2008 Saskatchewan Roughriders season

2008 Saskatchewan Roughriders season
Head coach	Ken Miller
General manager	Eric Tillman
Home field	Mosaic Stadium at Taylor Field
Results
Record	12–6–0
Division place	2nd, West
Playoff finish	Lost Western Semi-Final
Team MOP	Wes Cates
Team MOC	Gene Makowsky
Team MOR	Weston Dressler
Uniform

The 2008 Saskatchewan Roughriders finished in 2nd place in the West division with a 12–6 record for the second consecutive year. It was their 51st season in the Canadian Football League. The Roughriders attempted to repeat as Grey Cup champions, but, due to an abundance of injuries, lost to the BC Lions in the Western Semi-Final game.

Off-season

Several months after capturing the 2007 Grey Cup, 2007 CFL coach of the Year Kent Austin stepped down as head coach to become the offensive co-ordinator at Ole Miss. In accepting this position in the NCAA, Austin turned down a very lucrative contract that the Riders had offered.^[1] On February 6, 2008, Eric Tillman announced that the new head coach would be Ken Miller. Miller was formerly an offensive coordinator under Austin.^[2]

Last season's starting quarterback Kerry Joseph was traded to the Toronto Argonauts on March 5, 2008, along with a third round pick in the 2010 CFL Draft in exchange for offensive tackle Glenn January, defensive lineman Ronald Flemons, the Argos' first-round pick in the 2008 CFL Draft and a 2010 second-round selection.

On April 5, 2008 a report was released saying that the Roughriders set a new record for earnings in a single season. At the Roughriders' annual general meeting, Mike Back, the club's vice-president of finance and operations, reported the Roughriders registered a record profit of $1,737,377 in 2007.^[3] The Roughriders exceeded the $22 million plateau in total operating revenue and expenditures. This figure eclipsed the previous mark of $15 million. Total net assets increased by $1,998,857 to $5,096,393.^[3] These earnings were due in part to the championship season the Roughriders sported, which included 8 home game sellouts and their first home playoff game in 19 years.

CFL Draft

Round	Player	Position	School/Club Team
1 (via Toronto)	Keith Shologan	Defensive Lineman	Central Florida Knights
2 (via Edmonton, via Toronto, via Edmonton)	Jonathan St. Pierre	Offensive Lineman	Illinois State Redbirds
2 (via BC)	Michael Stadnyk	Defensive Lineman	Montana Grizzlies
4 (via BC)	Jean-François Morin-Roberge	Offensive Lineman	Montreal Carabins
5	Jeff Zelinski	Defensive Back	Saint Mary's Huskies
6 (via Hamilton)	Teale Orban	Quarterback	Regina Rams

Pre-season

Week	Date	Opponent	Score	Result	Attendance
A	Fri, June 13	BC Lions	33–13 ^[4]	Win	28,800
B	Thurs, June 19	at Edmonton Eskimos	37–7 ^[4]	Lost	33,508

Regular season

Crowd trouble

On September 20, an unsportsmanlike incident occurred during a game in Saskatchewan. It started in the fourth quarter when Saskatchewan fans became angry about a B.C. play they thought should have been a face mask penalty. Lions defensive back Dante Marsh fired the ball into the stands, and Saskatchewan fans responded by pelting the Lions with full cans of beer.^[5] The incident occurred on the night when the Roughriders were honouring past CFL legend Ron Lancaster, who recently died at the age of 69. The club subsequently announced that in order to reduce the probability of a similar incident beer in the east stands (where the visitors bench is) would be sold in plastic cups for at least the remainder of the season.

