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On the field, the Saskatchewan Roughriders are warriors. Scoring touchdowns, sacking quarterbacks, and bringing Rider Nation to their feet. But off the football field, they’re just like us – they have big dreams, they’re raising families, and maybe even nurturing a hidden talent. Hosted by Daniella Ponticelli, Air It Out will bring fans even closer to the players, coaches and staff of the Green and White with topics that go beyond the Xs and Os and to the heart of what makes the Saskatchewan Roughriders so special to its fans and its community.
Rob Vanstone [Guest]: You talk to a Rider fan, you say 1966, 1989, 2007, 2013. You don't need
to complete the sentence. Those years are singular. Those years resonate and they're special.
[Musical transition]
Daniella Ponticelli [Narrator]: Four years. Four Grey Cup Championshipsfor the Saskatchewan
Roughriders. This year, the team that won it all at home in 2013 will be inducted into the club’s
Plaza of Honour. I am Daniella Ponticelli, the host of Air it Out: A Saskatchewan Roughrider
Podcast.
November 24th, 2013.
The 11-and-7 Saskatchewan Roughriders beat BC and Calgary to arrive at historic Mosaic
Stadium on Grey Cup Sunday.
Over noise of crowd, Play-by-play announcer: Proud to present Grey Cup 101. The Tiger-Cats
and the Roughriders, on a Grey Cup stage like none other. Overwhelming home-field advantage
against the ultimate road warriors.
Extreme cold gripped the city all week, but the sun came out that day. Tom Hanks was even in
the crowd. But the biggest celebrities in the Queen City were the men on the field, who would go
on to beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 45-23. In this episode, I sit down first with two-time
Saskatchewan Roughrider Grey Cup Champion: Neal Hughes.Hughes was born and raised in
Regina, and played all his minor, high school and university football in his hometown.
Neal Hughes: Going to that Taylor Field for that game, I was pretty emotional. I don't know what
happened, but I just started bawling. I just, the emotion just overtook. I was crying for
excitement. I was crying because I was nervous. I was crying. It was everything. Every single
emotion. You know, at that moment, I was like, ‘Okay, we're really doing this.’
Daniella: Later on, we will hear from Rob Vanstone – a longtime local sports writer devoted to
covering the Saskatchewan Roughrider and is now the team’s senior journalist and historian.
Rob is also a member of the Plaza of Honour selection committee. This year the group also
chose to honour the legacy of Wendy Kelly – who will be the first woman inducted into the Plaza
of Honour as an individual. Kelly tirelessly volunteered her time to the Green and White over
many years and was the first woman to serve on the Roughriders’ Board. Before that, Kelly was
the team nurse for seven years.
In 1995, she co-produced the Grey Cup Parade and halftime show. She also chaired the 2012
Plaza of Honour dinner committee. Kelly also has a tie-in to 2013 – that year she was the
production manager of the Grey Cup Gala.
Here’s Rob Vanstone with more on Wendy Kelly.
Rob: Wendy was the first female to join what was then known as the executive committee. You
know, John Lipp was was the the president of the team at that time. And and John felt it was
important. And it's fitting. I think that John is the chairman of the Plaza selection committee had
the privilege of announcing that Wendy would be inducted, too. It's a it's a lovely full circle
moment. Sadly, we lost Wendy in 2018. I wish she could be here, but there's so many people
who knew Wendy and loved and appreciated her and it's going to be a tremendous celebration
on October 7th.
Daniella: And here is what John Lipp had to say about Kelly, at the official announcement of her
induction.
John Lipp: When you ask her to do something, she would take it on and you knew she would
get it done. She just had that air about her of confidence and she had the ability to get people to
work with her and she was just one of those leaders that attracts people to work with her.
[Musical transition]
Daniella: A wonderful, rich history to celebrate. Wendy Kelly and the 2013 Saskatchewan
Roughriders. A team that featured many hometown heroes — including Neal Hughes. This is
the third time Hughes is entering the Plaza of Honour. The 43-year-old was inducted as an
individual in 2019 and as a member of the Grey Cup champion 2007 Roughriders back in 2010.
