The third time was the charm for the Saskatchewan Roughriders against the Calgary Stampeders, with Saskatchewan winning 20-17 at McMahon Stadium on Saturday.
Calgary had won the previous two games between the two CFL clubs, closing in on the Riders for second place in the West Division and the right to host a home playoff game. The win now gives the Riders (6-4) a game advantage over the Stamps (5-6) in the standings.
“Hopefully it gives us a shot of confidence. We feel like we have a good team and winning games like that late in October should build some confidence,” Riders head coach Craig Dickenson said.
“We haven’t beaten Calgary in the last two (seasons). I think it was a very big game. Was it a playoff-calibre game? Not quite, but as far as the regular season goes, that was a big, big game for us.”
It was the first time the Riders had beaten the Stamps since a 29-24 win on Oct. 28, 2018, and the win marked a couple of firsts for some Riders.
“Winning here at McMahon has been tough; I’ve got a lot of bad memories here,” said Riders quarterback Cody Fajardo, who won his first game against the Stamps as a starting quarterback. “We did a goal sheet and one of the things I put on my goal sheet was punch a ticket to the playoffs.
“We’re on the right track.”
Fajardo finished the game completing 21 of his 26 passes for 222 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception. Slotbacks Kyran Moore and Brayden Lenius caught touchdown passes for the Riders.
It was also the first time Dickenson bested his younger brother — Stamps head coach Dave Dickenson — since he became the Saskatchewan bench boss in 2019.
“It feels good and I thanked the guys. I feel like I can finally go home for Christmas dinner and not have to sit at the (kid’s table). Hopefully, the family will take me back,” Dickenson said. “I’m proud of those guys, they played their hearts out.”
It wasn’t smooth sailing for the Green and White to start the game. The team struggled to get much going offensively in the first half, only mustering six points.
“Do our job was the main point (at halftime). It wasn’t like we weren’t moving the ball. We might have had one or two punts in the first half, but it was inopportune turnovers,” Fajardo said. “I was really proud of the guys to not let the negative thoughts affect them.”
The Riders came out quickly in the second half, scoring on their first drive, and didn’t look back from there.
Saskatchewan was able to win the game thanks to some key contributions from players who weren’t in the starting lineup in the 22-19 loss to Calgary on Oct. 9.
Saskatchewan Roughriders’ D’haquille Williams, left, is tackled by Calgary Stampeders’ Jamar Wall during first half CFL football action in Calgary, Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh)
While their stat line won’t jump out, wide receiver Shaq Evans and slotback Duke Williams both played a big role for the Riders. Evans was returning from a broken foot he suffered in Week 2 while Williams played in his first CFL game since 2018 after spending two seasons in the NFL.
Evans finished the game with four catches for 24 yards while Williams had three catches for 48 yards. Williams’ biggest catch came late in the fourth quarter on an onside kick attempt by Calgary after the Stamps scored a touchdown to cut their deficit down to three.
The presence of the two veteran pass-catchers opened things up for Fajardo’s other receiving options and they also brought some leadership to a young receivers room.
“It boosts the morale, getting those boys the touches in their first game back,” Lenius said. “You can see it. Once we start rolling and start playing our game, it’s tough to stop us. Having those guys and that leadership is game-changing, especially in these games that are tight.”
A couple of new faces came up big for the Riders and their depleted secondary. With injuries to defensive backs Blace Brown (shoulder) and Christian Campbell (hamstring), Damon Webb and Jeremy Clark made their first CFL starts after spending much of the year on the practice roster.
And it was a debut to remember for both of the first-time CFL starters, with each of them intercepting a pass from Calgary quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell.
“We’ve had a lot of guys go down but the message to them all week has been, ‘You’re on this team for a reason and that reason is to play football and help us win,’ ” Dickenson said. “Hats off to them for putting in the work to make sure they were ready to play when they got the opportunity.”
Due to the amount of shuffling on the Riders’ defence, safety Jacob Dearborn ended up seeing the most reps of his young CFL career, which included an interception and a key recovery on a fumble on a kickoff.
“It’s been a bit of a roller-coaster for me getting back in the lineup since Week 2 was my second-last game. There was some nerves and some stuff and little things that come with getting those live reps,” Dearborn said.
“We’ve had some injuries in the secondary a lot of these guys have been getting reps in the past couple weeks and getting their feet wet in the league.
“We’ve got the support of a veteran starting secondary and we’ve got (safety Mike Edem) on the sidelines talking to all of us and going over coverages … It helps having those guys and I know there were some mistakes on my part and it was nice that those guys didn’t jump down our throat. I think they all understood we’ve got some new guys playing defence and they were pretty supportive throughout the game.”
Mitchell finished the game with 21 completions on 31 pass attempts for 311 yards, with a touchdown to Regina product Richie Sindani and three interceptions.
Kicker Brett Lauther was good on two of four field-goal attempts in the game and hit both of his converts. Lauther also handled punting duties in the fourth quarter after an ankle injury to punter Jon Ryan. Ryan is questionable for next week’s game against the Montreal Alouettes.
Calgary kicker Rene Paredes was good on his only field-goal attempt.
As the Riders get ready to head back on the road once again, Dickenson says he knows the team can be better.
“We didn’t play a perfect game and we made a lot of mistakes and I think we left plays out there,” Dickenson said. “Hopefully the guys are proud of the effort given and they realize we are a good football team and if we play well and hard for 60 minutes we’ve got a chance to win.
“We will have to be at our best again. It’s another week of pro football.”