Ron Lancaster

On Thursday, September 18, Ron Lancaster, 69, died from an apparent heart attack, less than two months after being diagnosed with lung cancer.^[6] The former Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback, also had a long career as a head coach, with the Edmonton Eskimos and Hamilton Tiger Cats. He was diagnosed in late July and had been undergoing radiation and chemotherapy.^[6] Lancaster played 16 seasons with Saskatchewan, and led the team to five Grey Cup appearances. He led the club to their first CFL championship in 1966 when Saskatchewan upset the Ottawa Rough Riders 29–14.^[7] When he retired in 1978, at the age of 41, he was the league's all-time leader in passing yards (50,535), touchdown passes (333), pass attempts (6,223) and completions (3,384).^[8] He also suffered more interceptions than any other quarterback in CFL history.^[9] He had also passed for more yards than any passer in professional football history.^[9]

Season standings

West

West Division
Team	GP	W	L	T	PF	PA	Pts
Y-Calgary Stampeders	18	13	5	0	595	420	26	Details
X-Saskatchewan Roughriders	18	12	6	0	500	471	24	Details
X-BC Lions	18	11	7	0	559	479	22	Details
X-Edmonton Eskimos	18	10	8	0	512	536	20	Details

East

East Division
Team	GP	W	L	T	PF	PA	Pts
Y-Montreal Alouettes	18	11	7	0	610	443	22	Details
X-Winnipeg Blue Bombers	18	8	10	0	435	490	16	Details
Toronto Argonauts	18	4	14	0	397	627	8	Details
Hamilton Tiger-Cats	18	3	15	0	441	593	6	Details

Season schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Score	Result	Attendance	Record
1	Sat, June 28	vs. Edmonton Eskimos	34–13	Win	28,800	1–0
2	Fri, July 4	at BC Lions	26–16	Win	33,815	2–0
3	Sat, July 12	at Hamilton Tiger-Cats	33–28	Win	20,874	3–0
4	Sat, July 19	vs. Montreal Alouettes	41–33	Win	28,800	4–0
5	Sun, July 27	vs. Toronto Argonauts	28–22	Win	28,800	5–0
6	Sat, Aug 2	at Calgary Stampeders	22–21	Win	35,650	6–0
7	Thurs, Aug 7	vs. Calgary Stampeders	30–25	Loss	28,800	6–1
8	Bye
9	Thurs, Aug 21	at Edmonton Eskimos	27–10	Loss	48,808	6–2
10	Sun, Aug 31	vs. Winnipeg Blue Bombers	19–6	Win	30,985	7–2
11	Sun, Sept 7	at Winnipeg Blue Bombers	34–31	Win	29,770	8–2
12	Sat, Sept 13	at BC Lions	28–23	Loss	38,608	8–3
13	Sat, Sept 20	vs. BC Lions	27–21	Loss	30,945	8–4
14	Sun, Sept 28	at Montreal Alouettes	37–12	Loss	20,202	8–5
15	Fri, Oct 3	vs. Calgary Stampeders	37–34	Win	30,945	9–5
16	Mon, Oct 13	at Calgary Stampeders	42–5	Loss	35,650	9–6
17	Sun, Oct 19	vs. Hamilton Tiger-Cats	30–29	Win	30,945	10–6
18	Sat, Oct 25	vs. Edmonton Eskimos	55–9	Win	30,945	11–6
19	Thurs, Oct 30	at Toronto Argonauts	45–38	Win	28,654	12–6

Roster

2008 Saskatchewan Roughriders roster

Quarterbacks

Running Backs

20 Wes Cates RB
22 Stu Foord FB
27 Henri Childs RB
32 Neal Hughes FB
33 Chris Szarka FB
-- Justin Beaver RB

Wide Receivers

6 Rob Bagg WR
12 Adarius Bowman SB
84 Chris Jones WR

Slotbacks

Offensive Linemen

52 Wayne Smith RT
54 Jeremy O'Day Centre
57 Marc Parenteau LG
58 Belton Johnson LT
60 Gene Makowsky C
67 Mike Abou-Mechrek RG
69 Glenn January RT

