Stampeders smoke Roughriders 24-10 in West Division power struggle

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Calgary Stampeders quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. (3) throws the football against the Saskatchewan Roughriders during the first half of CFL football action in Regina, on Saturday, July 12, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Heywood Yu
The Calgary Stampeders overcame a scheduling nightmare and brutal start to smoke the Saskatchewan Roughriders 24-10 on Saturday in a rescheduled CFL game.
The contest was originally slated for Friday night but after an almost four-hour weather delay, the game was postponed until Saturday. An air quality issue, caused by forest fires in northern Saskatchewan, resulted in the CFL deciding to reschedule the West Division showdown.
The Stampeders scrambled late Friday night to find accommodations with the players divided between a local hotel and dorms at the University of Regina.
Then when the game began Saturday, the Stampeders got off to an atrocious start. After quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. threw an interception on Calgary's first play from scrimmage, the Stampeders fumbled the ball away on their second possession. Yet they controlled play and could've had a bigger halftime lead than the 17-3 difference as the teams went to the locker rooms.
Character
The Stampeders continue to be the biggest surprise of the young 2025 CFL season and Adams believes Saturday's victory demonstrates the character of the team.
'It shows how tough this team is. We had adversity. Yesterday we were ready to play. And then some of us are at the dorms, some at the hotel but we just came out ready to go. We knew what was on the line,' said Adams, who was dynamite in the opening half, completing 20 of 25 passes for 295 yards and two touchdowns.
'That's a really good team over there. I'm happy for these guys. I'm happy for the win. The game started off rough, and we just came back, and we just kept going and kept fighting.'
Calgary's dominance of the first half was evident in the statistics. The Stampeders had 367 yards of total offence on 41 plays, while the Riders were limited to 96 yards of total offence on 21 plays.
Dave Dickenson, Calgary's head coach and general manager, feels the actions of his players after the rough start indicates their belief in each other.
'We do preach resiliency. You can preach it, but it doesn't mean you are. You can tell players will sometimes, in moments like that, see their shoulders slump. You can see them drop their heads. I just didn't see that today,' said Dickenson.
'There's a lot of confidence and trust between the coaches and our players, and they believe that, if they just do their job, that we've got a good group, and it's showing.'
2 big wins
The Stampeders knocked off an unbeaten opponent for the second straight week. Saturday's victory came on the heels of a 37-13 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on July 3. Calgary now shares first place in the West Division with Saskatchewan with identical 4-1 records.
Despite the two big wins, Adams isn't ready to book tickets to the Grey Cup just yet.
'You don't win Grey Cups in July. You just got to keep going, you've got to keep playing. We've got Winnipeg again this week. They're coming off a bye and it's a short week for us,' said Adams.
'We've got to celebrate tonight, have some fun, enjoy it, and then get back at it tomorrow.'
Adams eclipsed the 400-yard passing mark for the sixth time in his career as he totalled 428 yards on 28 of 36 passing with three touchdowns and two interceptions. Four of his six 400-yard games have come against Saskatchewan.
VA TO MOOSE!! THE ANSWER! pic.twitter.com/ucfQXlCmIV — Calgary Stampeders (@calstampeders) July 12, 2025
In addition to Saturday's game, Adams has games of 458, 455 and 451 yards against the Riders. His single-game career high is 488 yards which was against Winnipeg on Sept. 21, 2019, when he was a member of the Montreal Alouettes.
Rookie receiver Damien Alford, making his first career CFL start, had three first-half receptions including a 21-yard touchdown catch. Erik Brooks hauled in a 14-yard scoring pass with eight seconds left in the half.
Saskatchewan opened the second half by scoring a touchdown on their opening possession. Quarterback Trevor Harris connected with rookie receiver Joe Robustelli on an 18-yard major. It was the first CFL touchdown for Robustelli, who was Saskatchewan's leading receiver on the day with 11 receptions for 191 yards.
With the touchdown closing the gap to 17-10, it appeared the Riders had taken over the game's momentum.
However, that energy burst was short-lived as the Stampeders replied on the next offensive play as Adams hit a wide-open Alford down the right sideline for an 81-yard touchdown to restore Calgary's 14-point lead.
Adams believes the touchdown stunned the Riders and was the crucial play of the contest.
'It was very important, very important. I told the guys at the half, 'Whatever they do, we have to match it.' I think it was 17-3 at half and kept telling them we've got to match them,' said Adams. 'On that first play, we had seen a look on film that we thought a guy was going to be open, and we took the shot. Alford made the play for me.'
Saskatchewan turned the ball over on downs in the red zone twice in the second half, the first coming late in the third quarter and the second coming with 5:13 remaining in the game.
Looking back at the game, Harris suggested the game was closer than it appeared.
'We get inside the red zone, come up empty twice. We didn't get a rhythm offensively early. I don't think it's like one of those things where you look back and it's just like, 'Good Lord, we have no chance.'
'It's a couple plays here and there. If we finish in the red zone twice and at least keep our defence off the field a little bit in the first half, first quarter, at least, then I think it's a different ball game,' said Harris, who also topped the 400-yard mark with 425 yards on 36 of 44 passing.
'But credit to them. They're a good defence, they're a good football team, but so are we and we'll bounce back.'
A.J. Allen and Rolan Milligan had interceptions for the Riders. Jaylon Hutchings and Clarence Hicks recorded sacks for the Stampeders. Jameer Thurman had Saskatchewan's lone sack.
Rene Paredes had a 16-yard field goal for the Stampeders while Brett Lauther hit a 47-yard field goal for the Riders.
Up next
Stampeders: Visit the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Friday, July 18.
Roughriders: Visit the B.C. Lions on Saturday, July 19.
--Jeff DeDekker
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 12, 2025.