Chris Best spent 10 seasons with the Riders, including capturing a Grey Cup in 2013, but he hasn’t quite processed seeing his name on the new Saskatchewan Roughriders Plaza of Honour.
His name will be one of three that will be added to the Saskatchewan Roughriders Plaza of Honour, which will sit outside of gate four, alongside Elphinstone street.
A new Plaza of Honour area has gone up outside the stadium.
Features the names of all the inductees. #CFL #Riders pic.twitter.com/1NtOmLCMaU
— Britton Gray (@BrittonGray) September 11, 2025
The former offensive lineman will be inducted alongside former assistant coach Alex Smith Sr. and former running back Steve Molnar at halftime on Saturday when the Saskatchewan Roughriders take on the Montreal Alouettes.
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“You look at the other names on here and (there are) just some absolute legends,” Best said.
“The fact that I have my name up there with all those people, I don’t know if it’s fully hit me yet. I touched it, I felt my name (and) I’m going to take a few more pictures of it,” said Best, whose name will be among Rider greats like Darian Durant, George Reed and others on the Plaza of Honour.
Best now resides in British Columbia, but said the Rider green is still prominent in his household.
“We all have Rider gear and we wear it properly out in Victoria,” he said. “They can all tell what a special weekend this is, and I don’t think they even realize yet how special it’s going to be.”
Smith Sr. Grateful for old high school coach
Alex Smith Sr. was an assistant coach on the 2013 team that Best played on and will also join him on the Plaza of Honour.
“Growing up here in Regina, when you start out you think you’ll maybe play for them someday,” he said. “I was looking at this while they were talking and I’m thinking, I’ve seen most of these guys play, so it is really a privilege.”
Smith Sr. said he has his old high school coach to thank for getting him into coaching.
“It was in the ‘60s when I was playing for the (Regina) Rams,” he said. “My high school coach phoned me up and asked me if I’d be interested in coaching the Grade 9 and 10 team at Scott Collegiate.”
Molnar played part in growing Rider nation
Steve Molnar played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders from 1969 to 1978, capturing two Grey Cups in his time with the Green and White.
Molnar passed away in 2021 but his son Jeremy was at Mosaic Stadium in honour of his father.
“We haven’t been back to Saskatchewan in about 30 years, so Rider nation has certainly grown over that time,” he said. “What really strikes me is the feeling that dad had a part in growing this.”
“It means everything; if you have anything, it’s history.”
Jeremy said it’s going to be a difficult weekend, and that seeing his dad’s name on the Plaza of Honour made him quite emotional.
“It’s been a little overwhelming,” he said. “It honestly brings a bit of a tear to my eyes, seeing dad’s name up there, he didn’t talk a lot about football, but now to see it come to life… it’s been emotional.”
As Jeremy got older, he said he began to learn just how much his dad meant to the Green and White.