Taylor Shire
Regina Leader-Post
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are on the hunt for a third consecutive victory.
After beating the Calgary Stampeders and Ottawa Redblacks in back-to-back weeks, the Roughriders visit the Edmonton Elks on Saturday (5 p.m., TSN) in Week 18 of the CFL season.
While the Riders (7-7-1) are closing in on a playoff berth having won two straight games, the Elks (5-10) are coming off a 55-27 loss to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers last week, which was Edmonton’s second straight defeat.
For the Riders, who went through a seven-game winless skid from Week 8 to Week 14, they’re looking to stay hot with three games left in the season.
“I think we’re the most battle-tested group out there,” said defensive tackle Micah Johnson. “There was never a point that we thought we were going to keep losing. We were all just preparing and continuing to work expecting and waiting for the turnaround and here it is late in the season.
“You want to be playing your best ball right now.”
Hickson starts
With running back Ryquell Armstead (shoulder) heading to the one-game injured list, Frankie Hickson will draw the start this week after being a healthy scratch for the last two games.
“I think anybody on the field would say we’re just waiting for an opportunity,” said Hickson, who has carried the ball 76 times for 392 yards this year. “I think we’re just a whole bunch of hungry guys who are just waiting for their opportunity to shine and ultimately, that means some people are going to get left out sometimes.
“The question is, ‘How can you manage it and how can you be a man and do things the right way?’
“You just have to take care of the things that you can control.”
Williams suspended
Roughriders defensive back Deontai Williams will be forced to miss this week as he has been suspended for one game by the CFL.
With six seconds left in last week’s game, Williams delivered what the CFL called “an illegal and dangerous tackle on Ottawa wide receiver Kalil Pimpleton.” He also committed “a non-football act by striking another Ottawa player,” which led to the suspension.
Bane out
With receiver Shawn Bane Jr. (knee) also heading to the one-game injured list, Jerreth Sterns will start at slotback this week after being a healthy scratch for the last six games.
This season, Sterns has racked up 324 receiving yards on 25 receptions after entering the season as a starter.
“We’ll miss Shawn Bane,” said quarterback Trevor Harris. “But we know Jerreth provides a different skillset; a different type of receiver at that position.
“I have full faith in the guys out there. If our coaches have put the guys out there, that means they’re capable of doing it and they’re going to get the football.”
Reavis returns
After missing last week’s game with a knee injury, linebacker C.J. Reavis is set to return to the lineup this week.
“I feel great,” said Reavis. “Happy to be back.
“It was hard watching my guys go out there last week and play but they did a hell of a job so I’m happy to be back out there with them.”
With Reavis returning, DaMarcus Fields will shift back to halfback while Amari Henderson will slide over to play cornerback for the suspended Williams.
Roster notes
There’s a change along the offensive line as Jacob Brammer (knee) is out this week, meaning Nick Jones starts at right guard.
Along the defensive line, Bryan Cox Jr. returns after a one-game absence while Habakkuk Baldonado (knee) is a game-time decision.
Linebacker Justin Herdman-Reed (elbow) also returns to the lineup this week.
Close calls
While Edmonton has not won at home against Saskatchewan since 2018, over the last 14 meetings between the two teams, 13 have them have been decided in the final three minutes, with Saskatchewan holding a 10-4 record over that span.
After the Riders won 29-21 over Edmonton in Week 1, the Elks got their payback in Week 8 as they beat Saskatchewan 42-31, powered by a rushing attack that generated 276 combined yards along the ground.
“They beat us bad last time and us as a defence, as a whole team, we don’t like that at all,” said Reavis. “We’ve got a bad taste in our mouth so it’s time to go back there and get our licks back.”
“They’ve got a good stable of running backs and they’ve got a very good run game,” added Johnson. “I don’t think we did a good job of adjusting to (their gameplan) last game.
“It was like every time someone was out of the gap, they made us pay for it so for us it was just a game to open our eyes and understand how much discipline factors in with 12, so we’ve got to do it all together.”
While the Riders have allowed the second-fewest rushing yards per game (80) this year, the Elks rank second in the CFL with an average of 125 rushing yards per game, setting up an interesting matchup along the ground.
“They’re a dangerous team,” said Riders’ head coach Corey Mace, who also serves as the defensive coordinator. “We found that out firsthand.
“We’ve got to watch the tape. It obviously wasn’t one of our bright spots in the run game (defence) and they’ve been consistently doing it to every team that they play.
“They’re patient runners and if you give them a crease, they’re going to find it and then they get to the second level; that’s when you’re in trouble.
“So certainly, we’ve got to anticipate that we’ll probably get a good dose of the run game, but we’ve got to make sure that we’re gap sound.”
For the Elks this week, Justin Rankin starts at running back while Javon Leake will serve as the backup. Kevin Brown is on the one-game injured list.
Quarterback query
While quarterback Tre Ford was able to lead the Elks to victory the last time these two teams met, Edmonton will be starting McLeod Bethel-Thompson this week.
The 36-year-old Bethel-Thompson has thrown for 3,369 yards with 22 touchdowns and nine interceptions this season, including a 336-yard performance against the Riders back in Week 1.
“It’s more consistent,” Johnson said of Edmonton’s offence with Bethel-Thompson. “McLeod is a guy who can make all the reads.
“Both of them are good quarterbacks but they both present two different challenges. A lot of times Tre, he will kill you with the off-script plays.
“McLeod is a little more consistent with his reads and what he’s looking for.”
Rookie encore
Rookie receiver Dhel Duncan-Busby made the most of his opportunity in his first career start last week.
Against the Redblacks, the 25-year-old caught seven passes for 93 yards helping the Riders secure the 29-16 victory.
This week, Duncan-Busby is hoping for an encore performance, both individually and as a team, as he draws his second straight start.
“I was glad I was able to go out there and show what I can do,” said Duncan-Busby. “More glad that we got the win; that’s kind of the more important thing.”
Penalty problems
Last week against Ottawa, Saskatchewan committed nine penalties for 115 yards, including a 15-yard face mask infraction, a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty and a 25-yard rough play disqualification call against Williams.
This week, Mace has addressed those issues with the team and hopes it can be cleaned up.
“The extra stuff that you can avoid, those are the non-negotiables,” said Mace. “That’s why some of the stuff last week was disappointing.
“Part of football, there’s going to be penalties unfortunately that just come with the game that you can’t avoid, but it’s the ones that you can avoid, those are the ones that we got to get rid of.”
