OUT OF THE TUNNEL: THANKFUL FOR CODY FAJARDO
BY: RODPEDERSEN.COM STAFF
As many of you are recovering from a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner you may be thinking about all the things, big and small that you are thankful for.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders should be doing the same thing. There is one very big thing they should be thankful for.
Cody Fajardo.
With Mike Reilly out for the season, every single starting quarterback will have missed significant time in 2019. Most teams never thought as far as their backup and it shows.
The Riders, after Zach Collaros had a difficult 2018, were incredibly diligent in finding a capable backup. They had Fajardo in their sights from the jump, but I don’t even think general manager Jeremy O’Day and head coach Craig Dickenson thought it would be this successful, this quickly.
Let this settle in, if Fajardo starts the last three games of the season he will lead the CFL in starts (17) and games played (all 18). He will be the only starting quarterback to have played in every single game this season. Fajardo should also lead the CFL in many passing categories. The increased success means a bigger payoff in the offseason, which will be the main storyline after the Grey Cup is hoisted at the end of November.
This gets us to the next thing the Riders should be thankful for and that is their health. Compare the Riders injury list to the Calgary Stampeders and the Green and White haven’t had to deal with a rash of injuries. This is the second straight season and part of it is luck, but a lot of it goes to head athletic therapist Ryan Raftis and assistant Trevor Len for their in-season work, and to Strength & Conditioning Coach Clint Spencer.
A little insight on the importance a full-time strength and conditioning coach; in the NCAA they have figured out that success on the field begins with success off the field. That begins with the strength coach and college football teams are paying the best ones handsomely.
They are also the eyes and ears of the head coach. Now the strength coach won’t say 90% of the things he hears and sees, but the important stuff – like attitude and injuries – that can be hidden in practice are very evident in the weight room.
A few other things the Riders should be thankful for:
- Craig Dickenson and his incredible poise and patience.
- Improving Canadian talent.
- Charleston Hughes’ anti-aging program which he shared a little with Solomon Elimimian .
- William Powell and his ability to do everything especially block.
- The best fans in the CFL.
- And finally, an incredibly easy schedule to finish the season.
The Green and White will face B.C. without Mike Reilly this week in Vancouver. They wrap it up with home and home series with the Edmonton Eskimos who have nothing to play for except preparing for their crossover playoff game.
There is zero reason why the Riders shouldn’t finish the season with three straight wins and a 13-5 record. It should be good enough to finish first in the West and they will need all three wins because a tie with Calgary (who will more than likely split with Winnipeg and beat B.C. to end the year) doesn’t help after losing the season series with the Stampeders.
Home field advantage is key for the Roughriders because they will finish with a sparkling 8-1 home mark but just hover around .500 away from the friendly confines of Mosaic Stadium.
Either way Rider fans should bundle up and prepare for a home playoff game.
Before we head to other football things we would be remiss to quickly talk about Friday night’s 30-28 loss in Calgary.
After rewatching the game, the score flattered the Roughriders. The Rider offence had two great drives and the rest was incredibly average.
The 14 play 91-yard touchdown drive that took 8:25 off the clock was dink and dunk at its finest but needed every single drop wrung out of the offence. It was buoyed by a pair of bad Stampeder penalties and a fake field goal.
Then when the Riders needed a stop at a crucial time in the game, they couldn’t get it.
But here’s the catch: they will know the blueprint when they have to play the Stampeders in the playoffs. The defence has to find a way to get pressure on Bo Levi Mitchell with a four-man front. If the Riders blitz, or don’t disguise their blitz packages, BLM will shred them. Four-man pressure and especially pressure up the middle will be the biggest key to stopping the Stampeders.
The offence will have to take advantage of a beat-up Stampeder defence and be patient. They can’t beat them deep for the big play, it will have to be ugly 10-plus play drives that eat up a good chunk of the clock.
This Week in Canada West
Canada West football took the week off for Thanksgiving but will gear up for a fantastic run to the finish that begins this week.
Saturday, October 19 (all times local):
Regina Rams (1-5) at Alberta Golden Bears (4-2) 1:00pm Foote Field
Calgary Dinos (5-1) at Manitoba Bisons (2-4) 2:00pm IG Field
Saskatchewan Huskies (4-2) at UBC Thunderbirds (1-5) 3:00pm Thunderbird Stadium
This Week in the Prairie Football Conference
A very weird final week is upcoming in the PFC.