Now, the former running back is gearing up for a 10-year reunion with the team that gave
HISTORIC Mosaic Stadium its biggest win.
Daniella Ponticelli [Interviewer]: Neal Hughes, it's so great to sit down with you and you just
helped make the official announcement about this upcoming induction. The 2013 Saskatchewan
Roughriders will be joining the Plaza this fall. What do you make of this moment?
Neal Hughes: It's pretty special. When I was inducted individually, that was an entirely different
feeling than this induction. Individually, it's a very proud moment, and I'm not taking anything
away from that. But to go in as a team, you play the game, to play with your team. It's not an
individual sport and to be able to be recognized with all my other teammates is pretty special.
2013 was a special year. We won the Gray Cup at home. One of the last couple of years of that
stadium over at Taylor Field, and the memories I have of that field will always be good ones.
Daniella: We will get to the season as well a little later on because the season itself was a really
electric ride, right? A hot start. And then there was some adversity. But take me back. It's going
to be ten years this November. You and your teammates making history and as you said at old
Taylor Field and you knew full well this was going to be the last opportunity for a Grey Cup to be
played there. And you were there.
Neal: It's pretty surreal to think about, you know, being a young Saskatchewan kid, let's say, in
1988, going to the games, sitting in Section 205 with my dad. You know, I never I never thought
that moment would ever be a possibility. So, you know, that day going to that Taylor Field for
that game, I was pretty emotional. And all these memories just started flooding through my brain
as I'm going to park my truck in the parking lot. I don't know what happened, but I just started
bawling. I just, the emotion just overtook. And it was it was a bawling. It was excitement. I was
crying for excitement. I was crying because I was nervous. I was crying. It was everything. Every
single emotion, every positive emotion was flowing through me. And I, you know, at that
moment, I was like, ‘Okay, we're really doing this. Like, it's this is amazing.’ And then, you know,
after that moment, individually for myself, I just kind of my adrenaline just kept ramping up all the
way to you know, the first kickoff. And then it was it was just amazing to be out there with such a
great team, a lot of great teammates on that team. You know, there was no individuals that were
out looking for themselves. It was all about the entire team. And everybody, you know, bought
into what we were trying to do. And I'm just happy and and proud to be part of it.
Daniella: Now we have the benefit of hindsight knowing the outcome of that game. But even
before the game starts, I'm getting chills already just talking about it.
Neal: Yeah.
Daniella: I know this is a memory that stands out for you, too. The decision for the team to defy,
you know, what the broadcaster wanted. To defy, sort of, what the setup was for the game and
have individuals come out.
Neal: Yep.
Daniella: You come out all together.
Neal: Yeah. Yeah. And that's that's the kind of team we were. We were we were there for each
other. And, you know, there's a couple of guys in the locker room that heard we were going to
be introduced individually and there were a few other guys who were like, No way, we're not
doing this as individuals. We're doing this as a team. We got here as a team. We're going out as
a team, and we don't care. And I can remember standing in the tunnel beside Chris Best and
there's a decent guy there trying to hold big Chris Best back. And Chris basically just kind of
lightly pushed to the side and just everybody just went out. It was just, a sea of green running
out on the field. Those those types of things don't happen very often. To do it at home in front of
the hometown crowd. It just amped everybody up, amped all the players up. At that point, it was
kind of like, Yeah, we got this.
Daniella: Now you guys went on a run in that game in terms of scoring. You found your groove,
Yes, there was a point in the third quarter where Hamilton was trying to come back, but you
really had that game locked in. Who from your family and friends were there to meet you after
the game? What were the moments like as soon as the final whistle blew?
Neal: Oh, it was it was surreal, to be honest. I was, like I felt like I was in a dream. I remember
my first interview was I think it was TSN with Keith Shologan and I let an F-bomb slip in the live
interview and I was like, ‘Oh no!’ I just completely was just out of my mind And then seeing my
family there and being able to, you know, celebrate with them after the game and in the locker
room and celebrate with the teammates. It was pretty special.
