BAGG TO PLAY SLOT BACK

A bundled up Rob Bagg at practice on Wednesday. He's one of the players the Roughriders are penciling in to replace injured slotback Weston Dressler.
Photograph by: Bryan Schlosser, Leader-Post

REGINA — Rob Bagg is set to return to his roots.
Bagg, who has been playing wide receiver for the Saskatchewan Roughriders over the past two CFL seasons, is slated to get some playing time at slotback Saturday when the Roughriders visit the Calgary Stampeders.

That’s fine by Bagg, who was an inside receiver at Queen’s University before joining the Roughriders. He believes that will make it easy for him to adapt to the nuances of the position.

“It’s a bigger adjustment, I would think, for an American who’s never played (slotback),” Bagg said following Wednesday’s practice at Mosaic Stadium. “I played five years of college at slotback, so I’m looking forward to the advantages of the waggle (as he approaches the line before the snap). You see the field a little bit more, too.

“There are different aspects of both spots, but the more you play either one, the more comfortable you get. I’m just looking forward to getting a couple of reps (today) and then playing Saturday.”

Bagg is one of the players whom the Roughriders have tabbed to fill in for Weston Dressler in the slot. Dressler suffered a sprained ankle and fractured right fibula in Saturday’s 32-22 victory over the visiting Toronto Argonauts.

But the Roughriders got a scare Tuesday when Bagg hit the deck during a receivers drill and had to be helped off the field by head athletic therapist Ivan Gutfriend. Back spasms were identified as the culprit.

Bagg said after Wednesday’s practice — during which he was kept out of most drills — that he had never before had back problems. He thought it was perhaps a combination of the cold weather and a lack of hydration that caused his back to seize up.

“Hopefully it goes away as fast as it came on,” he said.

Bagg stressed he “definitely” will be playing Saturday, but he admitted the injury still was worrisome.

“I’ve been pretty disappointed because obviously you want to put in a work week,” Bagg said.

“There’s an opportunity to get some (time at) slotback, which I was pretty excited about. Obviously you want to put the work in and I’ve tried to do that mentally so far more than physically.”

Several receivers have been working diligently through the week as the Roughriders look to compensate for the loss of Dressler and his 62 catches, 941 yards and four receiving TDs.

Bagg, wide receiver Gerran Walker and backup slotback Jason Clermont are expected to get time in Dressler’s spot and the little-used trio of Johnny Quinn, Chris Jones and Adam Nicolson also are auditioning for playing time at wide receiver.

Starting slotbacks Andy Fantuz and Chris Getzlaf are likely to remain in their spots.

“It looks like they’re going to try to use all of us and just put us in positions that best suit our skill sets and where we can make some plays,” said Bagg, who noted he’s not thinking about replacing Dressler but rather just about playing his own game. “Wherever they go, we’ll have a guy who’s going to make plays there so it’s going to be good.”

Walker has been lining up inside on some plays this season, so he’s already familiar with the role of the slotback in the Roughriders’ offence and in other offences as well.

“As far as going in motion and the handoffs or fake handoffs that Dressler did, I did a lot of those things in college,” said Walker, a product of Lehigh University. “Now it’s just a matter of getting the timing down. (On Tuesday) I was kind of rusty on it, but (Wednesday) I did a lot better job at that.

“The thing is, (Dressler) did a lot of running around — a lot of running.”

ihamilton@leaderpost.canwest.com