During every Rider Broadcast Network pregame show, former Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive lineman and current live game analyst Luc Mullinder offers his Three Keys to the Game. In a recurring segment this season, we’ll take a look at how the Riders met or missed when it came to those metrics and how big of an effect they had on the outcome.
During the Western Semi-Final against the B.C. Lions, the Riders had a so-so showing on the three points — but the one they lost on was the defining factor in their season coming to an end.
1- Turnovers. They’re season-defining at this point — just look at the Eastern Semi-Final — and that’s going to be a big one today, especially in a potential track-meet game. Win the turnover battle and your odds of winning go up dramatically.
How did the Riders Do? A solid win.
The way the game literally started, it looked like Saskatchewan was going to win this category in a complete walk, as Jameer Thurman stripped James Butler of the ball on the first play of the game, leading to Brett Lauther’s first of six field goals on the afternoon.
Jaxon Ford then had a third-and-short stop in the second quarter that turned into the Riders’ lone touchdown of the game.
Saskatchewan’s only turnover came late in the first half off an interception, but the Lions were unable to do anything with it.
So the Riders created 10 points off turnovers, the Lions none. And that’s as clear cut a win in the turnover battle as there can be.
2 – Second half adjustments will be critical. B.C. appeared to do a better job in the final meeting, and it halted Saskatchewan’s momentum, so figure out how to better combat the Lions after halftime.
So How Did the Riders Do? Ummmm…
There’s no way to sugarcoat it. The second half adjustments made by the Lions were superior to those made by the Riders, and that combined with some ugly struggles on both sides of the Riders' ball after the break was the deciding factor.
Nathan Rourke was able to pick apart Saskatchewan’s defence after the break, using both big plays and nickel-and-dime drives to get the Lions into scoring territory five times, resulting in 20 points going on the board.
Perhaps the biggest factor on the other side of the ball was B.C.’s run defence, as despite being banged up up front, they were able to shut down a Saskatchewan run game that looked like it was going to have a field day in the first half.
Now, had the Riders defence not missed at least a dozen tackles in the second half, including a handful of glorious sack opportunities on Rourke, we might be talking about the game completely differently.
But that 20-9 win by B.C. in the second half was the defining moment of the game, and consequently, the season.
3 – Gut check time. You gotta remember who the (heck) you are. You are the reigning, defending Grey Cup champions and you know how to be a champion. So go out there and be champions, and that doesn’t change until someone changes it.
How Did The Riders Do? Fought until the bitter end.
Make no mistake about it, the Riders looked like their Grey Cup champion selves for much of the first half. That 17-3 lead they built looked like it was straight out of the early season, and it appeared that it was going to be a walk-in-the-park upset at that point.
But for whatever reason, Saskatchewan just couldn’t stop hurting themselves as the game progressed, looking more like the Ottawa Redblacks than the crew that led the West Division through the first half of the campaign.
Sure, the Lions were getting the job done, but there were many B.C. drives that would have been snuffed out if the Riders were playing championship-level football.
Then came the end of the game, and the gutsiest of gut checks by Saskatchewan nearly tied the game. The decision to kick the early field goal, the stand by the defence to force a missed field goal and Sexton’s run out of the end zone, and the final drive with seconds on the clock coming down to the final play?
Looked like something straight out of 2025.
In the end, Saskatchewan came up short, but no one can say they didn’t leave it all on the field.
