Huskies, Rams open Canada West football playoffs on road
3h ago
"The thing with the playoffs is every play gets amplified," said Huskies head coach Scott Flory.
To appreciate just how impressive it is that the Saskatchewan Roughriders are 10-4 and alone in first place in the CFL’s West Division, you have to go back.
Go back to January when Chris Jones bolts to the NFL and leaves the Riders in a pinch to find a GM, head coach and defensive co-ordinator. A new coaches’ cap limits the team from making considerable change to a very loyal Jones coaching staff.
Craig Dickenson, Jeremy O’Day and Jason Shivers are all promoted from within. All are full-time rookies in their positions.
They aimed big in free agency at quarterback but missed out on Mike Reilly and Bo Levi Mitchell, settling for a combo of Zach Collaros and a fifth-year CFLer without a start, Cody Fajardo.
Play 3 of the season and Collaros gets knocked out.
Four weeks later the Riders get crushed by a Nick Arbuckle-led Stamps team at Mosaic Stadium to fall to 1-3.
I don’t know what happened during that following bye week but something clicked. They’ve now rattled off nine wins in 10 games and control the West Division.
So when you see 10-4 on the standings, yes, it’s impressive. Considering the first six months of the year, it’s downright unbelievable.