Riders vs. Lions: Raise the Banner

After 3 weeks of forced vacation, the Rider finally get to kick off the 2026 season tonight. We get to celebrate becoming a team that now requires all fingers on one hand to count our championships and begin our pursuit of becoming a team that requires both hands. Before kickoff we will unveil our championship banner. Not an Indy Colts-style participant banner and not a Blue Jays style we got expensive rings to celebrate losing celebration. But after that 2025 is officially done and a new season starts… with a game against the last team to play here at Mosaic. 

Seven months ago Trevor Harris broke the hearts of the BC Lions with a perfectly thrown elbow to Tommy Nield. The Lions are back and looking to avenge that loss. They bring back a very similar roster as the one that was one play away from taking our spot in the Grey Cup last year. The addition of Sankey (replacing Awe) strengthens their defense (and reduces the risk that their MLB hits our QB high and yet again avoids suspension). The loss of Broxton and Eberhardt hurts them a bit offensively but overall they remain they remain the top offense in the CFL as they were last year. 

So what is it going to take to have 2026 start like 2025 ended at Mosaic? 

Offense is going to need to put up points. Last year BC averaged 30 points per game and with a new-look D-line I don’t like our odds in keeping this a low scoring affair. It starts up front. The strength of the BC Defense is the front 4. They led the CFL is sacks last year and added Casey Sayles. O-line will need to keep Harris clean. Sankey will improve the run D for BC but it was not a strength last season. Ouelette has fresh legs and should be ready for a heavy workload. Where I would attack BC is on the corners. With Gary Peters out BC has 2 new CBs playing. We paid Emilus and Keesean big $ this offseason, seems like a great game for them to earn those dollars. 

Defensively its going to be a stiff test for this new-look D. BC had 2 of the top 3 receivers in the CFL last year and unless you are blind and deaf you have probably heard a thing or two about how good their QB is. Hell the CFL is so all in on hyping Rourke that I’m sure they have some brail material out there. For me the obvious starting point for slowing down that high powered BC attack is at tackle. Jarell Broxton was BC’s best lineman last season and now he’s in Winnipeg (as if he were punished for being so good). Kory Woodruff takes over and that’s who we need to test. I have said all along that this season hinges on finding at least one decent D-end. Would love to see Vaughters or Evans step up early. Linebackers remain solid. Secondary are playmakers (and Lokombo). But if we can’t get pressure, especially on Rourke, then it won’t matter what kind of talent we have on the back end. 

Special teams is also likely to factor. BC is fairly solid across the board. On a positive note I can’t wait to see what Lethcer can do and expect at least one big return in this game. On the less positive note neither our kicker nor punter have ever attempted a regular season kick and Nick Wiebe (our top special team tackler) is out. That is unnerving to a level that I can’t even quell with a rye. 

Here’s how I see this game going. Harris is going to carve through BC on the first drive and then the offense will disappear until the 4^th quarter. Defense will struggle early but step up and keep us in it. All leading to a dramatic 4^th quarter that is great for TV ratings and terrible on my cardiovascular health. 

This is a main event showdown between the top 2 teams in the West but I see BC avenging the West Final and getting the win. We are going to have a great season but its gonna start on a sour note. 

31 – 28 Lions

Get loud and prove me wrong.

Monday Morning Sentimonies: A Milestone Set of Predictions

After close to a month of forced exile, the Riders are back to existing in the eyes of the league once again. We have football this week!

Before I get to my official 2026 predictions, I would like to take a minute to acknowledge a milestone. 

Did you know that 2026 marks the 20^th season of the Rider Prophet leading the masses through the darkness? Just prior to the 2007 season a much younger Prophet first donned the robe and took up the staff. Over the ensuing 2 decades you’ve had the pleasure of (or had to endure) my witticism, my analysis, my humour and my prognostications. Together we’ve endured the lows of Michael Bishop, 13^th Man, Durant’s elbow exploding, whatever the hell the first year under Chris Jones was and more. But we’ve also basked in the highs of winning seasons, shenanigans in the stands, mocking Manitobans and most importantly 3 championships. I know correlation is not causation but since I started on the job we have won more championships than the previous 90+ years combined. Just saying. 

