The Ottawa REDBLACKS won’t be hard pressed to find motivation when they take on the Saskatchewan Roughriders in their season opener at TD Place on Thursday evening. The ‘Riders ended Ottawa’s 2017 campaign at TD Place in the East Division Semi-Finals last November.
However, both franchises have plenty of new faces in 2018, and the REDBLACKS will be looking to exercise some demons against their western division opponents.
The REDBLACKS (0-0) are coming off a week one bye. Rick Campbell’s team is well-rested, and morale should be high after they went undefeated in the preseason. Saskatchewan (1-0) toppled the defending Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts in week one by a score of 27-19. The score may have flattered Toronto, as the Roughriders turned in an impressive performance in front of their home crowd.
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STORYLINES
Sinopoli in the lineup – After sitting out both preseason games and parts of training camp, national slotback Brad Sinopoli is slated to start for Ottawa. The reigning East Division All-Star is looking for his fourth straight 1,000-yard season.
Ward to kick – Kingston Ont. native and former uOttawa Gee-Gees star kicker Lewis Ward cracked the lineup out of camp. With Ward winning the kicking job, six of the nine CFL clubs now have Canadian kickers.
Western dominance – The West division continued their dominance over the East through the first week of the 2018 season. West teams were a perfect 3-0 when facing East division foes, vaulting the REDBLACKS into first place with a 0-0 record.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Despite a season that saw them robbed of a Grey Cup berth by a frantic, game winning drive by the Toronto Argonauts, the Roughriders have a fresh feel coming into 2018. In fact, none of the five players who scored points in that East Division Semi-Final remain on Saskatchewan’s active roster.
Chris Jones tinkered with his lineup and made headlines when his team cut a trio of star receivers in Chad Owens, Bakari Grant and Rob Bagg. Even with the cuts, newly-minted starting quarterback Zach Collaros will have plenty of weapons at his disposal, including Naaman Roosevelt and seasoned running back Jerome Messam.
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Absent from the list of offensive options is Duron Carter. The ‘Riders announced earlier this week that Carter will line up exclusively as a defensive back against the REDBLACKS, but anything could happen come game time.
Carter joins a defense that includes the reigning CFL Top Performer of the Week, defensive end Charleston Hughes. The long-time Calgary Stampeder recorded three sacks in week one.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
“We’re itching to play. The guys are excited and looking forward to tomorrow night, for sure. In football, every new year literally is a new year. A team always has a new personality with some fresh faces. We got a couple of extra practices in [with the bye week] and there’s no reason our guys shouldn’t be healthy with a full tank of gas.” – HC Rick Campbell
“Being given the opportunity to play tomorrow is really exciting for me, especially as a rookie coming into the league. It’s a pretty steep learning curve coming into a CFL training camp and getting that professional level of mental preparation that you need to compete at this level. It’s been great to lean on some of the veteran players on our offensive line.” – OL Mark Korte
GAME INFO
Ottawa REDBLACKS vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders
Week 2 – June 21, 2018
Kickoff – 7:30 p.m. ET | TD Place
