Quarterback Jake Maier excited to join Riders, reunite with coaches

Jake Maier is excited to be a member of the Saskatchewan Roughriders and reunite with some familiar faces.

Maier’s rights were traded from the Calgary Stampeders to the Green and White last month. The team announced the 27-year-old quarterback had signed a one-year contract extension to keep him in Saskatchewan for 2025.

The agreement sees Maier reunite with a number of coaches from his time in Calgary, including offensive co-ordinator Marc Mueller and head coach Corey Mace.

Mueller was the quarterback’s coach in Calgary from 2020-23 while Mace was on the defensive side of the ball there until 2022 when he joined the Toronto Argonauts as defensive co-ordinator.

“(Mueller) is responsible for my baby years in the CFL. Those early years during the cancelled season and the pandemic and how willing he was to stay in touch with me as a rookie who he had never met before. Making sure I was as comfortable and confident going into my rookie season to give me the best opportunity to make that team as a rookie,” Maier said. “Then the development over that first season and especially into that second season where he was able to build me up as a player to where I was able to step into a role at a very young age early in my career to start games and play well. I give him a ton of credit for that.

“If it weren’t for his guidance early in my career, I really don’t think I’d be where I am at right now. When I found out this opportunity was possible, it was a very easy decision for me.”

Maier admits the trade was pretty sudden.

“Unexpected to be honest with you,” the Fullerton, Cal., product said. “I had a pretty good idea that after the season ended in Calgary there would hopefully be a couple opportunities out there … It was around the holiday season and we were just doing what we normally do in the morning — we took our dog on a walk and took our little girl outside just to enjoy the morning. Then I get a couple texts and phone calls and find out I’m traded to the Riders,” Maier said. “You kind of have a pretty good checklist on places you feel like you’d fit and Saskatchewan was one of those for me internally.

“When I found out that trade happened, it was almost for me like, ‘OK, it was meant to be.’”

He was also glad to go to a place that showed a vote of confidence in him.

“There’s nothing like the feeling of being wanted and appreciated and ultimately being respected,” Maier said. “You have to earn everything in this league but when an organization like the Riders grants you the opportunity to earn the things that could come your way, that’s everything.”

The new playing spot represents a reset on the quarterback’s career. He first came to the CFL in 2020 but didn’t play due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He played his first game in 2022, eventually being named as the successor to future hall of famer Bo Levi Mitchell.

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However, wins were hard for him to come by in Calgary as the starter in 2023 and 2024. After just six wins in 2023, that slipped further in 2024 down to five as he also was benched at a point.

In his career so far, he has started 45 games, throwing for 11,685 yards, 60 touchdowns, and 39 interceptions.

“I had some good times in Calgary and had some struggles. I feel like I’ve been on both sides of the fence early in my career which has given me so many valuable life lessons and experiences that are now going to carry me into this next chapter and this next bit of a reset for my career,” Maier said. “If I were to explain my career to people so far, I’d say I’m still a few years away from 30 and I feel like I have seen and experienced so much in such a short time frame.”

Maier is expected to be the backup to quarterback Trevor Harris, who also signed a one-year extension this offseason with the Riders.

“Trevor is one of the more high-class individuals in our league and one of the best quarterbacks in our league,” Maier said. “I’ve always enjoyed watching a Trevor Harris game. It is very intentional and very detailed.

“He was one of the first guys that reached out and called me when the trade went down.”

Maier could have become a free agent on Feb. 11.