Saskatoon-born Rider Gene Makowsky is happy with his team's No. 1 finish but he wishes it could have been done years earlier.
Photograph by: Troy Fleece, Leader-Post files
Photograph by: Troy Fleece, Leader-Post files
REGINA — If he plays 15 seasons in the CFL, a player likely will see just about everything during his career.
But Gene Makowsky wasn’t so sure he’d ever see his Saskatchewan Roughriders finish first in the West Division.
But Gene Makowsky wasn’t so sure he’d ever see his Saskatchewan Roughriders finish first in the West Division.
Asked after Saturday’s 30-14 victory over the visiting Calgary Stampeders — a win that gave the Roughriders top spot in the West for the first time since 1976 — if doubt about a first-place finish had ever set in, the veteran offensive lineman replied: “Oooooh, yeah.”
“My first five or six years, we averaged five wins,” continued Makowsky, a member of the teams that won 32 games over a six-season span from 1995 through 2000. “It seemed to be an uphill battle and against the wind all the time.
“You never know. I’ve been fortunate to be able to play a lot. I’ve finally seen it, so it’s a great deal. I just wish we could have done it years earlier!”
As a product of Saskatoon, Makowsky was well-versed in the Roughriders’ first-place futility long before he joined the team. While he may not have known what was going on during the ’76 season — “I wasn’t paying attention; I was three,” he said with a grin — he’s well aware of the meaning of this season’s accomplishment.
“Not just living here but playing through some lean years in the ’90s, it might hold a little more significance for me,” said Makowsky, 36. “I’m sure everyone has their own reasons, motivations and feelings (to celebrate Saturday’s victory). But for me and the fans, it might mean a little more.”
“Not just living here but playing through some lean years in the ’90s, it might hold a little more significance for me,” said Makowsky, 36. “I’m sure everyone has their own reasons, motivations and feelings (to celebrate Saturday’s victory). But for me and the fans, it might mean a little more.”
Makowsky isn’t the only Roughrider who feels that way.
There are 10 Saskatchewan-born players on the roster — Makowsky, offensive lineman Jordan Rempel of Caronport, and the Regina contingent of slotbacks Jason Clermont and Chris Getzlaf, running backs Stu Foord and Neal Hughes, defensive backs Tamon George and Joel Lipinski, offensive lineman Nick Hutchins and defensive lineman Mike Stadnyk — and they all shared in the province’s celebration.
“This is outstanding!” Hughes told the Leader-Post’s Rob Vanstone on Saturday. “To be a part of it is very special.
“We’ve got guys in this locker room like Geno and (fullback Chris) Szarka and (centre Jeremy) O’Day and a couple of others who have been playing forever and have never seen a first place ... I’ve been playing for six years and this is just an outstanding feeling. I’m just as happy for myself as I am for all those guys, and for the province, too.’’
“I’m not really big on (attaching significance to games) normally, but I think it means a little more to me,” added Getzlaf. “It probably means a lot to everybody right now. We got a bye, right?
“But I definitely think about it more being from here and having an opportunity to get that game in this city with these great fans who haven’t seen it for so long.”
“But I definitely think about it more being from here and having an opportunity to get that game in this city with these great fans who haven’t seen it for so long.”
Many of the current Roughriders used to be spectators when they were younger. Some of them flashed back to those moments Saturday as the fans celebrated the occasion.
“One of the Rider Pride songs came on and I was singing it,” Hughes said. “I looked over and Stu Foord was singing it, too. He and I used to sing this song in the stands. It kind of brought us down to earth ...
“It’s just cool to be able to play for the home team and to be a part of a successful organization is just an added bonus.’’
Being part of a team that has playoff success is attractive to Foord. The Roughriders play host to the West final on Nov. 22 and, with a win in that game, can reach the Grey Cup.
“When you play the game, you’re in the moment,” he said. “When you look back on it, you want to make some history — and that’s what we’re starting to do right now. We’re about to make some history coming up.”
For Makowsky, snapping a 33-year drought in a winner-take-all contest certainly held some historical significance.
“When you play the game, you’re in the moment,” he said. “When you look back on it, you want to make some history — and that’s what we’re starting to do right now. We’re about to make some history coming up.”
For Makowsky, snapping a 33-year drought in a winner-take-all contest certainly held some historical significance.
“The big games are the reasons you play — and to get a big win, there’s no feeling like it,” he said. “You can’t replicate it in any other facet of life in my opinion. It’s a great deal for our franchise and our fans and we’ll savour it for a few days.”
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