Five storylines to watch at the Riders’ rookie camp

The Saskatchewan Roughriders will get to see all of their offseason work come to the field for the first time as rookie camp begins.

After months of scouting, signing players, and then the CFL Draft, rookie camp begins for the club on Wednesday. Practice will run from 8:30 a.m. to noon at Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon. The Riders’ main camp begins on May 11.

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Last year, players like offensive tackle Trevor Reid and wide receiver KeeSean Johnson emerged early and earned starting jobs for Week 1 of the season. This year, the Riders will once again look to find some players who can step up and make a name for themselves early.

Here are five storylines to keep in mind during rookie camp:

Maier and Stevens make their debuts

The first storyline doesn’t include CFL rookies but two new Riders at the quarterback position.

The club traded for the rights to negotiate with former Calgary Stampeders quarterback Jake Maier after a disappointing season. The team reached a deal on a one-year extension. Maier, 28, has 45 CFL starts under his belt already and he is expected to be the backup to Trevor Harris. That spot has been an important one since Harris joined the Riders in 2023, as he has suffered knee injuries in both of his seasons in Saskatchewan, forcing backups to start 19 games over the past two seasons.

Meanwhile, Tommy Stevens will help the Riders with their recent short-yardage woes. Stevens is one of the best short-yardage quarterbacks in the CFL. Last season, he was utilized in 31 third-and-short situations, and converted 30 of those. He has also torched the Riders in previous seasons, recording an 89-yard touchdown run in 2022 and then a 69-yard touchdown run last season against the Green and White.

Both are reunited with offensive co-ordinator Marc Mueller, who was the quarterbacks coach in Calgary from 2020-2023.

Andrew Harris in Rider Green

Andrew Harris will make his debut as a Rider coach at rookie camp.

The former running back spent years as someone who Rider fans loved to hate as a member of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. In his career, Harris had 10,380 yards and 51 touchdowns. After retiring after the 2023 season, Harris returns to the CFL sidelines as a member of the Riders’ coaching staff, and will serve as the club’s new running backs coach.

The move reunited Harris with running back AJ Ouellette. The two were teammates as members of the Toronto Argonauts in 2022 and ’23, winning the Grey Cup in 2022.

The Riders will want to see a healthier Ouellette in 2025 after a hip injury forced him to miss plenty of games last season.

Rookie receiver opportunities

Johnson was a rookie last year who ended up starting in Week 1 for the Riders. A few other receivers also made a splash as well, with both Dohnte Meyers and Joe Robustelli sticking around with the Riders for all of the last season after strong performances throughout camp. Meyers also started some games before his season was derailed due to an injury.

This time around, there’s some opportunity for rookie receivers like Ja’Marcus Bradley, Jayden Horace, Ty James, Drae McCray,Wayne Ruby Jr., and Brayden Misseri.

The health of Shawn Bane Jr. has a question mark around it after he suffered a serious leg injury in late September.

A receiver could earn a spot on the roster as the team’s kick returner. Mario Alford returns for another season, but the team did bring in players with return capabilities. Bradley and McCray both have experience at the spot and could push the veteran at camp.

Saskatchewan Roughriders wide receiver Dohnte Meyers had a strong camp last year. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson)

Saskatoon connection

Rider rookie camp will feel especially like home for a couple of Rider draft picks. Both linebacker Seth Hundeby and receiver Daniel Wiebe are from Saskatoon, and both played for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies. Hundeby was selected in the fourth round (34th overall) by the Riders, while Wiebe was taken in the eighth round (69th overall). Hundeby has already let the team know he will be returning to the U of S for another season in order to complete his engineering degree, while Wiebe also has another year of eligibility left.

Both players will look to showcase their skills to the coaching staff, and show they can be contributors to the Riders in the future.

Punter performances

With just over a week until the team’s main camp begins, the battle for the starting punter job suddenly heated up.

Adam Korsak was added to the retired list after being the team’s starting punter for two seasons.

The Riders have used their global player designation for the punter position in the past, and that appears to be the case for this year as well.

Australian punters Joe Couch and Bailey Flint are on the roster heading into camp. Couch was on the Riders’ practice roster last season, while Flint appeared in eight games for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

The Riders also drafted Australian punter Jesse Mirco in the global draft, but he has yet to sign with the club.