Six sacks, Stevens' scores spark Roughriders to 16-9 victory over Elks
Rob Vanstone
Destination: Vancouver.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are to oppose the B.C. Lions in Round 1 of the CFL playoffs on Oct. 31.
The matchup was determined on Saturday, when the Roughriders registered a season-high six sacks while defeating the Edmonton Elks 16-9 before 25,521 spectators at Mosaic Stadium.
Saskatchewan finished the regular season with a 10-8 record, good for third in the West Division.
“(A winning record) is huge,” said Jack Coan, the victorious starting quarterback. “It’s a huge benchmark for how your season went. You don’t want to be .500 or below. You want to be a winning team.
“Now that we’ve got to the post-season, I guess none of that matters too much. We’re zero-and-zero and we’re trying to get another win from here.”
The Lions, also 10-8, earned second place — and hosting privileges for the Western Semi-Final — by virtue of having won the season series with Saskatchewan.
If Edmonton had won on Saturday, the Roughriders would have finished fourth in the West and crossed over into the East Division for the post-season. In that case, Saskatchewan would have opposed the Toronto Argonauts at BMO Field on Halloween.
With the uncertainty resolved, the Roughriders’ coaches can now zero in on preparing a game plan for one opponent, as opposed to entertaining the “B.C. or Toronto?” scenario.
“You’ve got to do your due diligence to be prepared for any situation that you're in, so you kind of hit the ground running as coaches,” Head Coach Corey Mace said. “Now it’s settled.
“The thought process was that we wanted to win this game. Logistically, it allows us to be ourselves in how we prepare and how we operate here, getting to stay west to make this push.
“It’s an exciting time. Everybody’s excited.”
Especially short-yardage specialist extraordinaire Tommy Stevens, whose two majors on Saturday gave him a franchise-record 17 rushing touchdowns. Roughriders icon George Reed set the previous mark of 16 in 1968.
“It’s really cool, with what George meant to this team and this province,” Stevens said. “I never had a chance to meet him, but with the stories that you hear, it’s surreal to have you name mentioned among people like George.”
On top of that, Stevens set a CFL record for touchdowns by a quarterback in a season. The Ottawa REDBLACKS' Caleb Evans set the previous mark of 16 in 2022.
Moreover, Stevens finished the regular-season in a three-way tie for the second-most TDs franchise history.
Ken Carpenter set the record of 18 in 1955. Stevens, Hugh Campbell (1966) and Craig Ellis (1985) are tied with 17.
All three quarterbacks who dressed for Saskatchewan saw action on Saturday, when Trevor Harris — whose 5,370 passing yards paced the CFL in 2026 — was rested for the playoffs.
Coan, making his first CFL start, completed 15 of 26 passes for 178 yards on a windy day.
“It’s great to get the experience, be out there with the guys and battle, and get a win,” he said.
Brayden Schager, who dressed for his first regular-season game as a professional football player, was 3-for-6 for 27 yards after replacing Coan during the fourth quarter.
On Saturday, Edmonton opened the scoring when Cole Snyder scored a one-yard touchdown at 4:56 of the first quarter.
Saskatchewan got on the board when Brett Lauther kicked a 32-yard field goal at 1:30 of the second quarter.
Saskatchewan went ahead 9-6 when Stevens scored on a one-yard touchdown run at 12:07 of the second quarter.
Another one-yard score by Stevens, at 2:53 of the second quarter, gave Saskatchewan a 15-6 lead.
Oscar Chapman made it 16-6 with a 58-yard punt single at 11:29 of the final frame. The rouge was the first CFL point for Chapman, who has punted in all 18 Roughriders games this season.
Edmonton’s Vincent Blanchard kicked a 23-yard field goal with 17 seconds remaining.
The Elks then tried an onside kick, which was recovered by the Roughriders’ Johnny Johnson III with 25 seconds left in the regular season.
JOHNSON WINS
The Roughriders announced during the second quarter that KeeSean Johnson is the Wireless Age Player of the Year, as determined by fan voting.
Johnson, who was rested on Saturday, had 108 catches for 1,328 yards and eight touchdowns in 16 regular-season games.
His receptions total is the second-best in franchise history, behind Don Narcisse (123 receptions in 1995).
SEXTON’S SKILL SET
Roughriders returner Mathew Sexton, who was also deployed as a receiver in the second half, made his first three CFL receptions. He gained 33 yards.
“It was a good way to warm up while we were out there,” Sexton joked.
“It’s something that we do every day. We work on this stuff every day. It was cool to put it on tape during a game.”
EXTRA POINTS
• Jameer Thurman registered his 100th defensive tackle of the season. He posted the 13th season of 100-plus tackles by a Roughrider.
• The Roughriders’ six sacks were courtesy of David Gbenda (with his first in the CFL), Habakkuk Baldonado, Devin Adams, Caleb Sanders, David Gbenda, Desmond Evans and Seyi Oladipo Jr. Adams’ sack was his first as a Rider. Adams also recovered a fumble that was forced by Evans’ strip-sack.
• Including time spent with the Ottawa REDBLACKS, Lauther made 38 of 41 field-goal attempts during the 2026 regular season. His accuracy rate was a career-best 92.7 per cent. The previous high was an even 90 (54-for-60) with the 2018 Roughriders. He is the Roughriders' All-Time accuracy leader, with a percentage of 82.1 (minimum 100 attempts).
• Deon Jackson, making his CFL debut, had the longest run by a Roughriders running back (23 yards) this season. Stevens had the longest run, period — a 26-yarder. Jackson gained 44 yards on nine carries.
• Stevens, who entered the CFL in 2022, has scored the most touchdowns in the league (47) over the past five seasons. Lions running back James Butler is second at 40, followed by veteran receivers Kenny Lawler and Tim White (both 37).
• Schager became the 122nd quarterback to throw a pass for the Regina or Saskatchewan Roughriders.
• Jonathan Edouard registered a team-high three special teams tackles. Kerfalla Exume had two.
• The Roughriders are poised to play a first-round playoff game in Vancouver for the first time since the Lions made their debut in 1954.
• Saskatchewan has scored 16 points while winning each of its past two games. On Oct. 17, the Roughriders clinched a playoff spot by defeating the visiting Montreal Alouettes 16-12.
• The 16-9 game was the second in Roughriders history. On Sept. 27, 1952, Saskatchewan lost 16-9 in Calgary.