Collaros excited to play against former Hamilton teammates

Zach Collaros will finally play the team that traded him as the veteran quarterback gets a sort of homecoming game Thursday.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders are to meet the Hamilton Tiger-Cats at Tim Hortons Field to kick off the 2019 CFL regular season.

Collaros spent four seasons in Steeltown. That included the 2015 campaign, in which he completed 70 per cent of his passes for 3,376 yards and 25 touchdowns against only eight interceptions in just 12 games. He was a nominee for the league award as Most Outstanding Player that season.

He was traded to the Roughriders in January of 2018 for a second-round pick in the CFL draft. He missed both games against the Tiger-Cats last season due to a concussion.

“You want to say it’s just another game but I’d be lying to you if there wasn’t some kind of significance,” the 30-year-old pivot said after a recent practice. “I have like 40 to 45 people coming to the game and a lot of close friends still playing or within the organization.

“I spent a good bulk of my career there and have some good memories.”

Collaros said he still keeps in touch with many players from his time with the Tiger-Cats, including receiver Luke Tasker.

“They were all at my wedding so those are close friends of mine, some of my best friends in the world,” Collaros said.

While he won’t see them on the opposite side of the ball when he lines up behind centre, he’s looking forward to playing against another former teammate — linebacker Simoni Lawrence.

“Me and (Lawrence) always used to yell back and forth at each other in practice so it will be fun to be on the other side of him,” Collaros said.

The Tiger-Cats offer a tough challenge for the Roughriders. According to a recent CFL media poll, 86 per cent of voters believe Hamilton will win the East Division.

“They have a lot of guys coming back, a lot of good players (on both sides of the ball),” Collaros said. “(They have) a hell of a coaching staff and guys that I came up with in this league and learned a lot of football from.”

Collaros and the Roughriders’ passing attack will be looking for a bounce-back year after a disappointing showing last season. The team threw only 11 touchdown passes, with nine of them coming from Collaros.

Despite last year’s results, new head coach Craig Dickenson is confident in the veteran signal-caller.

“I think he’s motivated to play well and to prove that maybe they made a mistake letting him go,” Dickenson said.

Experience should help the Roughriders see improvement. Receivers Shaq Evans and Kyran Moore now have a full season of CFL experience under their belts. Veterans Naaman Roosevelt, Cory Watson (whom the Roughriders signed in February) and K.D. Cannon (who joined the team near the end of the 2018 season) round out the team’s starting receiving corps.

Rookie Justin McInnis (whom Saskatchewan selected with the sixth pick overall in the 2019 draft) and German receiver Max Zimmermann could also see some playing time Thursday.

“Anytime you can build some sort of continuity, it’s a good thing,” Collaros said. “You have to continue to build that chemistry every single rep you get.

“They have to trust in me and I have to trust them … Those guys work their butts off and they’re going to continue to get better just like myself.”

The road hasn’t been kind to the Roughriders early in the season. The team has dropped its first road game in five straight seasons. The Roughriders last won their first road contest of the season in 2013 against the Edmonton Eskimos.

Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. The Green Zone’s pre-game coverage gets underway at 3 p.m.

EXTRAS: Guard Brendon LaBatte and slotback Patrick Lavoie were placed on the Roughriders’ six-game injured list prior to the season opener. LaBatte has been out with a groin injury … Former Roughriders quarterback Kevin Glenn announced his retirement on Thursday — his 40th birthday. Glenn had three stints with Saskatchewan in his career (2001-03, 2015 and 2017). His rights belonged to every Canadian-based team in the CFL during his 18-year career.