By Mitchell BlairFor Riderville.com
The B.C Lions and the Saskatchewan Roughriders are getting ready to add another chapter to what may be the best rivalry in the CFL. As the two teams get ready to step on the Mosaic Stadium turf Saturday afternoon, one can expect that it will be a game that could come right down to the last play.
In fact, since 1999, the two teams have played 33 games against one another and in those 33, 19 of them have seen the winner win by seven points or less with 13 of those games being decided by three points or less.
Riders coach Ken Miller is at a loss for words as to why games between the two teams are seemingly always so close, but he will say that it seems like the target is on the back of his team each and every week no matter the opposition. “Its turned into a great rivalry and I’m not sure why it is,” said Miller during his pre-game address with the media on Friday.
“But it seems to me as if the Saskatchewan Roughriders have become everyone’s greatest rivalry no matter where we go or who comes here. We get the opponents best week in and week out.”
Jason Clermont is no stranger to the rivalry albeit from the other side. Clermont spent his first seven years in the CFL as a member of the Lions before moving to his home-town Riders in the off-season. “It’s tough for me to say the Lions are Saskatchewan’s biggest rival because I’ve only been here for three-quarters of a season,” Clermont said.
“However, being on the other side of the coin for so long, yeah, I can say that Saskatchewan was definitely B.C.’s biggest rival. “I don’t think its so much the teams as it is the situations. We’ve been pitted against one another at times when the games have meant so much whether it be a playoff game or not.
”The football team is coming off that much debated tie against Calgary one week ago, a game that many in the organization believe they should have won had it not been for a controversial penalty against John Chick in overtime. The man who took that penalty doesn’t believe that game is lingering in the minds of the Riders as they get ready for the showdown against B.C.
“Speaking for myself and I think speaking for my team-mates, I can tell you that game isn’t on anyone’s mind anymore,” declares Chick. “That game is in the past and we are concentrating on beating the B.C Lions. We’ve had a lot of close losses this year and we haven’t dwelled on those and we’re not dwelling on what happened last weekend either.
”The Riders go into the game with a record of 8-7-1. A win would leave them a little closer to finishing first in the West for the first time since 1976. A B.C. win would catapult them one point ahead of Saskatchewan in the standings as they are 8-7. Game time is 3:30 pm. TSN will have the game with Chris Cuthbert and Glen Suitor while those not around a TV will be huddled around their radio to hear Rod Pedersen and Carm Carteri provide the call on Riders Radio 620 CKRM. NOTES:•
John Chick had one sack in the NFL. It came in a pre-season game when he played for the Houston Texans. The quarterback he sacked was Kansas City Chief, now B.C. Lion Casey Printers•
Darian Durant is 330 yards away from reaching the 4,000 yard mark in passing. Only three other Riders have had a 4,000 yard year through the air.
They are Kent Austin, Henry Burris and Kerry Joseph. Austin did it four times as a Rider while Burris did it twice. •
The game features the two co-leaders in sacks as both Saskatchewan’s Stevie Baggs and B.C.’s Ricky Foley have 11. Chick is next with 10• The Riders are tied for most TD’s this year. Montreal and Saskatchewan have each put the ball in the endzone 43 times. Saskatchewan leads the league in rushing TD’s with 21.
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