For some people, a birthday shared with 80-some friends would be regarded as a party for the ages.
For Thomas Perry, it was a football practice.
Perry, a rookie offensive lineman with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, turned 23 on the same day the CFL team held its second-last workout of Coors Light Training Camp.
“I’m so thankful to be here,” the 6-foot-2, 311-pounder said at Mosaic Stadium on Thursday. “I love it here.
“I love all my teammates. I love the coaches. It couldn’t be a better birthday.”
Perry also had fabulous fun on his final day as a 22-year-old. To conclude Wednesday’s practice, Head Coach Corey Mace selected four players — two on offence and two on defence — to catch soaring punts.
As it turned out, Perry was the lone offensive player to catch the ball. The defence, by contrast, went 2-for-2. Cue push-ups for the offence.
Despite being a lineman, Perry was well-acquainted with catching a football. He was used as a receiver on a trick play during the 2025 East-West Shrine Bowl in Arlington, Texas.
Perry was the target on a two-point convert attempt. Although he did not reach the goal line, it took at least half the defence to bring him down.
Leading up to the annual showcase of graduating collegiate players, Perry learned how to play centre in three weeks.
He was invited to the Shrine Bowl after spending four seasons at Middlebury College in Vermont. While starting at guard for the Middlebury Panthers, he was a three-time All-New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) selection.
Perry, from Killingworth, Conn., is the first player from a Vermont college in Roughriders history.
The roster has included only one Vermont-born player. William Murphy, from Rutland, was a member of the Regina Rugby Club in 1913, 1914 and 1916.
Perry is one of 16 Connecticut-born players to wear green and white. He hopes to become the 11th to play in at least one regular-season game.
“To represent Vermont football, to represent NESCAC football, is a great honour,” he said. “I’m so excited to be in Saskatchewan. I love the sky here. It’s beautiful.
“I did the math and you could fit 50 Connecticuts into Saskatchewan. The population of Connecticut is a little bit more than 2½ Saskatchewans.
“It’s definitely way more expansive, for sure.”
Perry’s expansive resume extends beyond football.
An upper-percentile student, he aspires to become a doctor. His parents, Scott and Karen, are both lawyers.
“I wouldn’t be here without them and the support they give to me,” Perry said.
“Where I am today is a representation of the love and care they showed while raising me and my three brothers.”
PRACTICE PLAN
After the players practised in pads on Wednesday, Corey Mace eased up on the throttle and conducted a walk-through on Thursday.
“I think it’s wise to slow it down and tax the mental component of it so we can go out and finish the camp strong with a good practice tomorrow,” the Roughriders’ Head Coach said.
“We’ve got a bunch of guys who were kind of dinged up who are trending to come back to practice tomorrow, so let’s get everybody the mental reps before we go into it.”
The CFL’s cutdown deadline is Saturday, so some tough conversations loom.
“It’s the worst part of the job, no doubt,” Mace said, “but you know it’s inevitable and it has to happen.
“The main thing is that we finish our camp strong tomorrow as a team.”
Especially because it is the final chance for players to be appraised by the coaches before cutdown day.
“(Friday’s practice) is going to have some weight,” Mace said. “We’re going to put some guys in situations where they’ve got to think. That’s part of the evaluation.
“There’s the physical component, but you could be a specimen and still be limited because you don’t know what you’re doing. Being a professional, you’ve got to be accountable and you’ve got to be reliable.”
Following Friday’s workout, the Roughriders will begin a bye week.
Their regular-season opener is a Week 2 matchup with the B.C. Lions on June 13 (5 p.m., Mosaic Stadium). The Roughriders’ 2025 Grey Cup championship will be unveiled in a pre-game ceremony. Tickets are AVAILABLE HERE.
