Believe it or not, football is on the way
But Riders GM admits weather has him pondering if season’s ‘ever going to come’
Craig Reynolds has heard as-yetunconfirmed rumours that it is spring.
“I keep thinking it’s getting closer to football season, but when I look outside, I’m not quite sure whether it’s ever going to come,” the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ president and CEO said Wednesday while addressing a Regina and District Chamber of Commerce luncheon.
Regardless of the conditions, the calendar does show that football season is drawing closer.
For example, the CFL team is holding a mini-camp April 23 and 24 in Bradenton, Fla. That is a precursor to training camp, which is to begin May 20 in Saskatoon.
Leading up to the 2018 season, Reynolds discussed a multitude of issues with a noon-hour crowd as part of the chamber’s TD Luncheon Series.
Roughriders honoured: On Tuesday, the Roughriders received the President’s Community Award from the University of Regina.
The award, presented by U of R president and vice-chancellor Dr. Vianne Timmons, recognized the Roughriders for their history of service to Saskatchewan.
“It’s an incredible honour for our organization and speaks to the impact that our organization does have and can have in the community,” Reynolds said.
“What we do in the community is as important as anything we do as an organization. There are some other important things we do as an organization. Beating the Winnipeg Blue Bombers is very, very important. We take great pride in doing that. It’s an important goal of ours every year. But quite honestly, nothing is as important as what we do in the community.”
The President’s Community Award has been presented to a deserving individual or organization every year since 2010.
Air (s)miles: Reynolds offered some specifics on the extent to which the team assists communities across Saskatchewan.
In 2017, for example, players spent more than 1,000 hours in various communities and at assorted events, travelling more than 38,000 kilometres.
“Just to put that in context, that’s the distance to go from Regina to Australia three times,” Reynolds said.
He added that four players — centre Dan Clark, long-snapper Jorgen Hus, fullback Spencer Moore and defensive tackle Eddie Steele — travelled 19,000 km between January and April while delivering an anti-bullying message.
The Roughriders also plan to assist with the development of a football league in La Ronge and area.
The team has chartered a plane in order to conduct a football camp and support the league. Quarterback Brandon Bridge, defensive tackle Zack Evans, defensive halfback Ed Gainey, defensive end Willie Jefferson, guard Brendon LaBatte and slotback Naaman Roosevelt are to travel to La Ronge as part of the Roughriders’ delegation.
Speaking of travelling: Reynolds noted that 49 per cent of the Roughriders’ season-ticket holders reside at least 20 km outside of Regina — and 40 per cent travel at least 75 km for games.
“It’s staggering where our fans come from,” he marvelled.
“They shop here, they eat here and often they’ll stay overnight here. There’s an impressive economic impact coming to Regina just from our games.”
Reynolds added that the club surveyed its fans about the inaugural season in new Mosaic Stadium and discovered that nearly 93 per cent of respondents indicated that they had a positive experience.
“One of our goals this year is to give them one more game,” he said. “We haven’t hosted a home playoff game in a few years here. One of our goals is to host 11 games this year.”
The Roughriders’ last home playoff game was the 2013 West Division semifinal, in which Saskatchewan defeated the B.C. Lions 29-25. Two weeks later, Saskatchewan defeated the Hamilton TigerCats 45-23 in a Regina-based Grey Cup game.
Cold facts: Reynolds reiterated the Roughriders’ support for the notion of the CFL beginning the season earlier to avoid playing cold-weather games in November.
“We’re actively working on that with the league,” he said. “We’re wildly supportive of that.
“It’s no longer a badge of honour to sit out there when it’s -5 or -7 (C).”
The league, in collaboration with the member teams, is still ironing out the logistics of a possible earlier start.
“There are some complexities around when does training camp start and some of our draftees being in university and how early is appropriate,” Reynolds said. “It would be tough to be hosting training camp here today or in Saskatoon.”
Zach attack: Although Reynolds holds an administrative position, some discussion about player personnel was inevitable.
During his address, the Riders’ boss mentioned quarterback Zach Collaros, who was obtained from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in January.
“Getting Zach is a fantastic move for our football team,” Reynolds said. “The reality is that back in (2015) he was the best player in the CFL.
“He’s a Chris Jones kind of guy. He works hard. He’s a winner. He has won throughout his career. He obviously had a bit of bad luck towards the end of his career in Hamilton, but if you go through the course of his career — his college career and his high school career — he’s a winner.
“I think Rider Nation’s going to fall in love with Zach.”
A popular member of the 2017 Roughriders, receiver/cornerback Duron Carter, is facing a pair of marijuana-related charges — which were mentioned by a fan during a question-and-answer session.
“I just won’t comment on that,” Reynolds responded. “Obviously that’s a court matter. We hope to have that resolved as soon as possible so that it’s not a distraction for the team anymore.”
Carter’s next court appearances are scheduled for April 30 in Winnipeg and May 3 in Saskatoon.