Taylor Shire, Regina Leader-Post
Whoever had the ball last was likely going to win the game.
That’s what was said last week, and it was repeated this week as the Saskatchewan Roughriders battled the Edmonton Elks in the second game of a home-and-home series on Saturday night at Commonwealth Stadium.
After quarterback Cody Fajardo led the Elks to a walk-off win last week in Regina with Vincent Blanchard kicking a 57-yard field goal, Saskatchewan was able to secure the split with a 28-26 victory in Week 9, as Roughriders quarterback Trevor Harris ended the game with the ball in his hands in victory formation.
Here are the top takeaways from the game:
10 Thoughts
1. It was another back-and-forth battle between the top two teams in the West Division as the Roughriders improved to 5-2 to close the gap on the first-place Elks, who fell to 6-2. Edmonton has surprised many with their strong start to the season after finishing in the basement of the division at 7-11 last year, but it’s clear they’ve got a team that will contend this year. At this point, while Winnipeg appears to have fallen off, you can’t count out Calgary or even B.C., with a healthy Nathan Rourke, however Saskatchewan-Edmonton is looking like a possible West Final matchup. And who knows what will be on the line when the two teams meet again in the final week of the regular season.
2. He’s been mentioned several times here in the past, but Tommy Stevens is getting another shootout in 10 Thoughts this week. The “short-yardage specialist” rushed for 29 yards and three touchdowns in the win and helped close out the contest with a 10-yard run on Saskatchewan’s final drive, before battling through an injury to stay on the field. The TSN broadcast crew even called him a “cheat code” at one point in the game. He’s now up to a league-leading eight rushing touchdowns on the year and is closing in on his career high of 10 with Calgary in 2024. He’s been one of Saskatchewan best free agent signings in recent years.
3. Just like they did a week ago, the Elks appeared to catch the Riders off guard on the opening drive as they put together an efficient series capped off with a Justin Rankin rushing touchdown. After giving up 510 passing yards to Fajardo last week, it looked like we could be in store for another shootout this week. However, Saskatchewan’s defence was able to lock in as they only allowed 286 passing yards while forcing Edmonton to four field goals, before giving up a late touchdown to make it a close game at the end. It was a solid bounceback performance despite playing without a couple of key defenders, which I’ll get to next. And while Rankin scored a touchdown, Saskatchewan’s defence held him in check for a second straight game, allowing him to run for just 28 yards after giving up 39 last week.
4. As for those missing defenders, the Roughriders were playing without halfback Rolan Milligan Jr., who was placed on the six-game injured list this week after going down in practice on Wednesday, while Tevaughn Campbell left the game before being spotted with his right arm in a sling. Jonathan Edouard, who has turned into a nice midseason signing, once again held his own at halfback for Milligan while James Burgess Jr., who was cut in camp before rejoining the team during the season, played just fine for Campbell. Saskatchewan’s depth was certainly tested but the group responded well.
5. Offensively, the depth was tested considerably as well. Without running back A.J. Ouellette and receiver Samuel Emilus, who was a late scratch after being listed as a game-time decision, the Roughriders deployed a few rookies in the game including running back Quali Conley and receiver Daniel Wiebe. After Kian Schaffer-Baker left the game in the second half with an injury, D’Sean Mimbs was able to step up and make an important 18-yard catch on second down, which led to a touchdown. The fact that they were able to win with the group that was on the field says a lot. They’ll become much more lethal with a healthy lineup, but the next man up is playing just fine.
6. As for Conley, it wasn’t quite Saquon Barkley, but he had a remarkable backwards hurdle early in the second half. Conley got spun sideways before doing a full spin over a defender for a gain of 12 yards. While he dropped what would have been a long gain through the air in the first half, he also chipped in with a 29-yard reception in the second half to help set up a touchdown. His 11-yard gain on the final drive to help run out the clock capped off a solid night for the rookie.
7. Much like Stevens, Alex Hale is becoming a regular topic in 10 Thoughts — for all the wrong reasons. The good news is that it wasn’t returned for a touchdown, but the bad news is that the rookie kicker missed another field goal on Saturday, a 42-yard attempt, which was his only kick of the night. While he made a pair of converts, he’s now one-of-five from 40-plus yards this season. You have to wonder if the leash has finally run out.
8. Edmonton general manager Ed Hervey’s revealing interview during the pre-game show that was re-aired during halftime was as interesting as it gets. He spoke about how, in 2025, he came in and made changes to his roster by consulting with the community initiatives team about which players showed up for community events on time and which players gave them trouble. He then talked about some interesting tactics about trying to get the inside scoop on which players weren’t fitting into the culture he was trying to build in the locker room. Worth a watch if you didn’t see it.
9. Saskatchewan’s pass rush was effective on Saturday. While the biggest sack of the night goes to linebacker Josh Woods, who downed Fajardo following a full-out blitz by the Riders late in the fourth quarter, the defensive line had a strong performance. Derick Roberson, playing in his first game since joining the Riders from the UFL, notched his first CFL sack after getting more playing time in the second half while Caleb Sanders had another. And while rookie Desmond Evans took a couple of penalties that shouldn’t be taken, he wreaked havoc in the backfield and is becoming quite the complement to veterans Mike Rose and James Vaughters. Overall, it’s a very strong group considering how much turnover there was at the position this off-season following the retirement of Micah Johnson and the departures of Malik Carney and Habakkuk Baldonado in free agency.
10. The Roughriders are now set to host the winless Ottawa Redblacks on Friday at Mosaic Stadium. It will be the second and final meeting of the season between the two teams after the Riders won 27-22 in Ottawa back in Week 5 in a game that Stevens also closed out. We often praise the parity in the CFL this season, and it’s true for eight of the nine teams, but the Redblacks (0-7), who recently fired defensive coordinator Will Fields after their recent loss to Montreal, don’t appear to have much hope this season. However, they’ll still play the game and I’ve seen much crazier things happen in the CFL.
