 CFL Draft after an alleged doping violation. On May 4, 2017, the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) announced that a urine sample provided by Stefanovic during the CFL’s western regional combine in Regina on March 23, 2017 revealed the presence of drostanolone, which is a prohibited anabolic agent.

    At the time, a violation of the CCES’s anti-doping rules had not been confirmed, but the news about Stefanovic was disclosed due to the fact he was eligible for the CFL Draft.

    On October 23, 2017, the CCES confirmed Stefanovic’s doping violation. He was given a sanction of four years ineligibility from sport. He is ineligible to participate in any capacity with any sport signatory to the Canadian Anti-Doping Program including training with teammates.

    The news around Stefanovic barely made a ripple outside of Regina. Thanks to the fact he had exhausted his U Sports eligibility at the time of his drug infraction, there were very few follow up pieces if any in the mainstream media when his suspension was announced.

    It is highly unlikely Stefanovic would play any sort of competitive sport again, so there wouldn’t be any motivation to do any follow story in most media outlets.

    If what happened Stefanovic occurred in the late 1990s or early 2000s, that would have added fuel to the fire for Saskatoon fans to heckle the Rams.

    Also during that period of time if members of any Huskies teams went through situations like Cross and Stefanovic experienced, the Huskies teams would receive biting heckles by fans in Regina when they arrived in the Saskatchewan capital for road games.

    In the grand scheme of things, what Stefanovic was found guilty of was likely worse than what Cross was found guilty of. Cross’s infraction will likely be more of a small bump in the road.

    Thanks to the fact U Sports doesn’t have as high of a profile as it once did due to the media cut era of today, stories like the situations involving Cross and Stefanovic will be viewed as minor and will likely be quickly forgotten.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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