Robservations: The scoop on the Training Camp Troop … the Roughriders-Hilltop(per)s history … and The Name Game
SASKATOON — As I write this in the press box at Griffiths Stadium, Morgan Fleury is focusing on Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback Shea Patterson as he fires a pass toward Jake Parker.
Little does Morgan suspect that the lens is about to turn in her direction.
Morgan, the Roughriders’ Digital Media Co-ordinator, is part of the Training Camp Troop — a group that also includes Arielle Zerr (Director of Communications), Blake Tiedeman (Digital Media Producer), Tyler Daku (Social Lead), Sebastian Soltes (Communications Assistant) and yours truly (CENSORED).
Every day, without exception, I marvel at my colleagues while appreciating who they are, what they do, and the fact that they tolerate a really annoying Senior Journalist and Roughriders Historian.
There is the daily deluge of bad jokes, Dad jokes and, well, all of the above. (“Did you hear the one about …?”)
There is the regularly scheduled demonstration of How To Spill Food On Everyone At The Dinner Table Except Yourself. (It’s an art. Stay tuned for the webinar.)
They tolerate all my groaner puns (guilty) and endless tails (ugh) about my dog, Candy, who is adorable.
Simply put, they’re the best — my colleagues, that is, as opposed to the puns.
Arielle is my boss and, moreover, my friend. She has helped to keep me alive through some tough times. She played a key role in the acquisition of my dog, whose all-world cuteness demands reiteration, and is blessed with remarkable perspective and compassion.
For example, she didn’t fire me after I ill-advisedly made a Taylor Swift joke at practice earlier this week. (Not a swift move on my part.)
Morgan is naturally, often unintentionally, hilarious. She has yet to utter a syllable that hasn’t cracked me up.
And, my goodness, she does amazing work. Her photos and videos are top-notch. As a bonus, DJ Morgy Morg is instantly available if music is required on the spot(ify).
Morgan works closely with Blake, whose fine company I enjoyed even before joining the Roughriders on Feb. 21, 2023.
During the latter years of my centuries-long tenure at the Regina Leader-Post, Blake would ask me to visit Mosaic Stadium and be interviewed for videos that paid tribute to the Roughriders’ SaskTel Plaza of Honour inductees.
Anyone who can turn a video that includes me into something watchable is a professional of the highest calibre.
Self-deprecation aside, that description fits Blake to a T, as in Tiedeman.
Or, as in Tyler.
Everything that appears on Riderville.com and the team’s sundry social media platforms goes through Tyler.
I cannot fathom how he does it all. There is so much to do, so much to organize, and it just … happens. How?
Daku the Dervish also finds time, somehow, to run incomprehensible distances.
One fine day, for example, he ran from Regina to Lumsden.
Pretty impressive, eh?
That was the first half of the journey!
I would be short of breath while travelling from Regina to Lumsden via Uber.
Sebastian, the rookie, made the trip from Calgary to Regina to join the Roughriders in late April.
He succeeds Thomas Judek, who evidently decided that one training camp as my roommate was enough and moved back home to Exshaw, Alta., where he is the newly appointed Communications Co-ordinator for the Municipal District of Bighorn.
Thomas, a true gem, will always be affectionately regarded as a Lifetime Member of the Training Camp Troop. (Confidential memo to T. Judek: Annual dues of $22,149 are payable in full by June 1.)
Trust Arielle do to the seemingly impossible: Hire someone who can follow in Thomas’s footsteps.
Welcome, Sebastian.
Born in 2003, he is three years younger than my bicycle. I thank him for not making jokes about my spare tire.
Sebastian has the makings of a Daku discipline. Both Troopers have a voracious appetite for whatever needs to be done.
Already, Sebastian has secured the coveted Training Camp Troop Rookie of the Year award.
He is, I assure you, a vast and welcome improvement over last year’s recipient.
HILLTOPS HISTORY
The Roughriders’ Green and White Day is to be held today at SMF Field — home of the Saskatoon Hilltops.
Saturday’s venue is rather fitting in light of our team’s history with the Hilltops.
In fact, one Roughriders-Hilltops game — yes, there used to be such a thing — was a record-smasher.
We take you back to Oct. 6, 1934, when the Hilltops visited the Queen City and were greeted by the first aerial barrage in Roughriders history.
Walter (Oke) Olson threw for 446 yards to pilot the Regina Roughriders to a 29-9 victory.
Olson produced the team’s first 400-yard passing game, at a time when even a 100-yard performance was off the charts.
According to Dave Dryburgh of the Regina Leader-Post, Olson’s yardage total was “without a doubt a record since the aerial toss was introduced into Canadian rugby.”
The 446-yard eruption endured as a Roughriders single-game standard until Nov. 11, 1963, when Ron Lancaster amassed 492 yards in a playoff game against the visiting Calgary Stampeders.
In regular-season play, Olson’s 446-yarder was not exceeded until Joe (747) Adams threw for 483 yards in Edmonton on Aug. 5, 1983.
That ties in quite nicely, thank you, to the other record-setting performance of Oct. 6, 1934 — an 11-catch, 234-yard gem by Steve Adkins.
