For Glen Suitor the operative word in assessing the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ Plaza of Honour class of 2026 is just that: Class.
Appearing on The SportsCage radio show Thursday, the TSN analyst and retired longtime Rider expressed his admiration for each of Rob Bagg, Dan Clark and Paul McCallum – not just as players but as people.
Suitor added that the formal selection of Bagg as one of the team’s all-time greats is especially timely with the CFL’s annual Canadian Draft just around the corner.
“If you’re listening right now and you’re a player that feels like he might get drafted this Tuesday and then don’t get drafted, you can think about Rob Bagg,” Suitor said. “There’s a guy who didn’t get drafted, and ended up finding a way to get into training camp, worked his way through it, kept working out, kept believing in himself and then went and got into training camp, and then became a guy that’s now getting inducted into the Plaza of Honour and that’s a great story.”
'Could be a Netflix story'
Another one Suitor says could be a movie is the redemption arc of McCallum’s career.
“When I look at how that went down, the miss that year and then the fan response, and now his response all these later years to it and just how he understood that … people were so emotional at the time,” said Suitor, who played 11 years in Saskatchewan.
“I’ve been through it too. In 1989 I made a mistake and there weren’t many fans of mine in the province for about two weeks. Now that year ended up well. So I understand that. And I feel the same way as Paul. It’s a really cool story.
“I mean I think it could be a Netflix story where he makes this disastrous miss on a chip shot and the entire province is angry and emotional and he understands it, doesn’t let it define him, gets back on the horse and gets back into an all-star form, and goes ahead and wins games for teams that he’s played on, including Saskatchewan and then at the end of it all says ‘I loved my time in Saskatchewan, I couldn’t have been more honoured to be a member now of the Plaza of Honour.’
“This is a guy who has processed all of that, made the comeback and is not saying ‘hey you guys were wrong and I showed you.’ He’s saying ‘I understand your passion and thank goodness we have that passion.’”
'Probably had nails for lunch'
Suitor reserved some of his highest praise for Clark, drawing a parallel with another beloved and long-time Rider offensive lineman.
“Dan Clark for me was that generation’s Roger Aldag – local guy, tough as nails. In fact probably had nails for lunch occasionally. And a guy that clearly … knows what Rider pride is and knew it before he was a member of the team. Grew up with it, understood the passion, understood whether it’s a good situation or bad where you’re being criticized, just how much the people of Saskatchewan care about their team.”