Defensive Linemen

46 Kitwana Jones Rush End
51 Marcus Adams Off Tackle
93 Seante Williams Quick End
95 Luc Mullinder Quick End
96 Scott Schultz Nose Tackle
97 John Chick Quick End
-- Kai Brown DL
-- A.J. Raebel DL

Linebackers

31 Sean Lucas Strong-Side LB
42 Anton McKenzie Weak-Side LB
45 Mike McCullough Middle LB
47 Maurice Lloyd Middle LB
48 Renauld Williams Weak-Side LB
49 Yannick Carter Weak-Side LB
-- Kye Williams LB

Defensive Backs

1 Omarr Morgan CB
14 James Patrick CB
15 Lance Frazier Halfback
19 James Johnson CB
24 Tad Kornegay Halfback
26 Scott Gordon Free Safety
29 Eddie Davis Halfback

Special Teams

10 Luca Congi K
30 Jamie Boreham P
59 Jocelyn Frenette Long Snapper

Reserve List

2 Corey Grant WR
38 Hugh Charles RB
63 Steve Morley LT
91 Jimmy Verdon Off Tackle

Developmental Squad

Injured Lists

3 D. J. Flick SB
11 Dalton Bell QB
16 Adam Nicolson SB
21 Denatay Heard CB
25 Leron Mitchell CB (9 Game)
35 Brandon Lynch Strong-Side LB (9 Game)
39 Sebastian Clovis Free Safety
53 Jean-François Morin-Roberge OL (9 Game)
66 Chris Best RG
72 Kevin Scott Long Snapper
74 Keith Shologan Nose Tackle
80 Gerran Walker WR
81 Carl Berman SB (9 Game)
85 David McKoy SB (9 Game)
88 Matt Dominguez WR
90 Stevie Baggs DL
92 Dek Bake Quick End (9 Game)

Suspended List

22 Dustin Cherniawski DB
37 Tristan Clovis Free Safety

Italics indicate Import player
Roster updated 2008-10-30
Depth Chart • Transactions
46 Active, 11 Inactive, 7 PS

