REGINA — In the second game of the OK Tire Labour Day Weekend, Winnipeg and Saskatchewan will be meeting over the September long-weekend for the 58th time since the games inception in the late 1940s.
The Blue Bombers enter the week after coming off a narrow victory over the West Division rival Calgary Stampeders, as they took a 31-29 win to open Week 12 of action.
Saskatchewan is enters Labour Day Weekend after earning an impressive win of their own. The Riders got the best of the BC Lions in their third and final meeting of the season as the Green and White earned a 23-16 win over BC in Week 12.
The Riders will need to be ready for Winnipeg’s quick strike offence, led by quarterback Zach Collaros. Against the Stamps in Week 12, the Blue Bombers scored 14 first quarter points on a pair of Zach Collaros touchdown passes, which found their way into the hands of running back Greg McCrae and receiver Nic Demski.
Collaros will once again face off with a Saskatchewan defence that boasts a number of playmakers on that side of the ball. The Riders have intercepted 13 passes, enough for third most league-wide, the team also holds the league-lead in sack with 34 through the first 12 weeks of play. Meaning that veteran Winnipeg offensive linemen Stanley Bryant and Jermarcus Hardick will be relied upon to keep Collaros clean in the pocket on Sunday evening.
When allowed time in the pocket to progress through his reads and make a throw, Collaros and the Winnipeg offence have plenty of reliable receiving options.
Rookie Dalton Schoen has burst on the scene and shows no signs of slowing down. He currently ranks seventh in receiving yards with 732 and is second in the league with eight touchdown receptions, trailing only BC’s Dominique Rhymes.
Saskatchewan will also need to be aware Winnipeg’s Drew Wolitarsky and Demski in the receiving game on Sunday, as the pair of receivers have known to be offensive contributors over the Labour Day Weekend.
In 2021, Demski caught three of his five targets for 41 yards and a touchdown in his team’s 23-8 win over the Riders. While Wolitarsky has caught eight targets for 110 yards in three appearances over the Labour Day Weekend.
Winnipeg running back Brady Oliveira saw limited action in the Labour Day Wekeend matchup with the Riders during the 2021 season, due to the presence of Andrew Harris. However, with Harris moving on from the Bombers in the offseason Oliveira has become a feature player in the Bomber offence.
Oliveira has rushed for 279 yards on 52 carries against West Division opponents this season and has rushed for at least 60 yards in each of his last five games.
In a team media session earlier this week, Winnipeg head coach Mike O’Shea told team media that realizes how important the Labour Day Weekend games have become for not only the fans, but the league as a whole.
“For the CFL you’re talking about rivalries that have been going on for 140 years,” O’Shea told BlueBombers.com. “From a fan standpoint, these rivalry games are very important and the winner gives the city some pride. It’s important for the fans, the league and the players.”
Riders quarterback Cody Fajardo will look to carry his strong performance against the Lions into this week’s game. Fajardo completed 79.2 per cent of his 24 passing attempts, throwing for 321 yards and two touchdowns against BC in Week 12.
The Riders will be reliant upon their quarterback for a similar performance as they take on a Winnipeg defence that has allowed the fourth fewest air yards per game with an average of 268.5, while forcing 12 interceptions from opposing quarterbacks this season.
In his last two Labour Day Weekend appearances the Saskatchewan signal-caller averages a completions rate of 62 per cent on 39 passing attempts, and has thrown a combined 511 yards.
In a media session with the Riders, Fajardo said that he is excited for the Labour Day Weekend and describes the feeling of playing on Labour Day in the CFL.
“Running out of that tunnel, there’s nothing like it,” Fajardo told Riderville.com. “It’s truly special in the CFL and I’m looking forward to running out of that tunnel and seeing the sea of green. We have a really good opportunity in front of us, a really good Winnipeg team and we have to play our best football in order to have a chance.”
When the Riders go to their ground game it will be the second straight week that Saskatchewan will be without star running back Jamal Morrow. After assuming the starting role for their Week 12 matchup with BC, running back Frankie Hickson put together an impressive showing as he carried the ball 15 times for 129 yards.
Receiver Kian Schaffer-Baker has been the leading receiver for the Green and White through the first 12 weeks of the season. In last week’s meeting with the Lions, Schaffer-baker caught five passes for 170 yards and a touchdown and currently leads the Riders with
Much like it has throughout the 2022 season, Sunday’s game may be decided by the play of the Saskatchewan defence. In Week 12 the Riders defence held the Lions to 251 yards of total offence in their win. Linebacker Larry Dean had his third sack of the season, and the Bombers can’t afford to forget defensive lineman Pete Robertson, who leads the league in sacks.
With a win over Saskatchewan on Sunday, the Bombers would remain undefeated on the road and move to 11-1 overall in the league standings. While Riders are hoping to leapfrog Calgary for third in the West Division with a win over Winnipeg on Labour Day Weekend.