Daniella: There are so many things that led to your success as a group. You mentioned – at the
announcement earlier – a trip to Echo Lake that really showed how everyone was buying in.
Neal: Yeah. So in previous years, three or four years when when Jeremy O'Day was was still
playing need, he'd set up a fishing trip. And when I was a rookie we went on a trip to Tobin Lake
and there was maybe four or five guys that went. And we continue to do that every year. And
there's about the same amount, five or six guys.It would be the bye week and for all the guys
that stuck around we'd we'd go on this little fishing camping trip. You know 2013 rolls around
and I'm setting up this, this camping trip to Echo Lake. And there's a few guys interested in
going. Geroy Simon was one of them. He's a big fisherman. So him and I took my brother's boat
out on the lake that day. Before we went out, there was probably five or six people at the
campsite, and I was thinking, that's probably, you know, all the guys that are going to show up.
But during our we were out for about 3 hours fishing, and caught some fish and brought back
some fish to the camp for everybody and thought I would have kept enough to feed everyone.
But apparently I didn't because there was like 20 or 30 guys just waiting at the camp for us to
get back with the fish. [Daniella laughs] It was pretty special to see that, because that right
there, that moment just kind of shows you that we're a team, we're all friends. We all want to be
hanging out with each other off the field as well as on the field. And I think that's important to
having a winning team is just building a culture and being friends on and off the field, having
each other's backs no matter where you come from. You know, that camping trip in my mind
was was probably the best one that we had had in all the the years doing it, because it was a lot
of guys out there having fun, letting loose, being themselves, and you get to know each other
and you get to know people a little better as individuals, not just players. You know, those
moments, whether or not they played a big role in it, nobody will know. But I think it had
something a little bit to do with it.
Daniella: Do you remember what time of year that was?
Neal: Yeah it would have been August.
Daniella: Okay! And the Riders were really rolling. Five-and-oh start, including a 37-nothing
shut-out against Hamilton! After Labour Day, you were 8-and. Then comes this September
slump. Four losses in a row. Do you remember, neal, the team ever feeling like ‘we don’t have
this?’
Neal: No, there was never that feeling that that we didn't have it. You have bad games. But you
have to bounce back from and, you know, that's that's what we did.There was definitely some
adversity and, you know, I'd rather have some adversity throughout the year than go through
and just roll over everybody and have no adversity. And then you get the playoffs and it's a
different beast. And when the tough times come in the playoffs, it's a little easier to manage and
you know how to handle it. You know, we had a a great team of guys with character and, you
know, we did have a slump, but, you know, we never stopped believing in ourselves.
Daniella: And so what? Right.
Neal: [laughing] yeah!
Daniella: That's all in the past now that everything's here.
Neal: Yeah.
Daniella: I bring that up because the team, while finishing second in the west, still needed to get
through the playoffs. Starting with a home semi-final against BC – a close 29-25 win…then to
Calgary for a 35-3 finish in the West Final. Looking back at that playoff push, what was that
experience like for you?
Neal: I don't often think about those playoff games, but we came together as a team in Calgary
for sure. Going into Calgary, they were, they were the favorite. They're the favorite probably to
win the Grey Cup. And we went into their barn and we did what we had to do and that was that
was a total team game. It was back and forth for the first couple of quarters and you know, we
just kept fighting and fighting. It was kind of like a culmination of the whole year. It was, you
know, come out strong, have some setbacks, come on strong again, have some more setbacks.
And then, you know, in the end, we came out on top and that's that's all that that mattered. And,
you know, we talked about adversity. And, you know, in football, you can have adversity
throughout a whole season, but you get also get tons of adversity and ups and downs in just
one quarter, especially in Canadian football. So we had a lot of guys that were very veteran lik,
e I should say, and Geory Simon, for one, he never see that guy panic. And he was kind of like a
calming force in the locker room. And yeah, he was he's definitely somebody that that I looked
up to, even though we're both grown men, you know, you look up to a guy who has thousands
of yards receiving and hundreds of touchdowns. He just comes in and he's just another guy in
the locker room. And, you know, when you got a guy like that in your corner, you kind of feel
like, know everything's going to be okay. Like, we just got to focus on what we've got to do and
get the job done.
