As the Saskatchewan Roughriders take on the BC Lions in CFL preseason action in Regina, SK, May 27, 2023. Photo Electric Umbrella/Liam Richards
Three of Mason Fine’s passes resulted in a touchdown by a graduate of the University of Regina Rams and LeBoldus Golden Suns.
The first such score, by B.C. Lions linebacker Ryder Varga, was on an 11-yard interception return early in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s CFL pre-season game at Mosaic Stadium.
But the next two touchdowns — connections from Fine to Saskatchewan Roughriders teammate Mitch Picton — proved to be the difference as the Green and White registered a 30-27, come-from-behind victory.
“I’m super-proud of Mason,” Picton said. “Obviously, with his first throw of the night, he’d probably like to have that one back. But to battle back like that, score two touchdowns, and come back with the W is huge.”
Not only for the Roughriders, but also for Fine’s standing on the quarterbacking depth chart.
Throughout Coors Light Riders Training Camp in Saskatoon, Fine has been part of a too-close-to-call friendly competition with Jake Dolegala and Shea Patterson for the No. 2 job, behind Trevor Harris.
Dolegala was the first to get the call in the Roughriders’ 2023 pre-season opener. He completed 12 of 17 passes for 97 yards in addition to running the ball three times for 23 yards, including a one-yard major.
Patterson took over late in the first half and went 10-for-14 for 77 yards — 22 of which came on a picturesque touchdown strike to Keith Corbin III early in the third quarter.
With Dolegala and Patterson having performed impressively, Fine entered the game and, on the opening offensive play of the fourth quarter, looked three yards downfield for Kendall Watson.
The Regina-born Varga, who joined the Rams in 2017 after starring at LeBoldus, diagnosed the play and was soon seen trotting into the north end zone.
Picton, also a distinguished Rams/Golden Suns alum, was quick to provide Fine with encouragement.
“I went up to him after that pick-six and said, ‘Hey, let’s move forward and let’s go win this game,’ ” Picton said. “It’s pretty cool that we were able to make that come to fruition.”
Varga’s touchdown, coupled with a Stefan Flintoft convert, gave the Lions a 27-17 lead. One kickoff later, Fine was back on the field — a mere 35 seconds after the Varga TD.
The play was difficult to digest, initially, but you wouldn’t see Mason jarred.
Not on this night.
Not in his history, if you flip back a few pages.
Fine smartly and smoothly moved the Roughriders’ offence 60 yards in seven plays, the last of which was a four-yard TD toss to Picton.
Two series later, Fine directed a six-play, 75-yard march that culminated in a 12-yard scoring pass to Picton. That touchdown, which came with 2:44 remaining in the game, proved to be the winner.
Swarmed by reporters in a post-game scrum, Fine was asked to guide the group through an eventful, and ultimately redemptive, fourth quarter.
“You’re sitting kind of the whole game, for three quarters,” he recounted. “You try to stay warm. You’re trying to throw. But you haven’t thrown to a receiver on a route or seen a defence move in about 2½ hours. You’ve just got to be ready … and then you go out there and about the worst possible thing that could have happened, happened.
“I was down bad there for a minute. I had great teammates and coaches come over there and pick me up. It was ‘reset’ and get that mentality back and go out there and sling the ball. That’s what I’ve done in the past.
“I’m going to go out there and play my game and just go and play football. I’m just going to go sling it and whatever happens, happens.
“There were a lot of ups and downs, but it was great to finish like that.”
Fine was subsequently asked whether his robust response to the interception was reflective of his development as a quarterback.
“Two years ago,” the question concluded, “if you had thrown that pick-six, would you have been as aggressive as you were today?”
Fine’s answer was as emphatic as the matter in which he seemingly expunged the Varga interception from the memory bank.
“Yeah, I would have,” the 26-year-old signal-caller stated, “because if you go back and watch it in college, I always brought my team back and I always believed we all had a chance.
“We had a ton of fourth-quarter comebacks in my time at the University of North Texas, so every single time I set foot on that field, I know we have a chance to win. I’m going to go out there and do my best.”
And he ultimately impressed, completing eight of 10 passes for 110 yards while sporting a team-best quarterback-efficiency rating of 112.5.
Fine also earned high marks from the Roughriders’ Head Coach.
“Mason … great comeback,” Craig Dickenson said. “You know, that touchdown at the end was on the same play that he threw the interception on — same play.”
To someone from the same school.
What were the odds?
Not favourable, it appeared from the comfort of the press box, after the interception-return major by Varga.
But after that play by Ryder, contributions from one Rider after another made the difference.
The first payoff pitch to Picton was set up by Fine’s completions to Juwan Brescacin (for 19 yards) and Randy Satterfield (25), along with a 12-yard run by Rodney Smith.
On the climactic drive, Brescacin made two more catches (for gains of eight and 12), Smith took off on a 15-yard run, and Watson hauled in a 26-yard pass from Fine.
Saskatchewan’s defence proceeded to force a turnover on downs.
It was then left to the Roughriders’ offence to extinguish the final 65 seconds — the perfect punctuation mark being a kneel-down by Fine.
In only 15 minutes of duty, he proved to be the man of the hour.
