SASKATOON — The Saskatchewan Roughriders celebrated a mutually beneficial give-and-take with young players and fans on Saturday afternoon at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex.
During the annual State of the Nation fan forum, which is part of Coors Light Training Camp, Craig Reynolds mentioned that the CFL team — via the Roughrider Foundation — contributed a record $1.8 million to amateur football in Saskatchewan during the past year.
The Roughriders’ President-CEO added that Foundation player-ambassadors interacted with 16,000 students throughout the province while discussing the importance of mental health (via the Win With Wellness presentation series) and literacy (Rider Reading).
And, once the question-and-answer session began, a youthful devotee of the Green and White astutely asked Corey Mace about candidates “for the Number 2 running back role,” behind incumbent A.J. Ouellette.
“I’ve got to watch out for my job!” CKRM’s voice of the Roughriders, Dave Thomas, interjected while moderating a session that also included Reynolds, Mace and Vice-President of Football Operations/General Manager Jeremy O’Day.
“I think he was asking you, Dave,” Mace quipped. “Great question.
“Mario Anderson is an unbelievable running back. He’s still getting used to the (Canadian) game, as are the other young guys. Trent Pennix, he’s awesome as well. We still have who we like to call Thomas the Train (third-year Roughrider Thomas Bertrand-Hudon).
“We feel good about the guys we brought in. They all have different skill sets. Pennix looks like a linebacker who is as fast as a running back. Thomas the Train is steady. And Mario, last year in college (at Memphis) he had 1,700 total yards of offence, so we were pleased to get him.
“We feel confident. We can’t wait to see it versus somebody else just to validate what we think.”
As a prelude to the May 24th pre-season opener against the host Winnipeg Blue Bombers, the Roughriders conducted a variety of on-field activities (including a scrimmage) before an appreciative crowd at SMF Field on Saturday.
It was all part of Green and White Day, which also offers fans an opportunity to speak directly to key figures with the community-owned team.
Reynolds, introduced by Thomas as “the legendary quarterback of the Foam Lake Panthers,” recently celebrated his 10th anniversary as President-CEO.
O’Day, the GM since 2019, began his tenure with the team 20 years earlier when he signed with Saskatchewan as a free-agent offensive lineman in 1999. He celebrated 26 years as a Rider on Feb. 26.
Mace is entering his second season with the team, having earned West Division coach-of-the-year honours in 2024.
“The expectation is the same every year,” said Mace, who arrived in Saskatchewan with three Grey Cup rings in his collection.
“The Grey Cup Game is in a pretty good place this year, too.”
The 112th championship game is to be played at Winnipeg’s Princess Auto Stadium on Nov. 16th. The Roughriders are looking to take one more step after advancing to the 2024 Western Final, played in the Manitoba capital.
“With the passion of the fans, there’s the drive to win more Grey Cups here, because the people (in Rider Nation) deserve it … the players deserve it,” said O’Day, who has been a part of half the Roughriders’ championship teams — as a player (in 2007) and the Assistant GM (2013).
O’Day, the two current Assistant GMs (Kyle Carson and Paul Jones) and Player Personnel Co-ordinator Larry Dean have given Mace and his coaching colleagues an impressive talent base with which to work.
“Walking into training camp, we looked at the roster and we were like, ‘Ooooh … there’s going to be some tough (decisions),’ ” Mace said. “Certainly, there have already been some tough ones to this point.
“Ultimately, when we make the final roster, there are going to be some hard conversations. From the outside looking in, that’s a great problem to have.
“We feel very great about our depth on this team. We’re excited to once again, every day, allow these guys an opportunity to prove who’s going to be a part of it.
“It’s in their hands, truthfully, and it’s our job to find the best ones to put together the best team.”
THEY SAID IT
Notable and Quotable from State of the Nation:
CRAIG REYNOLDS
On a highlight from 2024: “The launch of the alt jerseys — the Obsidian jerseys. We thought they would be popular and people would like them, but we had no idea how popular they were going to be.”
On the array of ticket options for fans: “We reintroduced Flex Packs. That’s just a great, flexible option, where you have 10 tickets. You can bring five people to two games, or you can do the math on the flexibility there. The other thing we introduced is the Watermelon Pack. We know how popular Labour Day is and how quickly it sells out. We’re lucky enough this year to open up the entire CFL season on June 5th (against the visiting Ottawa REDBLACKS). We have a two-game pack where you can go to that game and see the first CFL game this year and also get yourself a Labour Day ticket.”
On newly appointed CFL Commissioner Stewart Johnston: “I’m really excited about what Stew can bring to the league. I was actually at my first CFL meeting with him on Wednesday of this week and I thought he handled himself very, very well. He outlined his vision and his approach. He has just got a great way about him and he has an outstanding resume for that role, especially given some of the things that are directly ahead for the league. We talked specifically about the TV contract for the league that is up at the end of 2026. Obviously, Stewart comes from Bell Media and has spent his whole life in television, so he is uniquely positioned to really understand the market and the value of the contract to TSN.”
On the overall state of the league: “There is a lot of positive momentum and I think a lot of credit goes to Randy Ambrosie, our outgoing Commissioner. I think he has left the league in really great shape. Television ratings are up and they’re specifically up with the younger fan base, which is very important. We have nine really strong, committed owners across the league.”
JEREMY O’DAY
On the Roughriders’ reputation: “Saskatchewan is a destination for players and everything now. They want to be here. They want to play for our Head Coach and our coaching staff. They want to be in front of the fans here in Saskatchewan.”
On building a team within salary constraints: “In a salary-cap world, you can’t have the best quarterback and the best O-line and the best receivers and the best D-line, (et cetera) … You have to piece your team together and it has to work financially. In some areas, you’re going to spend more money, and in other areas you’re going to hope you have some younger players who are a little less on the salary cap. We have to ask the question, ‘What’s our priority?’ … I say it every year: We spend every dollar that Craig allows us to and, well, if you saw this year, we were over the cap (by $40,121, largely due to a torrent of injuries).”
On a rule adjustment regarding defenceless receivers: “(It can apply) when a receiver is coming over the middle and doesn’t see a defender coming. The play last year that Shawn Bane Jr. got injured on, they actually used that as the example for it. When a receiver can’t see the defender and he hits him below the knee, that’s a really dangerous play. Now he’ll be penalized. It makes it a little bit harder on the defence. You’ve got to control your target when the receiver can’t see you. You’ve just got to raise the level of your target up and hopefully that will help to prevent those injuries.”
COREY MACE
On his personal highlight of 2024: “There were a lot of firsts on a personal level, but it’s tough to beat having a home playoff game in front of these fans and walking away with a win. That was a special one, for sure.”
On the CFL’s Command Centre: “Sitting through some of the league meetings and the rules meetings with representatives from the officials, trust me, they want to get it right. They really do. They are going to do a little bit of changing up in the Command Centre. They’re tightening up who’s in there and making it more of the same crew so there’s continuity. They want to get it right like everybody else. But I’ve never coached a perfect game. The players have never played a perfect game. The officials will never call a perfect game, although we desperately want them to. But we’re trying and they’re trying.”
On the most meaningful statistic: “Wins! … For us, we call it ‘obsession for possession’ and that’s in relation to the football. There is only one football out there. We’re trying to do everything we can to possess it when we have it and do everything we can to get it when we don’t. Certainly, our turnover ratio (a CFL-best plus-26) played out well for us last year. We’re obsessed with it, so we talk about it every day and we champion it every day.”