Daniella: Do you remember after that win in Calgary, the fans who were there?
Neal: Oh, yeah, definitely. It's, you know, everywhere we went, there's Rider fans. Yeah. But that
game was special because there was all the Rider fans left in the stands, which was probably a
third full of R ider fans and all the other stands fans were gone home. And that's that's a that's a
lot of Rider fans showing up to a to a Calgary Stampeder home game playoff game and it was it
was pretty special. And you know we knew what we had waiting for us at home and in Rider
Nation and we knew what this Grey Cup was going to be like.So after that game was done, we
celebrated a little bit, but we knew what the task at hand was.
Daniella: Is there a moment from that 2013 Grey Cup game that stands out? You can even it
can be more than one, I’ll let you have that because again, it was such a very dominant
performance by the Riders.
Neal: Yeah I think when Sheets caught that bobbled ball in the air and just went running, that
was like, ‘Oh we got this.’ Then things just started snowballing and going right for us and
everything seemed to go wrong for them. And so it was that was definitely kind of like, not so
much a turning point, but I would say more of like a rallying point and, you know, everybody kind
of knew that, you know, things are going to go right for us after the big win.
Daniella: You gave Rider Nation something it has never had before. People were partying in the
streets and the celebrations carried on long after that. What were the days and weeks like after
that night?
Neal: Oh, it was unreal. And I had a little bit of experience through from ‘07, which was also
crazy because we hadn't won one since ‘89. So it was it was just as crazy as that one. And it
was it was fun to be able to go around to these communities and small communities and show
them the gray cup and, you know, Labatte and I flew up to Stoney Rapids and went to a few
other smaller communities up in the northern Saskatchewan, Cumberland House. And it was it
was really neat to be able to share that with those people in those communities, you know, just
to see the smiles on their faces, just the energy, the positive energy that that everybody had
when we were on any of those tours or around any Rider fans after that time, was was
outstanding. And I'm hoping and truly hoping that that these young guys here can can see and
feel what it was like to be a champion here in Saskatchewan because there's nothing else like it.
I don't think you're getting that same reception from Toronto or Montreal or anywhere else in the
CFL, for that matter. You win one here and you're set in stone for life there.You're in, you're
down in history in Rider Nation.
Daniella: T en years. Life, of course, has changed as move forward. [Neal laughs] Your 13 year
old son is actually with us in the room as we record so to think back, he was just three at the
time.
Neal: Yep.
Daniella: Is there a little bit of magic in getting to relive this this year with your son now at an age
where he'll get to meet your teammates and really store those memories for himself?
Neal: Absolutely. I think it's it's really cool for him to be able to do it. My daughter's 16, so she
was she was there and she kind of understood what was going on. But even then, she was six
years old. So even for her, this is going to be a pretty special moment. And they both play
football. They play basketball, they play all types of team sports. And I think it's going to be a
real need for them to come and see these old guys that their old dad used to play football with
[Neal laughs].
Daniella: You're not old, Neil. Don't say that.
Neal: Ask my son. He'll tell you different. You're actually coaching as well. You had you told me
before we started recording coaching some flag football.
Neal: Yeah, Yeah. My daughter's in the national championship for flag football. She's on the
U-18 Girls Team Sask. and I'm the Offensive Coordinator, so I'll be driving up to Winnipeg
tomorrow to, to coach. And, you know, hopefully we come home with some, some hardware and
I'm pretty excited and it's a great opportunity to still be involved with the game coaching my kids.
And you know, it's it's something I love doing.
Daniella: And what a way to give back to football in your hometown. You are from Regina,
started in the minor football program at age seven – played high school at Thom Collegiate –
then university with the Regina Rams. Do you remember when you signed the Riders in 2004?
Neal: Yeah, actually, I do. I have a funny story. I had Lee Jones from CTV at the time.
Daniella: Mhmm. And he's still with CTV, by the way.