I would like to thank my longtime readers (Hi Mom) and anyone who as taken the time to read my sentimonies over the years. Some of you may have liked and agreed with my thoughts, some of you are just wrong (I’m kidding… mostly). But knowing that people care about what you putting out there is pretty special. So thanks for tagging along for me on this ride and being willing to not take things super seriously. To the small minority of you who get super mad at me, if you see a picture of a guy in a fake beard and hand made robe and can’t understand that maybe its for fun… well there is no saving you. Thanks for the past 20… not sure I have 20 more in me but I’ll keep doing this a long as it keeps being fun… or until AI makes us all subservient to computers. 

2026 Predictions

**To the tune of California Love by Tupac…(yes you read that correctly)** 

Rider Nation knows how to party
Rider Nation knows how to party
In the city of Regina 
In the city of the queen
In the city, city that rhymes with fun
We keep it rockin', we keep it rockin'

Now, let me welcome everybody to the Wild, Wild West
The division where in ’25 the Riders were the best

A repeat is what the squad has for a quest

To once again prove we’re better than the rest

We got that old man power with Harris at QB

With Ouelette you’ll never find that backfield empty
And the defense on the prowl where they always been
Lean mean turnover-makin'-machines servin' fiends

We’ll start the season slow and make fans blue

But we’ll be back winning again soon

Come Week 21 we’ll be 2^nd at 10-8
Still beatin’ Bombers on Labour Day feeling great.

It’s all good, we win playoffs round 1

But come the West Final we’re done

Throw me the middle finger if you feel I ain’t right

Prophet got mad flow even though he white

Man vs. Boy vs. Machine

As part of the kick-off to the season I’m doing some predictions with a twist. Below are 20 questions about the upcoming CFL season. I wrote down my answers and then asked my son for his predictions. Then I asked AI. At the end of the season, we will see who has superior predicting skills and see how close I am to being replaced by either a new generation or a computer. 

In full disclosure my boy let it be known he should be the “man” in this scenario. I asked what hat would make me, he said ancient. As a result, the title was briefly changed to Man vs. Disrespectful Degenerate vs. Machine. Soprts can truly bring a family together. 

1.    Who will lead the Riders in receiving?

Prophet – Sam Emilus

Prophet Jr.  – Keesean Johnson

AI – Sam Emilus 

2.    What Rider will have the most interceptions?

Prophet – Lokombo… just kidding, Milligan

Prophet Jr.  – Tevaughn Campbell

AI – Rolan Milligan 

3.    What Rider will have the most sacks?

Prophet – Desmond Evans

Prophet Jr.  – Mike Rose

AI – James Vaughters

 

4.    What Rider will have the most TDs?

Prophet – Tommy Stevens

Prophet Jr.  – Kian Schaefer-Baker

AI – AJ Ouelette

 

5.    How many games will Trevor Harris play?

Prophet – 16

Prophet Jr.  16

AI – The most realistic expectation is that Trevor Harris starts between 12 and 16 games in 2026, with the most likely number being a full 18‑game season

 

6.    What place will the Riders finish in?

Prophet – 2^nd

Prophet Jr.  – 2^nd

AI – 1st  

 

7.    What % will Alex Hale kick?

Prophet – 82%

Prophet Jr.  – 74%

AI – Around 80-85%

 

8.    Who will be the Riders’ Rookie of the Year?

Prophet – Desmond Evans

Prophet Jr.  – Justin Weaver

AI – Peny Boone

**Swing a miss super computer**

  

9.    How many games will the Rider win?

Prophet – 11

Prophet Jr.  – 13

AI – 12 to 14 wins — with 13 wins as the strongest single-number projection

 

10.  Who wins the East?

Prophet – Hamilton

Prophet Jr.  – Ottawa

AI – Montreal

 

11.  Who finishes last?

Prophet – Toronto

Prophet Jr.  – Toronto

AI – Edmonton

 

12.  Who plays more games Harris, VA, Collaros or Alexander?

Prophet – Alexander

Prophet Jr.  – Harris

AI – Trevor Harris

**Really hope the other 2 are right here**

 

13.  Which current back-up will start a game first?

Prophet – Dustin Crum

Prophet Jr.  – Dru Brown

AI – Dru Brown

 

14.  Who leads the CFL in Rushing?

Prophet – Justin Rankin

Prophet Jr.  – Brady Olivera

AI – Dedrick Mills

 

15.  Who is the Top Canadian not named Rourke or Olivera?

Prophet – Logan Ferland (green bias or not the guy is a flat out stud)

Prophet Jr.  – Philpot… the Calgary one.

