Taylor Shire
Regina Leader-Post
The Saskatchewan Roughriders and Calgary Stampeders are set for a West Division showdown on Saturday night.
In Week 12 of the CFL season, the two teams will meet for the second time this season (5 p.m., TSN, McMahon Stadium) after the Stampeders beat the Roughriders 24-10 back in Week 6 in Regina.
Since then, the Roughriders have rattled off four straight wins to improve their record to 8-1 while the Stampeders, who are coming off a bye week, enter this game in second place in the division with a 6-3 record and four points back of Saskatchewan for first place at the midway mark of the season.
With the Stampeders having handed Saskatchewan its only loss of the season so far, the Roughriders are clearly looking forward to another crack at Calgary this week.
“Very much so,” said Roughriders quarterback Trevor Harris. “But you know, it’s just the next game on the list, and that’s really where our focus is going to be, is making ourselves the best team we can possibly become this week, and tee it up on Saturday against Calgary, who’s a great team this year.
“We’re excited about the challenge.”
Lineup changes
There’s just one change to Saskatchewan’s lineup this week as fullback Morgen Runge returns to the lineup to replace linebacker Nick Wiebe, who is out with a knee injury this week.
Brett Lauther will continue to handle kicking duties for the Roughriders while newly-signed kicker Campbell Fair remains on the practice roster.
After returning to practice in limited fashion this week, returner Mario Alford remains on the injured list as he nears a return to the lineup. Rookie Drae McCray will continue to handle return duties in Alford’s absence.
Meanwhile, Calgary will be without veteran receivers Dominique Rhymes and Tevin Jones as they have both landed on the one-game injured list. Rookie Damien Alford, who racked up 156 yards and two touchdowns the last time these two teams met in Week 6, returns to the lineup.
Dominant defences
In their last two games, the Roughriders have limited their opponents to just 15 points as the Green and White haven’t given up a touchdown in two straight contests.
While the Montreal Alouettes didn’t even get into the red zone against Saskatchewan in Week 9, the Roughriders were able to stop the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on both of their trips inside the 20-yard line last week.
“It’s just attention to detail for those guys and then capitalizing on opportunities,” said Roughriders head coach Corey Mace. “We talk about that all the time. They always present themselves; it’s just a matter of doing something with it.”
Entering this week, Saskatchewan’s defence is allowing a league-low 20.1 points per game with Calgary in second place with an average of 21.3 points allowed per game.
“They’re a great defence and so if you’re not executing at a high level, they’ll let you know,” said Harris. “They’re going to do that and they’ve done that all year.
“It’s paramount for us to make sure we’re executing at high level.”
Running attack
This game features two top running backs as Saskatchewan’s A.J. Ouellette, who is 12 yards away from 3,000 in his career, in third in the league this season with 648 rushing yards while Calgary’s Dedrick Mills is right ahead of him with 660 yards.
In Calgary’s last game before the bye week, Mills ran for a season-high 105 yards in a win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. In their Week 6 meeting, Mills ran for 85 yards against Saskatchewan and the Roughriders are putting an emphasis on shutting him down this week.
“They ran the ball well against us, so we’ve got to stop the run and then go from there,” said Roughriders linebacker C.J. Reavis, who had six tackles and an interception the last time these teams met.
The Stampeders lead the league in rushing yards with an average of 115.7 yards per game while the Roughriders defence ranks first with a stingy average of 69.1 yards allowed per game.
Containing Vernon
With starting quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., who has missed one start due to injury, in the lineup, the Stampeders are averaging 29 points per game which is nearly identical to what the Roughriders average at 29.1 points per game, which ranks second in the CFL.
Reavis and the rest of Saskatchewan’s defence know that as much as they’ll need to stop Mills along the ground, they also have to be aware of the dual-threat ability of Adams.
“He’s great with his legs but he keeps his eyes downfield as well when he runs,” said Reavis. “So keeping him contained in the pocket and just being good down the field.”
Calgary connection
And even though it’s his second trip back to Calgary since being named the head coach of the Roughriders last year, he still recalls fond memories of the city when he gets a chance to go back.
While Mace came to the Roughriders from the Toronto Argonauts in 2024, it was in Calgary where the former defensive lineman played and coached the longest.
“It was a special time,” Mace said of his time in Calgary from 2010-21. “That city means a great deal to me. I met my wife there. My daughter was born there. My in-laws all still live there. And I had a cool career and a lot of lifelong friends there.
“So certainly, I think that city will always mean something to our family. But when you go there as a road opponent, it doesn’t quite feel the same. And that’s good; we don’t want it to. So just excited to go back and just say hello to everybody.”
Last year, Saskatchewan won 37-29 in Calgary on Sept. 20 when running back Ryquell Armstead ran for 207 yards for the visitors.
tshire@postmedia.com