Neal: Yeah, he's in my basement and he had a TV crew there because everyone was expecting
me to get drafted. I was expecting me to get drafted and, you know, all the rounds went through
and I didn't get drafted. TV crew was there. So they did a little interview with me. I was
disappointed, upset. But about 20 minutes after he left, I got a phone call from my agent and he
said, Yeah, I got two teams that are interested in you. I'll tell you, the first one is the Winnipeg
Blue Bombers and Brendan Taman would like to, you know, offer you just a try out and come
sign a contract and come try out in Winnipeg. And the other team is Saskatchewan
Roughriders. They'd like you to come and try out. Now, obviously, I chose the Riders.
Daniella: You chose, right. You chose right.
Neal: So I went in and I remember talking and talking to Danny Barrett and he had the contract
for me. I think my first contract was $32,000. I was excited to sign. I didn't care how much it was.
He says to me, as I'm signing up, we're just going to give you one last opportunity to put the
pads on and basically I took that as like a, ‘Oh, he doesn't think I'm good enough.’ He's just
doing this because I'm from Regina. And so I, I kind of took it personal. Maybe he meant to do
that to motivate me. So I signed that contract, had a little chip on my shoulder, and I went into
camp, got cut, and they brought me back on the practice roster. From there I sat on the practice
roster for five weeks and then the guy who I was backing up got hurt and had my opportunity to
play in a game that was versus the Argonauts and first play of the game was a kickoff and I ran
down the field. I remember just running as fast as I could and I made a tackle and forced the
fumble and we got the ball back and we scored. Touchdown!
Daniella: Oh, come on.
Neal: That was my first ever like opportunity in CFL. And then I made a few more tackles that
game and had a great game on special teams and that's how I, I made the roster for the rest of
that year and the rest of my career was doing whatever I absolutely had to do to help my team.
Daniella: And it's a reminder there's ebbs and flows not only in a game but in a player's career,
in a team season. All of that right? It's just the forces that will it to be. And you were part of the
Riders from ‘04 to 2014. You announced a retirement in May of 2015. So during that time a lot of
success. But come on, I don't think anyone can forget 2009 that that's another moment. So
you've really gone through all of it is what I'm trying to say. You've had those highs. Of course,
we're focused on the 2013 win, but you were part of that 2007 championship for the Riders in
Toronto, playing against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. And now that I know a little bit about the
fact that you could have been potentially on the Winnipeg team, that's interesting. I mean, what
kind of memories do you have from from that ‘07 run? Because that would have been your first
chance ever playing in a championship game.
Neal: Yeah, Yeah, it was it was pretty special at that time. I was, I was getting a few more
opportunities to play on offense as well as all the special teams. And I remember the first game I
saw, the Western final in B.C., I scored a touchdown. It was my first playoff touchdown ever and
I was just elated and ecstatic. And it was it was pretty special because in 2004 we were in B.C.
in the western final and we had missed a field goal to lose the game, and that would have been
our chance to get to the Grey Cup. And it happens. And there's some events that happened
after that to our kicker that are not highly looked upon, but it was it was a pretty special year as
well. And we had that same team feeling throughout that entire year. A turning point of that
season would be the Labour Day game where Kerry Joseph ran a touchdown in with with a
minute left in the game to win. And after that, I think it kind of changed our season because we
we knew we had a great leader in Kerry Joseph, somebody that's going to, you know, put
everything else aside and do what he has to do to win a football game. And, you know, after
that, I think theRider Nation kind of backed us more than they had ever before. And that's kind
of the time where things started kick, like just taking off for the writers as far as merchandise
sales and all ticket sales. And it was is pretty, pretty cool to be part of that team, too. I'm so
fortunate and blessed to be able to to be on both both of those teams. And in the end it all
comes down to our success on those on those teams comes down to everybody just buying in
and everybody doing their job individually, but not playing as individuals and playing as a team
for a common goal. So I'm pretty humbled to be be able to be talking to you about this right now,
to be honest, especially with my son sitting right here.