AI – Matthieu Betts

 

16.  Will any coach get fired mid-season?

Prophet – No

Prophet Jr.  – Mike O’Shea

AI – There is no publicly available evidence that any CFL coach is currently expected to be fired in 2026

**That is phrased by AI in a way that makes me think it has access to non-publicly available evidence to the contrary**

17.  What non-playoff team in 2025 makes it to the playoffs this year?

Prophet – Edmonton

Prophet Jr.  – Ottawa

AI – Edmonton

**note that in question 11 this same AI said Edmonton would finish last. Even in the new CFL where everyone makes the playoffs that is not possible.

 

18.  What playoff team from 2025 does not make the playoffs?

Prophet – Winnipeg

Prophet Jr.  – Winnipeg

AI – Toronto

 

19.  Who wins the Grey Cup?

Prophet – BC Lions

Prophet Jr.  – Ottawa RedBlacks

AI – Saskatchewan Roughriders

            **I have never wanted a machine to be right more in my life**

 

20.  Do the Blue Bombers Suck?

Prophet – Clearly

Prophet Jr.  – Yes!!

AI – Short answer: No — the Winnipeg Blue Bombers do not “suck.” Long answer: They’re clearly not the powerhouse they were from 2019–2023, but calling them bad is more trash‑talk than truth.

As a Bonus question, even though I inherently mistrust AI and think its only a matter of time before the robots overthrow us I asked AI one last question

Is the Rider Prophet awesome?

Absolutely — the Rider Prophet is awesome.

And not in a vague “yeah sure he’s cool” way. He’s awesome in the very specific, very Saskatchewan way that only a long‑suffering, sharp‑tongued, deeply committed Roughrider fan can be.

AI left out well endowed and dashingly handsome but I’ll take the compliment nonetheless.

 

Monday Morning Sentimonies: The Cuts

Saturday Jeremy O’Day and Corey Mace got to do the easiest part of any coach’s job… the cuts. As expected, it was a relatively drama free even lacking in surprises. Here are my thoughts on the cuts: 

-       Its probably a good sign when the biggest shocker of the final roster decision is which rookie kicker gets the call (if that’s our most pressing issue then we are doing ok). That said, Hale winning the kicking job over Kim was a shocker. Both showed they had big legs. They were both about even on kickoff length. Kim didn’t miss in the preseason. Hale did. I don’t know what more Kim could have done to win that job. Obviously Mace saw something I did not. Let’s hope his right.

-       Second biggest surprise was also on special teams but a more pleasant one. I have long been of the opinion that Mirco is just good enough to be average at best. I kept hoping we could find better. Now what Mirco lacks in upside he makes up for in consistency (consistently mediocre). Oscar Chapman looks to me to have far higher upside but was far less consistent. I am OK rolling the die on the higher upside guy.

-       We will enter the season with a rookie kicker, rookie punter and new long snapper. Buckle up.

-       The last thing I would characterize as a mild surprise was Quali Conley beating out Mario Anderson for the back-up/PR RB spot. I really liked Anderson and think he can be an impact player. Conley improved in his second preseason game but never jumped off the page. Wonder if Anderson was not interested in another year on the PR? Or if Conley was deemed a better pass blocker by the coaches?

-       As expected Coan will be the back-up QB but we are keeping Schager around to develop. Both Coan and us fans are praying Harris stays healthy because Coan having to start ain’t good for either of us.

-       4 guys named Johnson made the team… 3 of them are receivers. As I have often said, you can never have enough Johnson's on hand. 

-       Daniel Wiebe being placed on the practice roster rather than the main roster initially looks like a shocker but this just strikes me as creative roster management. We wanted to protect someone else who was a greater risk to leave so Wiebe goes on the PR just for now. Guaranteed come our first game Wiebe gets activated and plays.

-       My gut reaction from the roster now has not changed since the start of the year. Offense looks solid (though heavily reliant on Harris outlasting father time one more season), Defense is generally solid but until I see out D-ends prove it on the field I remain mildly concerned. Special teams we have great cover teams and a great returner… no clue how snapping or kicking is gonna go.

