The “Canada-Wide Mike Benson Tour” will soon include a reunion.
Benson is about to perform the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ long-snapping before an audience that will include his wife (Chantal) and five-year-old son (Wilder). They will be at Mosaic Stadium on Sunday when the Roughriders oppose the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
Chantal and Wilder, who reside in Winnipeg, have not had the opportunity to see Benson play in person since he signed with Saskatchewan — his seventh CFL team — on June 17.
“We FaceTime every day,” says Benson, who will soon play in his fourth game as a Roughrider. “After the Hamilton game, we’ll drive back to Winnipeg for the bye week.”
Benson was a member of his hometown Winnipeg Blue Bombers from 2021 to 2025. He also played in the Manitoba capital with the PFC’s Winnipeg Rifles before attending Acadia University. He was a linebacker and long snapper in the junior and university ranks before concentrating solely on special teams in the pros.
Before Benson joined the Blue Bombers and Roughriders, his CFL rights were held by Edmonton (2012-13), Toronto (2014), B.C. (2014-18), Ottawa (2019) and Montreal (2020).
“As part of the Canada-Wide Mike Benson Tour, this has been an awesome stop,” he says with a laugh.
“Since the first hour I’ve been here, everyone has been so welcoming. It’s such a good team with a family atmosphere. It feels like I had been here all through training camp — longer than 2½ weeks, for sure.”
The Roughriders’ long-snapping situation has been in a rare state of flux since Jorgen Hus announced his retirement on April 23. Hus, who joined the Green and White in 2015, had not missed a game since 2016.
Aaron Crawford handled the snaps in the 2026 season opener, only to injure a knee. He is on the six-game injured list.
Fortunately for the Roughriders, the 39-year-old Benson was available.
“We’re extremely happy, getting a veteran,” Head Coach Corey Mace says. “Obviously, he has been in some winning locker rooms before as well. Having him being able to get out here — a special shout-out to his wife for allowing him to come here as well — we’re forever grateful for that.
“Excellent, excellent guy, and he has been doing a really good job for us.”
Benson arrived with credentials that few of his peers possess.
He has scored a touchdown as a long snapper.
After snapping the ball to Lions punter Richie Leone on Oct. 21, 2017, Benson was in the right place, at the right time, while providing downfield coverage. He recovered a fumble at Edmonton’s six-yard line and soon had a touchdown to his good name.
“It was possibly scored by the best-looking guy in the CFL,” Benson says. “It’s debatable, for sure, but I’m at least the wittiest.
“I got the ball after scoring the touchdown. The team kind of did it up for me. They painted it up and put ‘First Touchdown’ and the score and who we were playing. I also got a series of pictures to go with it. It was a really nice thing.
“It’s a great keepsake that I have in the office back home.”
Benson had more time than he would have preferred in an office setting after being released by the Blue Bombers on Aug. 12 of last year.
“I’ve been a strength and conditioning coach for a long time,” the 5-foot-11, 224-pounder says. “I owned my own gym for a long time, too.
“Actually, I took an opportunity to manage a car dealership back in Winnipeg. Literally four days before Saskatchewan called, I parted ways and tried to discover a new path. Then they called, so timing is everything.
“It was meant to be. I’m an outdoor cat, so I’m not meant to be in an office right now.”
Realistically, though, Benson had to wonder if life after football had begun last August.
“Last year, I was kind of planning to hang them up, anyway,” he recalls. “It would be really naïve for me, at my age, to kind of be hanging on to hopes there, right?
“I’ve got to support my family. You’ve got a mortgage to pay. As much as football is incredible — it’s the best game in the world — eventually you’re going to have to stop playing. I had to do all the things necessary to transition and move forward.
“How fortunate am I to get that call at my age and to be able to come out here? So far, it has been amazing. Eventually the phone is going to stop ringing, so I’ve got to take all these opportunities while I can. Luckily enough, I’ve got family that understands.”
What was it like to receive that call?
“I was back home in Winnipeg and we were getting the kid ready for bed — just doing our nightly routine,” Benson recounts. “Then my agent called and asked, ‘If the opportunity came up, would you go (to Saskatchewan)?’
“I’d actually found myself in a place that week where I could just drop things. Luckily, I have a partner who gave me the nod to. That’s the Number 1 thing. I had to check with my boss and she said it was OK.
“I’m lucky to have a ton of support back home and a wife and a partner who is taking over all the duties right now. I’m so grateful for that and to be able to have this opportunity here.”
Hence the continuation of the “Mike Benson Canada-Wide Tour.”
It almost sounds like a series of concerts. Are there any musicians nearby?
“Well, we’ve got a couple of Australians,” Benson says, referencing special-teams cohorts Alex Hale (kicker) and Oscar Chapman (punter). “I don’t know what kind of instruments they play. We’ve got to get to know each other better so we can figure that one out.”
Australians, one should note, have been known to play a wind instrument — the didgeridoo.
“In their case, maybe it’s the didgeri-don’t, but nobody knows in their case,” Benson responds.
“Interview me more and you’ll get a ton of these Dad jokes coming your way.”
