The Saskatchewan Roughriders offence hasn’t looked like this in a good long while, and it couldn’t be coming together at a better time for the Green and White.
The Riders depth chart for their Western Semi-Final showdown with the B.C. Lions revealed that almost the entire starting offensive lineup will be back together on the field for the first time since the earliest part of the season.
That comes after a host of players took Week 21 off to rest and repair for the final push in the defence of their Grey Cup championship.
It all starts immediately behind the offensive line, where Trevor Harris gets the start at quarterback after having last week off to rest and running back A.J. Ouellette is back after recovering from a minor neck ailment.
The receiving corps begins with the three-headed monster, featuring KeeSean Johnson as the weakside wide receiver, Kian Schaffer-Baker at weakside slotback and Sam Emilus at strongside slotback. Dhel Duncan-Busby is the strongside receiver and Johnny Johnson III will also play slot on that side of the field.
The offensive line also has the season-opening starters in place: Payton Collins at left tackle, Zack Fry at left guard, Logan Ferland at centre, Jacob Brammer at right guard, and Jermarcus Hardick at right tackle. Daniel Johnson will play as the sixth man.
Things aren’t quite as perfect for the defence, though.
Safety Nelson Lokombo suffered an ankle injury in the regular season finale against the Edmonton Elks and is out for the playoff contest, with Jaxon Ford getting the start in his place.
The Riders do welcome DaMarcus Fields back to the lineup, and he’ll replace Jonathan Edouard as the starting strong side halfback. Tevaughn Campbell will be the strong cornerback, while Marcus Sayles and James Burgess Jr. are in their usual weakside halfback and cornerback spots respectively.
James Vaughters returns after missing last week to anchor the defensive line, with Habakkuk Baldonado starting as the other defensive end. Mike Rose and Caleb Sanders will suit up as tackles, as has been the case much of the latter half of the season.
The linebacking corps will be led by team tackles leader Jameer Thurman in the middle, with Seyi Oladipo Jr. on the strong side and Aubrey Miller Jr. on the weak side.
The Rider Broadcast Network will have all the action from the Western Semi-Final beginning with the pre-game show at 11:30 a.m. Dave Thomas and crew will get listeners set up for the game, and he’ll then join Luc Mullinder with the game call at kickoff at 2:30 p.m.
https://x.com/sskroughriders/status/2116202400642212116