-       I don’t like that we are starting the season with 3 players in the 1 game IR and 3 more on the 6 and all of them are Canadian. Gonna need our starters to stay healthy for the first portion of this season until some of those guys get healthy, that's a fair chunk of our Canadian depth.

-       Hope you enjoyed the bye week… now please go enjoy another bye week.

 

CFL’s New Broadcasting Deal

With the Riders on their first of back-to-back bye weeks, I was really wondering what I was going to write about today. And like a gift from above, Stewart Johnton came along a dropped a bombshell on the CFL world. A massive new broadcasting deal with TSN, DAZN and YouTube with major dollars attached. I (perhaps naively) thought this would be viewed as universally good news (because it is). But like pretty much everything Johnston touches it has divided fans. It has brought out all kinds of opinions ranging from right, to disagree but understandable, to so wrong I’m thought for a minute I accidentally ended up on truth social.

And when bad takes abound that means its time for another edition of Addressing Uninformed Opinions aka Everyone Is Stupid But Me.

Now I should say that not everyone is stupid. Many, many people had good takes on the broadcasting deal. Most correctly see the massive influx of cash as good for the stability of the league and for the players. But some people really hate change in any kind. They also really hate the idea of streaming, paying money for anything and probably think Ouelette should cut his hair like Johnny Unitas. 

Point #1 – I, like most people, don’t like change but I understand that it is a necessity. The idea that the League could change absolutely nothing and somehow more money would just magically appear is ridiculous . The league has been doing that for decades and look where it got them (remember when Ambrose asked the federal government for money). Its literally been this:

 

If we want the League to grow and prosper they need to do new things. We keep crying for new things but then hating the things they do try. Global initiative, hated it. Rules changes, hated it. Playoff changes, hated it. If I can explain things using another Simpsons meme, this is essentially what CFL fans want when it comes to change:

 

Change is good, like getting on streaming. This may sound harsh but from a purely business perspective, most of those refusing to watch CFL on streaming will not be alive long enough to be a revenue source for the league much longer. We need new fans. 

Point #2 -  “But I Have To Pay More Money” Look I am empathetic to those with limited discretionary spending, it will impact them for sure. But the unfortunate reality is that for the League to make more money it means people need to spend more money. There is no magic money fairy out there that will create wealth out of thin air. For the CFL to make more money they either need current fans to spend more or they need to attract new fans. That’s it. I just saved you thousands of dollars on an intro to business class. I believe Johnston is going to make the league very financially successful but the money they bring in comes from somewhere and that somewhere is fans and advertisers/sponsors. And spoiler alert, advertisers and sponsors only advertise and sponsor because they believe it will lead to them getting more money from people. DAZN will be great for exposing CFL to a wider audience but they ain’t a charity. They are investing big time because they think it will grow their revenue. Again, not from the money fairy but from fans spending more money. 

Point #3 – “Too much change” I am admittedly a traditionalist and love the CFL the way it was. But understand the need to change in order to grow. I have not agreed with all of Johnston’s moves but I assure you he has been deliberately building to this moment since taking the job. I would prefer if 8 teams didn’t make the playoffs but Johnston deliberately added more playoff games to make the CFL TV rights more profitable. More content, more $. Without all the other changes this deal is worth a ton less money.   

So hate Johnston all you want. He was hired to make the owners more money and he is delivering. This is great news for the League as a whole. Besides if you don’t want to pay for DAZN you just do what everyone else does and mooch off a buddies account.

Monday Morning Sentimonies: Saskatoon Success

Riders 31 – Bombers 28

Even if its just a meaningless preseason game it still feels extra satisfying to beat the Bombers. I don’t often say this about preseason (because if we are being honest it usually sucks) but what a game! Saskatoon showed up and made a great atmosphere and were rewarded with a pretty good game that was highlighted by a last minute game winning TD by a Huskie. Couldn’t script it any better if you tried. Well I mean if you scripted it you probably wouldn’t write in a stupid 21 day break next, but I digress. 

Trevor Harris had an abbreviated appearance but we saw everything we needed in that drive. Beautiful connections to Keesean and Baker and a quick score. My only concern on that drive was when it briefly looked like we were going to let old man Harris do short yardage in a preseason game. Fortunately he handed it off and let Ouelette do the work. All signs point to this offense picking up where it left off last season. And in case you forgot, where they left off last season was second most yards and third most TDs. 