Adkins’ yardage total was not exceeded by a Roughrider until, yes, Aug. 5, 1983, when Chris DeFrance caught nine of Adams’ passes for 260 yards.
DeFrance’s receiving-yardage record has stood since that Friday evening at Commonwealth Stadium.
Adkins’ Roughriders receptions record was not matched until Hugh Campbell hauled in 11 passes against the Montreal Alouettes at Taylor Field.
Adkins and Campbell shared Saskatchewan’s single-game receptions record until Molly McGee caught 13 passes against the visiting B.C. Lions on July 20, 1977.
Joey Walters topped McGee’s record by one on Oct. 21, 1979 against the host Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Craig Ellis equalled Walters’ mark on July 19, 1985 versus the visiting Montreal Concordes.
Walters and Ellis are now tied for second all-time, behind Don Narcisse. Narco caught 15 passes against the host Toronto Argonauts on Oct. 31, 1993.
As for Adkins, his 11 catches place him in a 13-way tie for 17th in Roughriders history.
From 1933 to 1935, the Roughriders and Hilltops opposed each other twice a year in Saskatchewan Rugby Football Union competition. The Roughriders won all six matches.
The Hilltops have been a junior football franchise since 1947. Last year, Saskatoon captured its 23rd Canadian Junior Football League title.
SMF Field is part of Saskatoon’s Gordie Howe Sports Complex. The expansive athletic facility also includes Cairns Field, where the Roughriders and Hilltops collided on Sept. 16, 1933, Oct. 30, 1934 and Sept. 28, 1935.
(Fast fact: I covered all three of those games.)
I will also be at SMF Field for Green and White Day.
The gates open today at noon.
State of the Nation — featuring Craig Reynolds (President-CEO), Jeremy O’Day (Vice-President of Football Operations/General Manager) and Corey Mace (Head Coach) — is to commence at 1 p.m. and last 45 minutes.
Dave Thomas, 620 CKRM’s new voice of the Riders, will moderate a panel discussion before the floor will be opened to questions from the fans.
Also on hand for Green and White Day will be Gainer the Gopher, the 620 CKRM Rider Cheer Team and the 620 CKRM Rider Pep Band.
Face-painting, inflatables, music and games will also be a part of the family-oriented event.
A Roughriders practice — always a must-see with Mace in charge — is to begin at 3 p.m.
Starting at 5 p.m., the players will sign autographs and pose for pictures along the fence.
That will not be the final football activity of note at SMF Field on Saturday.
At 7 p.m., the Saskatoon Valkyries will face the Regina Riot in Western Women’s Canadian Football League action.
I can hardly wait to cover that game, too.
HILLTOPPERS HISTORY
Roughriders receiver Jerreth Sterns, who posted NCAA-best totals of 150 catches and 1,902 receiving yards for the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers in 2021, is about to the introduced to the home of the Hilltops.
Sterns joined the Roughriders in early July of 2023, so he missed out on last year’s Green and White Day.
“I’ve heard a lot of good things about Green and White Day, so I’m excited,” Sterns said. “Hopefully we can put on a good show for the fans.”
Roughriders quarterback Trevor Harris also has a connection to the Hilltoppers.
In his final game of college football with the Edinboro Fighting Scots, Harris threw for five touchdowns and ran for two other scores in an NCAA Division II playoff classic on Nov. 21, 2009. The final score was 84-63, in favour of the West Liberty Hilltoppers.
KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES, ETC.
When linebacker Stephen Smith signed with the Roughriders on May 12, he became the 51st Smith in team history.
That includes Smiths who have played or tried out for the team.
Thanks to the five Johnsons who were part of the team at the outset of camp, Johnson is now second on the Roughriders’ all-time surnames list (48).
Williams (42) is in third place, followed by Jones (40), Brown (38), Thomas (27), Davis (22), Robinson (21), Taylor (21), Miller (19), Harris (18), Anderson (17), Clark (17), Jackson (17), Walker (17), Wilson (16), Allen (15), Campbell (15), Hall (15), Young (15), Hill (14), Ford (13) and Thompson (13).
ROLL CREDITS …
- Nice people who deserve a plug: Mike Maccagnan, T.J. Brunson, Michelle Duchene, Caleb Sanders, Jerreth Sterns, Dave Thomas, Joe Couch, Trevor Reid, Ryan Sceviour, Jayden Dalke, Ryan Dalke, Godfrey Onyeka, Amari Henderson, Jack Coan, Cedric Cormier, A.J. Allen, Wray Morrison, Tim Thurmeier, Evan Johnson, Jared MacDonald, Jeff Stusek, Scott Flory, Harvey Kehler, Jon Kitna, Tyson Helton, Jakoby McClain, Shawn Bane Jr., C.J. Coldon, Leo Bowley, Heather Polischuk, Ernie Polischuk, Bob MacPherson, Lynda MacPherson, Derrick MacPherson, Scott McKenzie, Don Rice, Jackson Imrie, Jeff Fairholm, Madison Fairholm, James McFarland, Mason Fine, Louis Christ, Patricia Robertson, Grant Black, Donna Mack, Joan Mack and, with thanks for 25 years, three days and three dogs of marriage, Chryssoula Filippakopoulos.
