December 18, 2017

Craig Reynolds accentuates the positives

Derek Mortensen/Electric Umbrella

The Saskatchewan Roughriders didn’t receive everything they wanted when it came to the CFL’s 2018 schedule, but they’re happy with what they got.

“We’ve got preferences, but we’re one of nine teams,” Roughriders president-CEO Craig Reynolds said. “Every team has preferences and so the league is trying to accommodate as many as possible … The sign of any good schedule is that you’re happy with it, but there’s give and take for sure.”

According to the schedule — which was released Thursday — the Roughriders are to play pre-season games May 27 in Edmonton against the host Eskimos and June 8 versus the visiting Calgary Stampeders.

Saskatchewan then opens its regular season June 15 against the visiting Toronto Argonauts, who ended the Roughriders’ 2017 campaign with a victory in the East Division final.

The regular-season schedule is 21 weeks in length, with each of the nine teams getting three bye weeks. The Roughriders’ byes are in weeks 5, 9 and 21.

Saskatchewan is to play its home games on Thursday (once), Friday (once), Saturday (four times), Sunday (twice) and Monday (once). The Roughriders are to play road games on Thursday (three times), Saturday (five times) and Sunday (once).

Saskatchewan’s schedule includes three weeks with five days between games, three weeks with six-day intervals, four weeks with seven-day breaks and seven weeks with more than seven days between games.

“On the football side of it, there are certainly many things about (the schedule) that we like,” Reynolds said. “We have a number of short weeks, but we have a large number of long prep weeks, which is important to our football team. We have byes that are spread out a little bit. We have a last-week bye, which can be very positive — especially if you’re hosting a home playoff game.

“From a business perspective, there are lots of summer games and warm-weather games — more so than last year — which is really positive.”

The Roughriders will have played seven of their nine regular-season home games by Sept. 16, with the final two set for Oct. 8 and Oct. 27. In 2017, Saskatchewan played four home games after Sept. 21, including contests on Oct. 27 and Nov. 4.

Those last two games were the only two the Roughriders didn’t sell out, due in large part to the weather and to start times of 7:30 p.m., and 5 p.m., respectively. The final two regular-season games in 2018 are set to begin at 2 p.m., and 5 p.m.

“Full credit to our fans: They came and brought the energy (in the final two home games of 2017), but the reality is, those are tougher tickets to sell and naturally there is going to be some no-show aspect to it,” Reynolds said. “(In 2018) we play more home games prior to October than we did last year and I think that’s a real positive.”

The Oct. 8 game, in which the Roughriders are to entertain the Eskimos, marks the first time since 2003 that Saskatchewan is to play a home game on Thanksgiving Monday.

The Roughriders since have played on that holiday six times, but never at home. For Reynolds, the opportunity to do so in 2018 is “very neat.”

“It’s great when we get an opportunity to showcase this stadium on a national stage on a holiday like Thanksgiving,” he said. “It has the opportunity to be a mini-Labour Day because it’s a holiday experience — and those holiday games are special games.

“It’s a way for people to gather on a holiday, with the Rider family this time, and experience a great game here at Mosaic. We’re really excited about that.”

The July 5 home game against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, meanwhile, is one that caught Reynolds’ attention.

It’s a Thursday night game, which Reynolds admitted is not a prime night for the Roughriders because of the number of fans who drive great distances to attend games.

But the fact that the contest is to be played in the summer is a positive for Reynolds, who hopes the early release of the schedule will allow fans to plan around the Thursday game.

As well, he noted that the league and its broadcast partner have turned Thursday Night Football into must-see TV.

“TSN has done a great job of building some energy around those games,” Reynolds said. “We’re also working with the league right now to come up with some concepts and ideas to make that more of a weekend experience for our fans.

“It’s a testament to our fans that TSN loves to showcase our football team on Thursday Night Football. We’re going to play four times this year on Thursday and there are only 11 games on Thursday Night Football. We’re helping to drive those ratings.”

The Roughriders open their regular season with five straight games against East Division teams before playing six straight versus West Division squads. After another three in a row against the East, Saskatchewan finishes up with four straight divisional games.

That closing stretch, Reynolds said, was one of the CFL’s emphases for the schedule.

“If you talk to Chris (Jones, Saskatchewan’s head coach-GM), he’s like, ‘Well, you have to play 18 games so it doesn’t really matter,’ ” Reynolds said. “When you have games that matter down the stretch — playing divisional foes — it’s probably more positive from a fan and team perspective.

“They’re very meaningful games as you’re gearing up for the playoffs, so every game becomes more of a playoff game. Obviously, there are two points available in every single game, but when you play West teams, it can be a four-point swing and that’s important when you’re jockeying for playoff positions.”