→ More rosters

Notable transactions

Date	Type	Incoming	Outgoing	Team
September 6, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Adam Nicolson, Slotback	N/A	British Columbia Lions (2007)
August 28, 2008	Release	N/A	Marcus Crandell, Quarterback	Saskatchewan Roughriders
August 23, 2008	Trade	Michael Bishop, Quarterback	Conditional 2011 CFL Canadian Draft choice	Toronto Argonauts
July 24, 2008	Free Agent Signing (for 2009)	Kye Stewart, Linebacker	N/A	Illinois State (NCAA) (2007)
July 17, 2008	Release	N/A	Amariah Farrow, Offensive Lineman	Saskatchewan Roughriders
July 8, 2008	Release	N/A	Airabin Justin, Defensive Back	Saskatchewan Roughriders
July 7, 2008	Trade	T.J. Acree, Wide Receiver Rights to Brian Smith, Defensive Lineman Argonauts' Third Round Canadian Draft Choice In 2011	Ronald Flemons, Defensive End Roughriders' Fifth Round Canadian Draft Choice In 2011	Toronto Argonauts
June 28, 2008	Draft Pick Signing	Keith Shologan, Defensive Lineman	N/A	San Diego Chargers (NFL) (2008)
June 18, 2008	Release	N/A	Brock Stratton, Linebacker	Saskatchewan Roughriders
June 6, 2008	Release	N/A	Quinton Jones, Defensive Back	Saskatchewan Roughriders
June 5, 2008	Trade	Leron Mitchell, Cornerback	Jamal Robertson, Running Back	Toronto Argonauts
June 2, 2008	Retirement	N/A	Tim Fleiszer, Defensive Line	Saskatchewan Roughriders
June 2, 2008	Retirement	N/A	Kennedy Nkeyasen, Defensive Back	Saskatchewan Roughriders
June 1, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Denatay Heard, Defensive Back	N/A	Stillman College (NCAA) (2007)
June 1, 2008	Trade	Future Considerations and a Negotiation List Player	Kevin Garrett, Defensive Back	Winnipeg Blue Bombers
June 1, 2008	Release	N/A	Jason Mitchell, Wide Receiver	Saskatchewan Roughriders
May 31, 2008	Release	N/A	T.J. Stancil, Linebacker	Saskatchewan Roughriders
May 26, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Adarius Bowman, Wide Receiver	N/A	Oklahoma State (NCAA) (2007)
May 26, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Stu Foord, Wide Receiver	N/A	Regina Thunder (CJFL) (2007)
May 26, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Brad Peters, Offensive Lineman	N/A	Saskatoon Hilltops (CJFL) (2007)
May 11, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Weston Dressler, Wide Receiver	N/A	North Dakota (NCAA) (2007)
May 5, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Kevin Scott, Offensive Lineman/Long Snapper	N/A	Queen's (CIS) (2007)
April 1, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Kevin Garrett, Defensive Back	N/A	Calgary Stampeders
March 12, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Omarr Morgan, Defensive Back	N/A	Edmonton Eskimos
March 5, 2008	Trade	Glenn January, Offensive Tackle Ronald Flemons, Defensive Lineman Argonauts first round selection in the 2008 CFL Draft Argonauts second round selection in the 2010 CFL Draft	Kerry Joseph, Quarterback Riders third round pick in the 2010 CFL Draft	Toronto Argonauts
March 4, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Brock Stratton, Linebacker	N/A	Texas Tech (NCAA) (2006)
February 27, 2008	Free Agent Signing	N/A	Jovon Johnson, Defensive Back	Erie RiverRats (AIFA)
February 19, 2008	Free Agent Signing	N/A	Reggie Hunt, Linebacker	Montreal Alouettes
February 8, 2008	Trade	Steven Jyles, Quarterback	Fred Perry, Defensive End	Edmonton Eskimos
January 31, 2008	Retirement	N/A	Val St. Germain, Offensive Lineman	N/A
January 29, 2008	Release	N/A	Corey Holmes, Running Back	N/A
January 29, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Quinton Jones, Defensive Back	N/A	San Diego Chargers (NFL) (2007)
January 29, 2008	Free Agent Signing	James Patrick, Defensive Back	N/A	New England Patriots (NFL) (2007)
January 23, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Rob Bagg, Wide Receiver	N/A	Queen's (CIS) (2007)
January 23, 2008	Free Agent Signing	Jason Mitchell, Wide Receiver	N/A	USC (NCAA) (2006)
November 28, 2007	Retirement	N/A	Yo Murphy, Wide Receiver	N/A

Player stats

Passing

Player	Att	Comp	%	Yards	TD	INT	Rating
Michael Bishop	274	160	58.4	2550	10	13	81.9
Darian Durant	129	77	59.7	1122	7	6	86.8
Marcus Crandell	128	67	52.3	924	7	3	84.3
Steven Jyles	61	42	68.9	533	4	6	76.7
Andy Fantuz	1	0	0.0	0	0	1	(−414.6)

^[10]

Rushing

Player	No.	Yards	Average	TD	Fumbles
Wes Cates	216	1229	5.7	12	4
Michael Bishop	46	244	5.3	4	5
Darian Durant	27	204	7.6	1	1
Stuart Foord	27	162	7.0	2	0
Neal Hughes	35	130	3.7	4	1

^[11]

Receiving

Player	No.	Yards	Avg.	Long	TD
Weston Dressler	56	1123	20.1	67	6
Andy Fantuz	36	488	13.6	31	3
Wes Cates	39	451	11.6	40	2
Rob Bagg	22	371	16.9	72	0
Adarius Bowman	23	358	15.6	73	3

^[12]

Awards and Records

The Roughriders started the season 6–0 for the first time since 1934.
Wes Cates, Led CFL, Rushing Touchdowns (12)^[11]
Weston Dressler (SB), Saskatchewan Roughriders – CFL's Most Outstanding Rookie Award
Jeremy O'Day (C), Saskatchewan Roughriders – Tom Pate Memorial Award

