Monday marks the 40th anniversary of a 32-30, down-to-the-wire Saskatchewan Roughriders victory in a well-named Labour Day Classic.
And here we are, precisely four decades later, marvelling at another 32-30, early-September conquest of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
As recently as Saturday morning, I filed a column on this very website to celebrate the Sept. 4, 1983 game — one that had everything you could imagine in terms of on- and off-field intrigue.
With 43 seconds left, the punter — Ken Clark — kicked a 41-yard field (into the wind!) to ultimately provide the margin of victory as Saskatchewan won by two points.
Clark had been pressed into service as a placekicker after Dave Ridgway was concussed while attempting to tackle Blue Bombers kickoff returner Nate Johnson.
Naturally, it came down to Clark to settle matters, one way or the other, with his first CFL field-goal attempt in seven years.
He delivered in near-miraculous fashion, mere hours after returning to Regina from Toronto, where his mother had passed away two days earlier.
Also in that 1983 thriller, Clark unleashed a 101-yard punt that was then the longest in Roughriders history.
Fast forward to Sunday.
There was not an evident heart-wrenching angle to rival the odds-defying Ken Clark story.
But what transpired on the field nonetheless struck me as being improbable.
Barely three weeks ago, the Roughriders were coming off a 41-12 CFL loss to the host Montreal Alouettes. It was the fourth setback in a span of five games for a Saskatchewan side that saw its record slide to 4-5.
Complicating matters, a hamstring injury had forced Roughriders quarterback Mason Fine to leave the Montreal game in the second quarter.
Fine had been starting in place of Trevor Harris, who suffered a serious knee injury on July 15 against the visiting Calgary Stampeders.
So there were the Roughriders, at the midpoint of their 2023 regular-season schedule, with two quarterbacks on the six-game injured list.
Next up were back-to-back home games against the West Division’s two highest-ranked teams — the B.C. Lions and Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
Both of those clubs employ a quarterback who is a candidate for the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player award. The Lions’ roster includes Vernon Adams Jr. The Blue Bombers’ marquee player is Zach Collaros, who was named the league’s MOP in 2021 and 2022.
It did seem a few weeks ago, then, that circumstances were conspiring against the Roughriders.
They were entering the toughest portion of their schedule without the quarterbacks who were listed at No. 1 and No. 2 on the opening-day depth chart.
The Roughriders then welcomed the Lions, who arrived in Regina with a 7-2 record.
Saskatchewan won, 34-29.
The Blue Bombers were 9-2 when they landed in Regina on Saturday.
Cue 32-30 — the sequel.
How did the Roughriders reverse their fortunes so robustly?
“We got rest,” Head Coach Craig Dickenson explained. “That helped.”
The trek to Montreal concluded a physically and mentally exhausting stretch in which the Roughriders played three road games within a span of four weeks.
During that period, the Green and White travelled to Canada’s eastern and western extremities (Vancouver and Halifax) as well as making a lengthy trip to Montreal.
Total distance flown: 17,500 kilometres.
Consider, too, that the Roughriders faced the Alouettes only five days after defeating the visiting Ottawa REDBLACKS 26-24 in the type of tension-filled contest that typified a Saskatchewan home game in 2023.
Post-Montreal, the Roughriders entered a well-timed bye week that preceded two successive home games.
Although the surroundings were optimal, there was the not-inconsiderable challenge of having to play two top-tier teams, while starting a third different quarterback.
Dolegala responded — oh, did he ever — with three touchdown passes in the victory over B.C.
He followed up on Sunday with 326 aerial yards while evoking memories of another distant Labour Day Classic.
The year was 2002. Then, as now, the Roughriders were starting a third quarterback due to injuries.
Rocky Butler became part of Labour Day Classic lore by unexpectedly guiding Saskatchewan to a 33-19 victory over Winnipeg, 22 years ago this past Friday.
Butler was actually No. 4 in the Roughriders’ quarterbacking pecking order at one point in the 2002 campaign.
Injuries to Nealon Greene and Kevin Glenn compelled the Roughriders to turn to Butler, a rookie out of Hofstra. He ended up running for three touchdowns to help Saskatchewan shock a Winnipeg squad that was quarterbacked by the CFL’s reigning MOP, Khari Jones.
Butler threw for a mere 165 yards in that 2002 upset win. On Sunday, Dolegala boasted a higher passing-yardage total (198) by halftime while starring in a sequel of his own — Rocky II.
Afterwards, Dolegala was asked what kind of message the Roughriders have conveyed to the CFL community at large by performing so impressively over the past two games.
“That we’re here,” he replied. “They can’t forget about us.
“We’re a tough opponent. Our defence is legit. We can put up points, too, on offence. I think we’re a very well-rounded team.”
That was evident on Sunday, when the defence made a game-winning stop in overtime — Jaxon Ford’s deflection of a Collaros pass on a two-point convert attempt was the Roughriders’ walk-off play — and the special teams sparkled.
Brett Lauther went 5-for-5 on field-goal attempts, fattening this season’s streak to 18 in a row. That string of success includes three field goals of 50-plus yards, most recently a 53-yarder that concluded Sunday’s third quarter.
Let’s not forget Mario Alford, who erupted for 237 return yards. His average yardage per return on Sunday: 38.8 on kickoffs and 13.7 on punts.
“Mario almost popped a couple tonight and, obviously, Brett has been lights-out,” Dolegala said before referencing long snapper Jorgen Hus and holder Adam Korsak. “That whole operation, between the three of them, it’s money.
“I think everybody’s playing with a lot of confidence and now I’m looking forward to next week.
“We’ll celebrate for 24 hours and then we’ve got to do it again.”
Sequels, of course, being the order of the day.
