Weather and football: a look at memorable weather moments at Taylor Field

Weather and football are two of the things Saskatchewan is known for, so it’s only fitting Taylor Field has seen its share of football games where the weather has played a factor.

Many games have been played at Taylor Field during it’s long and historic existence and as the final goodbye continues to get closer, 980 CJME compiled a list of memorable weather games played at Taylor Field.

1967 West Final

It was during the second game of a three game series that Taylor Field resembled an ice hockey rink rather than a football field.

A rainstorm had frozen and the field was like a sheet of ice. This would end up creating one of the great stories in Riders’ history.

Ron Atchison told his equipment manager to go get his Hush Puppies to help deal with the condition of the field.

The Riders would win the game 11-9 and Atchison would wear the Hush Puppies home.

1995 Grey Cup

The Roughrider’s weren’t a part of this moment in Saskatchewan football history but it’s something fans in the province will remember. It was the first time a Grey Cup was played within the province when the Baltimore Stallions played the Calgary Stampeders in the 83rd Grey Cup.

The prairies have been known to have harsh winds and, according to Environment Canada, winds were around 50 km/hr during the game.

Despite the harsh winds, the Stallions would defeat the Stampeders 37-20 to win the Grey Cup that season.

1970 West Final

It was the third game in a best-of-three series between the Calgary Stampeders and Saskatchewan Roughriders.  Around game time, Environment Canada says the temperature was around -29 C and winds were around 50 km/hr.

Despite the high winds and cold weather, Stampeders kicker Larry Robinson kicked a field goal on the last play of the game and the Stampeders beat the Riders 15-14 and went on to face the Montreal Alouettes in the Grey Cup

2007 Blackout game

2007 will be a year Rider fans will remember as being the year the Riders won their third Grey Cup.

However, one game during the season will be remembered as the time a power outage helped the Riders achieve victory.

The Edmonton Eskimos were leading the Riders when a storm caused the power to go out at Mosaic Stadium.

The power was out for nearly a hour and once power was restored to the stadium, the Riders would complete the comeback and defeat the Eskimos 39-32.