CFL All-Star Selections

Wes Cates, Running Back
Gene Makowsky, Offensive Guard
Anton McKenzie, Linebacker
Maurice Lloyd, Linebacker

^[13]

CFL West All-Star Selections

Wes Cates, Running Back
Gene Makowsky, Offensive Guard
Anton McKenzie, Linebacker
Maurice Lloyd, Linebacker

^[14]

Playoffs

West Semi-Final

Date and time: Saturday, November 8, 3:30 PM Central Standard Time
Venue: Mosaic Stadium at Taylor Field, Regina, Saskatchewan

Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Total
BC Lions	7	9	10	7	33
Saskatchewan Roughriders	0	6	3	3	12

References

↑ "Austin jumps ship for Ole Miss". Slam.canoe.ca. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
↑ CANOE – SLAM! Sports – CFL – Saskatchewan: Riders hire Miller as coach Archived February 7, 2008, at Archive.is
1 2 "Riders season a financial success". Slam.canoe.ca. Archived from the original on 2013-01-15. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
1 2 "CFL.ca". Cfl.ca. Archived from the original on 7 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
↑ "CFL fans behaving badly". Slam.canoe.ca. Archived from the original on September 25, 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
1 2 CBC Sports (2008-09-19). "CFL fans remember Ron Lancaster". Cbc.ca. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
↑ Ralph, Dan (2008-09-18). "Tributes pour in for 'Mr. CFL,' legendary Ron Lancaster". The Star. Toronto. Archived from the original on 21 October 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
↑ "CFL legend Ron Lancaster dies at 69". Canada.com. Archived from the original on 2008-09-19. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
1 2 "Ron Lancaster". Histori.ca. Archived from the original on 2010-12-29. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
↑ "CFL.ca". Cfl.ca. Archived from the original on 11 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
1 2 "CFL.ca". Cfl.ca. Archived from the original on 18 October 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
↑ "CFL.ca". Cfl.ca. Archived from the original on 10 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
↑ "CFL.ca – 2008 All-Stars". Cfl.ca. Archived from the original on 2009-07-24. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
↑ "CFL.ca – 2008 East & West Division All-Stars". Cfl.ca. Archived from the original on 2009-07-24. Retrieved 2008-11-29.

2008 CFL season by team
Western	BC Calgary Edmonton Saskatchewan
Eastern	Hamilton Montreal Toronto Winnipeg
See also	2008 CFL Draft 96th Grey Cup

Saskatchewan Roughriders seasons
1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Bold indicates Grey Cup victory

Saskatchewan Roughriders
Founded in 1910 Based in Regina, Saskatchewan
Franchise	Franchise Records Players Seasons Head coaches
Stadiums	Taylor Field Mosaic Stadium
Culture	Labour Day Classic Banjo Bowl Gainer the Gopher
Important figures	Ron Atchison Roger Aldag Bill Baker Al Benecick "Gluey" Hugh Campbell Ken Charlton Bill Clarke Ray Elgaard Edwin "Eddie" "Dynamite" James Bobby Jurasin Ron Lancaster Ed McQuarters George Reed Dave Ridgway Martin Ruby N. J. "Piffles" Taylor Ted Urness
Retired numbers	23 Ron Lancaster 34 George Reed 36 Dave Ridgway 40 Mel Becket 44 Roger Aldag 55 Mario DeMarco 56 Ray Syrnyk 73 Gordon Sturtridge
Key personnel	Owners: "Community" owned General Manager: Chris Jones Head Coach: Chris Jones
Grey Cup championships (4)	1966 1989 2007 2013
West Division championships (19)	1923 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1934 1951 1966 1967 1969 1972 1976 1989 1997 2007 2009 2010 2013
Current league affiliations	League: Canadian Football League Division: West

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