Liam Richards/Electric Umbrella
OTTAWA — The Saskatchewan Roughriders are looking to cross up the crossover.
The Roughriders are the 10th West Division team to jump into the East Division playoffs since the CFL adopted the crossover format prior to the 1996 season.
None of the previous nine crossover teams has reached the Grey Cup game. That includes Roughriders teams in 2002 and 2005.
Saskatchewan begins its quest to become the first West team to go through the East and reach the CFL final when it visits the Ottawa Redblacks in today’s East Division semifinal. Game time at TD Place is noon (CKRM, TSN).
The winner of this game will face the host Toronto Argonauts in the East final on Nov. 19. The winner of that game advances to the Grey Cup game, Nov. 26 in Ottawa.
The Roughriders and Redblacks met twice during the regular season, with each team winning on the road. Saskatchewan posted an 18-17, come-from-behind victory in Ottawa on Sept. 29, and the Redblacks rallied to win 33-32 in Regina on Oct. 13.
To set up today’s game, here’s one man’s list of five things (or people) that bear watching:
1. Filling the void: Veteran left guard Brendon LaBatte suffered an injury to his left leg in the Roughriders’ final regular-season game, a 28-13 loss to the Edmonton Eskimos on Nov. 4. That will result in the return today of Derek Dennis, who missed the last three regular-season games while recovering from a back injury. Dennis began the season at left tackle and played six games there before moving to left guard for nine games while LaBatte played centre, so Dennis has played the position this season. The Roughriders chose to deploy Dennis instead of moving Peter Dyakowski from right guard to left guard and starting rookie Dariusz Bladek at right guard.
2. Running the rock: The Roughriders have decided to use Marcus Thigpen as their international tailback, with Cameron Marshall and Trent Richardson still hobbled. Thigpen will split time with Winnipeg product Kienan LaFrance, with fellow national Greg Morris also potentially getting some snaps. LaFrance is a former member of the Redblacks — he was a star in the 2016 playoffs to help Ottawa win the Grey Cup — and he had a solid outing when the Roughriders visited the nation’s capital earlier this season.
3. Under control: Saskatchewan head coach-GM Chris Jones will go with Kevin Glenn as his starting quarterback today. But Jones has shown a penchant for yanking Glenn early in games if the veteran gets off to a slow start. The only two times in recent weeks that Jones didn’t pull Glenn were the games against Ottawa. In the first meeting, the pivot was given the opportunity to overcome a pedestrian first half — and Glenn turned it on in the third and fourth quarters to help the Roughriders overcome a 17-0 halftime deficit. Brandon Bridge has proven to be effective coming off the bench, so he could be an ace up Jones’ sleeve.
4. Pick your poison: When the teams met in Ottawa in September, Redblacks tailback William Powell set a franchise record with 187 yards rushing in rainy, windy conditions. Powell had to deliver that night, because backup Ryan Lindley was filling in for an injured Trevor Harris as Ottawa’s quarterback. In the rematch, Powell rushed for only 58 yards — but Harris threw for 262 yards and two touchdowns in the Redblacks’ comeback victory. Either attack could cause the Roughriders problems in the rubber match, since Saskatchewan at times has had issues containing both the run and the pass.
5. Naaman Roosevelt: The Roughriders’ slotback returns to the lineup after missing the final three regular-season games with a concussion. Roosevelt had 1,035 yards receiving and eight touchdowns in the 14 games he played and also led Saskatchewan’s receivers with 29 second-down catches that produced first downs. But the cost of adding Roosevelt to the roster is the demotion of Caleb Holley, who loses his starting spot to Chad Owens.