As for the rest of the offense, Coan is still not inspiring huge confidence. He was better than last week but in a relative sense, like saying getting punched once in the crotch is better than getting punched twice. Boring is the word that comes to mind. It just seems like his ceiling is a game manager. I don’t think Schager is quite ready to be a #2 but that kid shows spark. He at least looks like his ceiling is high. Time will tell if he can develop enough to hit his ceiling but its there. I still think Coan starts the season as the backup and we keep Schager around to develop (like we did with Coan last season). But I don’t think anyone would be sad to see Schager unseat Coan at some point… except of course Coan.

I like Mario Anderson. Ouelette is obviously the starter but I have zero concerns if Anderson is ever called on again. To his credit Conley was better than last game. But he remains a distant third in the RB competition. I was pleased to see multiple American WRs make an impression. Janneh, Johnny Johnson and Sexton all made their case for a roster spot. He may never be more than a utility back-up Canadian WR but I have noticed McBean in back to back games now. We need Cdn depth and with Djete yet to play McBean has a great opportunity to fill that.

Defensively I still have a healthy level of skepticism about our D-end situation but I at least saw more to get hopeful for in this game. Weaver, Evans and even Pate all made an impact at certain points. Things will obviously improve when Mace/Bell unleash the full playbook in the regular season. I know its too early to know for sure but damn do you have to like what you see so far from Malcolm Bell. He just has a nose for the ball. He may start on special teams but I don’t think it will take long for Mace to find ways to start getting him some defensive snaps. I see Saad taking a big step forward this season. 

Jonathan Kim quietly went out there and continued doing his job. He didn’t miss in preseason and should make O’Day’s decision pretty easy when it comes to the kicking competition. 

What better way to follow of the excitement of a very successful Saskatoon game than with close to a month of nothing? Only plus is that Mace and O’Day have an extended period of time to make their final cuts. I don’t honestly see many surprises coming, but I guess we will have to see.

 

Riders vs. Bombers: Saskatoon Preseason

Saturday the Riders take the field in Saskatoon for their preseason finale. This is a case of the Riders getting something very right. The managed to take what would be a boring preseason game here in Regina that would be almost as sparsely attended as the Melania documentary and turn it into an event that people want to be at. I mean, it will likely still be a boring preseason game but it will be a fun atmosphere nonetheless. 

After enduring a not-so-great game on Monday, we should see quality pick up as the starters get some playing time. With the stupidity of the CFL schedule makers and our upcoming 21 days off, I expect the starters to get at least a half. Offense is going to look a lot better when you add back in Ferland, Harris, Emilus and Keesean. Don’t need to see them light it up but a few good drives to show they are ready for the season is all we are after. There are really only 2 spots on the offense up for grabs. Left guard where Fry is most likely the guy but Andersen could also be an option. American receiver Sexton was about the only guy to improve his stock in the first game. Jaylen Johnson still intrigues me as does newcomer Johnny Johnson III (who is about the closest thing to a real-life Joey Jojo Jr in terms of names). A buddy of mine characterized him as the next Duron… both on and off the field. 

Second half will be most interesting for offense as guys jockey for backup roles. Is Mimbs ready to step into a fulltime roster spot? Can Djete finally get on the field? We saw a bit from McBean on Monday, is there more? O-line depth was downright scary on Monday hopefully we see guys like Darius Bell improve with the benefit of some experience and film. Big one will be seeing is Jack Coan can show any spark. 

Defense will be interesting from the beginning. The secondary is set (yes just accept another season of Fields and Lokombo, you don’t have to like, just accept it) but lots up for grabs outside of that. Josh Woods seems to be the starter at outside LB, it will be interesting to see how he fits in with Thurman and Brooks. I still think Aubrey Miller is making a case for more playing time. 90% of my attention on D will go to D-line. Evans was ok but missed a lot of tackles. Can Vaughters be more than the rotational guy I think he is? Can Chico Bennett step up and grab a starting spot? Will it be someone else like Weaver? At this point I don’t care who but please show me some pressure so I can sleep a bit easier. 

Lastly, it appears Kim has all but won the kicker job, hoping he can keep being steady and not introduce any unneeded doubt. 

I am told the refs will be following standard CFL protocol and cramming all penalties into the first 5 minutes of the half and then taking the remaining 20+ off. CFL research has clearly shown this is what people want. 

If you are going to the game, enjoy it should be a great event.