Daniella: Two Grey Cups. When you consider the Riders have only won four in their very storied
history. Looking back at your career, because now you do get to look back and you get to see
championship wins in the highlights, but it is more than that. It is about everything that you went
through and the people you met. What are you most proud of in your career?
Neal: That's a that's a tough question. I'm proud of all the things that that I've accomplished, not
only individually, but with a team that, you know, knew how to come together and win
championships. I'm a pretty humble guy. I don't like talking about myself. I like to talk about the
team. There's not one individual on the team that can make or break you. Everybody has to be
on the same page. You know, I I'm proud of of doing whatever I had to do to help the team win,
doing whatever the coaches asked of me, whether I wanted to do it or not. I did it to the best of
my ability and never complained because I knew as soon as that negativity starts creeping in,
then it's infectious and you don't want that in a team that's trying to win a championship, you
know, being positive no matter what the situation is, is something that I try to pride myself on,
not only in football, but in life as well. There's always, always a bright side to something. I try to
live by that. I've had a lot of great coaches throughout my life that have kind of, you know,
instilled values in me. So I know I'm I'm proud of all of it. I'm proud of the community work that I
did, proud of some offseasons, I go to 60 or 70 different communities across province and
speak to kids and about healthy choices and, you know, that stuff, you know, may not seem like
a huge deal to some people, but to those kids and to maybe one or two of those kids in those
communities, it was a it was a pretty big deal. And I used to be that kid where I'd be waiting for
the Riders to come to my school. I still remember Richie Hall coming to my school. He was on
crutches. I think he had rolled his ankle a game before and I remember him saying, Oh, it
doesn't matter how big or fast or strong you are or how tall you are, you can make your dreams
come true. And Richie is tiny, playing a big grown man sport. And I was a small kid, so I kind of
took that to heart and carried that with me. And I even let Richie know that when I when I first
met him here on the Riders. I told him, I remember when you came to my school a long time
ago, you probably don't remember, but yeah, I just kind of told that story and how I remembered
him coming and I thanked him for it.
[Musical transition]
Daniella [Host]: So many lifelong fans of the Saskatchewan Roughriders witnessed history at
home. One was up in the press box, readying his newspaper column on the win. Head down,
typing fast for deadline, he didn’t see the moment quarterback Darian Durant lifted the Grey
Cup. But for Rob Vanstone, it was the culmination of all the highs and lows of being a fan and a
critic of the team. I’ll let Rob explain his role then – and what he’s doing now.
Rob Vanstone: After 400 years at the Regina Leader Post, actually 35 plus, I was the I did pretty
much everything there. Ended up being the sports editor and the sports columnist. And in
February I made the move over to the Roughriders as the senior journalist. Senior being in
uppercase, I think. [Daniella laughs] and and also the team historian. And so I'm pushing five
months on that. And I've just loved every every minute of it, just getting to immerse myself in
current goings on and in the historical minutia pertaining to this football team that I've followed
since, ardently, since 1971. So there isn't a day where I or even an hour where I don't look
around here. Here being Mosaic Stadium and just marvel at it and pinch myself. And it's just I
mean, I've had two dream jobs in a lifetime.
Daniella: Rob is a walking encyclopedia of all things Saskatchewan Roughriders. And I am sure
he has a self-deprecating comment for that, too. I was thrilled to sit down with him to talk more
about the 2013 season, starting with some important context on how the team came to be.
[Musical transition]
Rob: Well, a lot of the foundation was was was established in 2012. I mean, the team was
coming off a really rough 2011 season. It was pretty much torn apart and rebuilt by Brendan
Taman, who was the general manager and vice president of football operations. The year before
he'd been general manager and they'd added vice president of football operations coming out of
the 2011 season. And so if you look at 2012, and the pieces that were added: Kory Sheets. Who
was Kory Sheets? And he ends up kind of being an afterthought out ot training camp. And
suddenly there's an explosive game in the preseason in 2012, and Corey Sheets becomes the
starting tailback. Taj Smith, who had 1,000 plus receiving yards with the 2013 team, he was
added in 2012. Ben Heenan was drafted first overall. Xavier Fulton was acquired from
Edmonton for a low round draft choice. He became the starting left offensive tackle with the
2013 team. On day one of free agency, Brendan Taman signed Brendan Labatte, who in 2013
was named the league's most outstanding offensive lineman, and Dominic Picard, who was the
starting center for the 2013 team, etcetera. So, and then in 2013 there were other huge
additions, additions as well, but that foundationally, a lot of that core was established in 2012.
