The Saskatchewan Roughriders take on the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in CFL action on July 8th, 2017 at New Mosaic Stadium in Regina, SK.. Liam Richards/Electric Umbrella
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are to face the B.C. Lions today in the back end of a home-and-home set.
The Lions downed the visiting Roughriders 30-15 on Aug. 5 in the first game of the series.
To set up today’s CFL contest (6 p.m., CKRM, TSN), here’s one man’s list of five people (or things) that bear watching:
1. Start Me Up: The Roughriders are bound and determined to get off to a quicker start in today’s game. Saskatchewan has been outscored 33-20 in first quarters this season, but that includes a 26-3 disadvantage in the past three games — only one of which ended in a Roughriders win. The Lions led 6-0 after the first quarter of the teams’ previous meeting, but only because the Roughriders’ defence stiffened at key times and forced B.C. to settle for field goals. When the Roughriders fall behind, they tend to abandon the running game and opponents then can get after quarterback Kevin Glenn.
2. He’s Still the One: Glenn will start at quarterback ahead of Brandon Bridge, who came off the bench to throw two touchdown passes in mop-up duty in Vancouver. Glenn had his lowest output of the regular season in that loss — he threw for 186 yards, albeit with a completion percentage of 70.4 — but he was under duress for much of the game thanks to the Lions’ defensive line. The 38-year-old veteran has been good for most of the campaign to date, so the suggestion by some observers that the Roughriders should make a quarterback change is premature.
3. Speaking of Which …: Lions quarterback Travis Lulay threw for 338 yards against the Roughriders a week ago, giving him 1,437 yards in just four games this season. But Lulay took a shot in the ribs from Willie Jefferson last Saturday, so Jonathon Jennings took first-team reps during practice this week. Jennings also is coming off an injury — he hurt his right (throwing) shoulder July 15 against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats — but the Roughriders believe that the strong-armed pivot will try to test them deep in today’s contest if he starts.
4. Willie Jefferson: The defensive end had the Roughriders’ only sack in Vancouver and had three of their seven quarterback pressures. Jefferson enters today’s game with four sacks and 15 pressures, and both totals easily lead Saskatchewan’s defence. That represents a problem for the Roughriders: They’re not getting to opposing quarterbacks enough. Rookie Tobi Antigha is second to Jefferson with two sacks and Antigha and A.C. Leonard are tied for second with six pressures apiece. Saskatchewan entered Week 8 ranked seventh in the league with 11 sacks and ninth in the CFL with 31 pressures.
5. Brendon LaBatte: The Roughriders’ star guard will have new responsibilities today. LaBatte moves to centre to replace Dan Clark, who suffered an elbow injury in Vancouver. LaBatte has played the position before, so it’s not completely foreign to him. But he has to make the calls for his fellow O-linemen, a task which LaBatte admitted has taken some getting used to. Derek Dennis moves from left tackle to guard to replace LaBatte, while Bruce Campbell comes off the reserve list to start at left tackle.