The Regina Thunder were set to welcome the Winnipeg Rifles at Leibel Field on Sunday afternoon but the big snow storm in Manitoba made it impossible for the Rifles to make it to Regina for the game. With safety in mind, the Rifles conceded the game and the Thunder won by default.
It’s a tough way for the Rifles to end the season and the Thunder would have loved to win their way to a home playoff date on the field. Either way, the Thunder finish with a 6-2 record and will host the Edmonton Huskies next week in one of the PFC semi-finals.
The Huskies beat up the Calgary Colts 49-21 to seal up third spot in the PFC.
The final game saw the Saskatoon Hilltops finish the season undefeated ripping the Edmonton Wildcats 48-8 at SMF Field in Saskatoon. The Hilltops defence had six sacks and two interceptions to lead the way.
So, the semi-finals are set for next Sunday with kickoff times to be determined later this week.
Edmonton Wildcats at Saskatoon Hilltops (SMF Field)
Edmonton Huskies at Regina Thunder (Leibel Field)
Canadian to Watch in the NCAA
G – Tomas Jack-Kurdyla
Buffalo (MAC)
6′ 4″ 300lbs.
Montreal, Quebec
High School – Vanier College
Tomas Jack-Kurdyla has been a pillar of the Bulls offensive line since his freshman year in 2016. Jack-Kurdyla has started 35 out of a possible 42 total games in his career.
He will be one of the top offensive linemen selected in the upcoming 2020 CFL draft and should be a solid guard in the CFL.
(RODPEDERSEN.COM STAFF/PHOTO: CLAIRE HANNA)
Totally agree. With nothing to play for & Reilly out, BC loses both of their final games to Riders & Stamps. I see a split with the Bombers & Stamps as likely. This means the Riders need to win both vs the Eskimos. If Harris plays at all, it will be in the last game to tune up for the playoffs which is @ Mosiac. So no reason the Riders don’t win both. Neither team has anything to play for & Edmonton likely rests players to have them healthy for the playoffs. The Bombers & Stamps have a lot to… Read more »
This is not the Riders of old but historically the Riders have not won all the games they SHOULD win.
It is nice that you are being complimentary to the Rider staff but saying they haven’t had to deal with injuries is incredibly inaccurate. He wasn’t a fan or media favorite but they lost their quarterback on the third play of the season. Additionally, Lavoie and Reaves haven’t played a snap this season, Labatte and Blake missed most the year, while Micah Johnson and Zack Evans missed multiple weeks. Add in Hughes, Judge, Watson, Lauther, Bladek and others missing games. Heck, they played six games without a fullback on the roster cause Awachie was hurt! People don’t talk about it… Read more »
Losing Zach after 3 plays has benefitted the team. Or would you rather that Zach had played for most of the year? We already knew what he could do based upon his performance last year. So bad for Zach but good for the Riders. We have to admit that there has been more good luck than bad this year which continues this week. Reilly goes down just before the Riders play BC, Masoli went down prior to a Rider game, the Riders haven’t had to play Nichols & Harris gets suspended Just before the Labour Day double for 2 games.… Read more »
In hindsight losing Zach was a benefit, just like the Tiger Cats losing Masoli was a benefit. They have won almost every game without him. Why would you sign him to a $500,000 contract now when you have Evans for two more years?
My original point had nothing to do with any other team. It was that the Riders have had their share of adversity and overcame. They can’t control the schedule or who lines up against them.
Everytime CodyF opens his mouth or we read about him, it turns into gold for the Riders. The guy is exactly what we are looking for in our province on the field and off the field. His play is stellar in every aspect of the game (realizing he is of course not perfect), plus his growth potential is unreal. Now compare him to BLMichelle, who is a pompous, arrogant a## (and I am being nice), and the opposite of Cody in front of a camera being interviewed and on the field. In front of the camera, if you saw the… Read more »
I gotta believe the Riders won’t be the Riders of old and lose when they should win! .. YES Saskatchewan SHOULD beat B.C. and they should be able to take both games against Edmonton to finish 13-5… but these are the Saskatchewan Roughriders and this team has never does things the easy way! …-and their history says so.. I’m going to stay positive and say that Coach Dickenson will have his team ready for B.C. (without looking past them) and that they will win! .. 11-5 is better than 10-6 because going into the back to back with Edmonton at… Read more »