Brendan signed Darren Durant to a contract extension. It was just a terrific job of administration
with a lot of foresight by Brendan Taman, the assistant GM at the time was Jeremy O'Day,
director of player personnel was Craig Smith. They did an amazing job of setting the setting the
stage for a team that we're now celebrating ten years later, we'll be celebrating 20 years later,
30 years later, 40 years later, 50 years later. I hope I'm around to see that one [Rob laughs].
[Daniella]: It is really great to celebrate that! And recognize how special that was. Even thinking
back to last year – when Saskatchewan hosted the Grey Cup and there was an expectation put
on the team to try to do it again, win another championship at home. But in 2013 knowing
everything that was on the line, final Grey Cup at historic Mosaic Stadium. A team that did have
the ingredients to make something good here. Do you remember what the feeling was like, what
the temperature was like in Rider Nation prior to the start of that year?
Rob:Oh, the expectations were huge. In ‘95, the Roughriders had had a rough year and there
really wasn't a possibility of them playing in the first Grey Cup game that was held in Regina in
2003. The Roughriders got to the West final and lost 30- 23 in Edmonton. It was important, I
think, for the Roughriders to take that next step and get to a gray Cup game at home. But not
only that, there was only one other opportunity to play in that game at Historic Mosaic Stadium.
Once Taylor Field. Once Park de Young. Once Park Hughes. That was the last chance. And the
team just exploded out of the gate that year. It looked for a long time like that Roughrider team
might even threaten the Roughriders single season record for victories. But then one day
against Toronto, Kory Sheets hurt his knee and the team went on a bit of a dip without Kory
Sheets in the lineup. He was such a huge part of not only the running game, obviously he would
have rushed for 2000 yards that season, ending up it hurt. He set up so much that the
Roughriders able to do through the air. Darian Durant having a career year. So there was a
there was a lot of unrest in the fall of 2013 as a team hit a bit of a skid. But then one Friday
night, the Roughriders went to B.C. and suddenly Kory Sheets was back in the lineup and the
team really purred from then on and going into the playoffs, I mean, the toughest game was the
first one. The Roughriders were trailing B.C. by nine points going into the fourth quarter, and
Darian Durant rushed for 91 of the 97 yards that he would gain that day along the ground. He
never rushed for more yards in a game than he did in the West semifinal against B.C. Threw a
couple of touchdown passes at Weston Dressler that day, including one in the fourth quarter.
And Darian took over that game like, unlike I've ever seen a player with a team to victory. And
after that the the Riders weren't really challenged. They went into Calgary, played a 14 Winston
Peter team won 3513 and they were blowing about at halftime and the score actually flattered
Calgary because not only were the Roughriders winning handily at halftime, but they'd fumbled
on the one yard line. It could have been even uglier. I started writing my column at home at
halftime because it was over. They just throttled Calgary. And then with with Hamilton coming
here, I remember talking to Henry Burris about it and he says, there was just no way that our
fighters were going to win that game. You know, it's like the Hamilton Tiger-Cats that day were
the were the Washington generals playing the Harlem Globetrotters. Like there is no chance
that the Roughriders were going to lose that game. And it was such a huge disparity, you know,
at halftime, 31 to 6. But then Hamilton caught fire in the second half and Henry Burris scored on
a touchdown run to make it 31-15. It was 15 or 16 points. And suddenly I'm thinking, yeah,
Montreal had a lot less time left in 2009 when Darian scored on a touchdown run to put the
Roughriders up 27-11. So it's like, yeah, and I just shut, I shut my computer. I stopped pre
writing my ‘Riders win Grey Cup’ at home column and it was tense there for a few minutes and
then second and 19 handoff to Kory Sheets and he gains 21 yards. How often you're going to
get a first down on a running play.
