Former Saskatchewan Roughriders linebacker and current Regina Ward 1 Councillor Dan Rashovich endorses tailgating in the province and provides suggestions of his own.
"I'm all for it, I think it's going to be great. Let people set up early, probably very early in the morning, get set up," Rashovich said on the SportsCage. "Before I got here, I was thinking, our alumni, we could have a big tailgate set up, and we'll get Belton [Johnson] in there to get some barbecue competitions."
The 65-year-old Rashovich pointed out other CFL teams and their tailgating experiences.
"I know Calgary, they tailgate all around the stadium. I think it's another atmosphere, it creates a whole other level. It's a whole day thing where people can hang out, socialize and mingle with each other," Rashovich said. "I think it'll be great. Maybe you can rent spots throughout and possibly a revenue-maker as well, so I look forward to it."
Saskatchewan's government was approached by the Riders about tailgating earlier this year, according to the Green and White’s president and CEO Craig Reynolds. On October 22, the Saskatchewan government delivered its throne speech and announced plans to introduce a bill focused on tailgating. Fast forward to October 30, they introduced the Tailgating Act. That act will allow fans to tailgate near Mosaic Stadium and will need royal assent during this spring session to come into effect.
Reynolds explained why tailgating had been challenging in the past.
"Right now, the current legislation limits what you can do in terms of alcohol consumption and alcohol purchasing, so that piece of legislation needs to change," Reynolds explained. "The current legislation prevents bringing any outside alcohol in."
In addition to tailgating, Rashovich also gave his opinion on the Riders pending CFL free agents. Saskatchewan started the offseason with 44 players who had expiring contracts, one of those was 39-year-old quarterback Trevor Harris.
"Let's keep him upright. [I said] the O-line because when Harris has protection and has that little extra time, he gets the ball away. I think it's huge,” Rashovich detailed.
“Harris has a quick release; he's pretty damn good. I played with Kent Austin, Kent was a great quarterback, but Harris reads the field really quick and gets the ball really quick — you can't do that without an O-line."
