TORONTO — Kienan LaFrance stole the spotlight Saturday.
At a point in the game when many expected to see Trent Richardson, LaFrance was the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ tailback for their final drive during Saturday’s CFL game against the host Toronto Argonauts.
The 26-year-old product of Winnipeg delivered, gaining 39 yards on five carries to move the ball and grind down the clock. His efforts were part of an 11-play, 63-yard drive that ate up three minutes 14 seconds and led to Tyler Crapigna’s game-winning field goal in Saskatchewan’s 27-24 victory.
It was the second straight game in which LaFrance played a key role in the fourth quarter. On Sept. 29, he had six carries for 25 yards and a touchdown and one reception for 13 yards in the final frame as Saskatchewan rallied from a 17-7 deficit to beat the Ottawa Redblacks 18-17.
“Honestly, it’s a similar role to what I’ve been doing my whole career,” said LaFrance, who spent two seasons with Ottawa before signing as a free agent with the Roughriders in February. “But I’m definitely looking for that next step.
“I’m looking to progress as a running back individually. It’s always nice to be able to finish out a game, but I want to keep going — and I want to keep going as far as I can.”
Much of the talk going into Saturday’s game surrounded Richardson, a former NFL first-round draft pick whom Saskatchewan signed Sept. 26.
The 27-year-old product of Pensacola, Fla., was the subject of numerous interviews and stories prior to his CFL debut as people wondered how he would fare in his new surroundings.
Richardson rushed five times for 20 yards against the Argos, with a longest carry of five yards. He nearly broke loose on one of his carries, but was tripped up just as he bounced to the outside.
“It was a little different from the three downs, but other than that, I was pretty comfortable,” said Richardson, a former star at the University of Alabama who had NFL stints in Cleveland, Indianapolis, Oakland and Baltimore.
“I knew all the plays. I picked up my blocks pretty well. I thought I was going to break a big one, but the guy clipped my heels together. It’s just one of those things. I had fun, though.”
Richardson didn’t have a lot of practice time with Saskatchewan after signing — he returned to the United States to attend to personal business just prior to the game in Ottawa — but the coaching staff felt confident enough in his abilities as a runner and as a blocker to insert him into the lineup Saturday.
Richardson admittedly is still getting acclimated to the CFL game, but he wasn’t surprised by anything in his first game.
“I only know one speed and that has been installed in me from Day 1 playing as a six-year-old,” he said. “When it comes down to it, you’ve got to respect the game at any level.”
Despite Richardson’s pedigree, the Roughriders still chose to go with LaFrance down the stretch. The third-year CFLer didn’t disappoint, ripping off runs of 11, 11, 12, two and three yards on Saskatchewan’s final possession.
Prior to that drive, he had had just one carry for a loss of one yard in the second quarter.
“Trent Richardson speaks for himself,” said LaFrance, a product of the University of Manitoba Bisons. “He has a good resumé so it’s cool to be able to bring a guy like that onto the team to be able to compare games and learn stuff.
“But it’s special to have the team and the coaches rely on me and show that they have confidence in me to finish it out. It’s a confidence-booster and that’s exactly what I want: To be able to make them confident in me and help the team win.”
Roughriders head coach-GM Chris Jones pointed to LaFrance’s resumé to explain why the coaches used him in the latter stages Saturday.
During Ottawa’s playoff run in 2016, LaFrance replaced an injured Mossis Madu in the East Division final and rushed for 157 yards against the Edmonton Eskimos. LaFrance added 42 yards rushing and 31 yards receiving the following week as the Redblacks beat the Calgary Stampeders in the Grey Cup game.
“He’s a very good back,” Jones said. “He has got experience and, when we needed it in that last drive, I felt like the experience won out.”
Since losing Cameron Marshall to a knee injury in a game Sept. 3 against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, the Roughriders have struggled to run the ball consistently.
Saskatchewan had rushing totals of 94 yards (Sept. 9 in Winnipeg), 41 yards (Sept. 15 in Hamilton), 28 yards (Sept. 24 versus Calgary) and 60 yards (Sept. 29 in Ottawa) before accumulating 71 yards along the ground Saturday.
Jones said prior to Saturday’s game that the coaches hoped Richardson would spark the ground game, but it was LaFrance who closed out the contest at BMO Field. Richardson couldn’t do anything but accept the coaches’ decision.
“I guess that’s who they felt most comfortable with,” he said. “I wanted to be in (and) he wanted to be in. But they’re used to him, he has been here, so you’ve got to respect that.”