Daniella: Incredible.
Rob: And Taj Smith with a huge block to allow that to become instead of a 16-yard gain a 21
yard gain. And after that, Roughriders marched down for a field goal, but it consumed time.
Riders got some points and they shifted the momentum. That Kory Sheets run was absolutely
massive. There's so many pivotal points from that game. As much as it seemed to be
predestined that the Roughriders would win, there were some nail biting moments and there
were some breaks that fortuitously went the Roughriders way.That fumble that Corey Sheets
picked up in advance 39 yards. Well, I've seen a lot of gray Cup games where those fumbles
have not gone in the Roughriders for us.
Daniella: Yeah, I can’t imagine the feeling for fans in the stands that day because you believe,
you want to believe, you know, that this team is capable, but you've also seen and felt and
experienced the devastating heartbreak and Rob, I feel like you would know that more than
anyone. Having been such an avid fan of the team since the seventies.
Rob: Yeah, I mean, this a lot of players on the 2013 team were on the 2009 team that lost that
heartbreaker to Montreal and on the 20 team, the 2010 team, that lost by only three points in the
Grey Cup. And that has been sort of the Roughriders history through Gray Cup appearances.
1972, there was an Ian Sunter field goal in the last play and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats win 13-10.
It was a hometown home field Grey Cup victory for the Tiger-Cats in 72. And 76, the
Roughriders were the dominant team in the Canadian Football League. And it felt like when
when they beat Edmonton 23-13 in the West Final, that that was the Grey Cup game. The
playing Ottawa in the ‘76 Gray Cup game was a formality because getting past Edmonton after
losing Dominion in three consecutive West Finals, that was the step that pretty much signified or
coronated a champion. And then, Tony Gabriel, Ottawa wins 23-20. I was 12 years old. I was
sitting in the stands at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto that day and I cried. And so you have that
history and you think, okay, that's the worst outcome you could ever see of a professional
football game. You know, it was the worst day of my life at that point. And then you see that the
Grey Cup game in 2009, and you think that's got to feel infinitely worse than Tony Gabriel
because of the way it unfolded. So there's there's that history of heartbreak and you're just
sometimes you're just wondering, ‘Okay, what is going to happen this time?’ But the beauty of
only having the four Grey Cup championships is that when there is that victory, we talk about it,
we celebrate it, we feel it like nobody else, because we know it's it's a rough path. You talk to a
Rider fan, you say 1966, 1989, 2007, 2013. You don't need to complete the sentence. Yeah,
that's those years are singular. Those years resonate and they're special. They each have their
own little flavor. 2013 Winning it at home not only to win at home, but the last chance to do it.
Where Ronnie played, where George played, where Glen Dobbs played, where the Legends
Generations back played. That was just so cool.
[Musical Transition]
Daniella: Incredible moments in Saskatchewan Roughriders history…as told by our guests.
2013 Grey Cup Champion Neal Hughes, and the club’s Senior Journalist and Historian, Rob
Vanstone. The inductees will be honoured in a special halftime ceremony at the home game on
October 7th : Legends Night & 2013 Grey Cup Anniversary. The Saskatchewan Roughriders will
be giving away FREE Replica 2013 Grey Cup Championship Rings to the first five-thousand
fans. There will also be community events and fan interactions with members of the 2013 team
leading up to October 7th. It's a weekend and a game you won't want to miss– Get your tickets
at Riderville.com. New episodes of Air it Out are released every two weeks. Episode
1-through-3 plus a bonus episode are out now wherever you listen to podcasts. Let us know
how much you like what you’re hearing, by rating this podcast or leaving a review.
Air it Out is hosted, written and edited by me; Daniella Ponticelli, with technical and editorial
support from Blake Tiedeman and Arielle Zerr. Our podcast graphics are designed by Angela
Bailey. Air it Out is a Saskatchewan Roughrider podcast.
[Musical Outro]