SASKATOON — After fielding a line-up filled with rookies and players seeing their first Canadian Football League action in their loss to Calgary last weekend, the Saskatchewan Roughriders aren’t messing around in their final game of the preseason.
Fans will notice plenty of familiar names from Saskatchewan’s Grey Cup run when they take the field on Saturday night against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon — something that promises to be a preview of what the Riders have to offer this season.
There’s still work to be done when it comes to filling out positions behind the championship winning starters, though, and finding a way to work everyone into the game and get their reps in has been one task for the coaching staff this past week.
Fortunately, it hasn’t proven too onerous as task, as the team has developed a decent feel for what they have in camp over the last couple weeks.
“A few things played into it, like how our season is going to be rolled out to get started in week one, and certainly, I'm not oblivious to the opportunity for our fan base up here to see some of their favorite guys, too,” Roughriders head coach Corey Mace said. “So it’s a pretty easy decision of deployment, but ultimately, whoever gets their number called, you got to be ready to go.”
That means that while the team’s less experienced players might not get as many plays as they had in the pre-season opener, Mace and his staff expect them to perform to the level expected.
“Sometimes you got to grow up fast,” Mace said, with rookie offensive linemen Erik Anderson and Jaison Williams offered as examples. “You're going to get a mental test, you're going to get a physical test, but we feel they're ready for that and ultimately, they got to go out there and prove that.”
One player that has no shortage of experience in pre-season situations is quarterback Trevor Harris, who will get the start against the Bombers. The veteran pivot has spent training camp progressing through a list of training camp goals and accomplishments and feels he’s ready to once again have an impact on the field.
“I just want to come out and take it one play at a time, execute as long as they’ll let me play, and hopefully I get to play a long time,” Harris said.
One thing that’s certain is there will be a special environment for the game. Fans in Saskatoon don’t get many chances to see their CFL team in action, and the buzz has been palpable all week. The key is to just take it all in and make sure job gets done.
“I don't think it's going to change their mindset, all these guys, everybody's superstitious, I'm sure they'll still be going through their routines,” Mace said. “As far as the fan experience, I'm pumped for that. I'm pumped to see and hear everybody out here. I'm going to look out my dorm room and see how early people are out there in the beer gardens, it’ll kind of give me an idea how loud they're going to be. But man, what an experience. I'm just happy that these guys will still have an opportunity to hear Rider Nation.”
Through it all, there’s still the elephant in the room — this will be last game Saskatchewan plays until the middle of June thanks to having a bye in Week 1, and that makes for some strange times going into the near future.
Harris expects that to have little effect on the game proper, and after that, it’s just about staying on an even keel until it’s time to get back on the field.
“Everything is about doing the reps and the right thing,” Harris said. “If you make a mistake, it’s wiped clean and you have to show you can come back from adversity. If you’re playing great ball and having a great drive, it’s about coming now and not stepping foot off the pedal.
Then it’s just making sure you’re the same person every day, meaning you’re having a great influence on the guys and keep doing everything you can to keep ascending to where we’re trying to get to.”
Kick-off on Saturday night is set for 5 p.m. from Griffiths Stadium. The Riders Broadcast Network pregame show begins at 2 p.m., and you can catch Dave Thomas and Luc Mullinder with the game call at kickoff!
