Roughriders, Blue Bombers shut in standings heading into Labour Day Classic

Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback Trevor Harris says the urgency to win games is the same every week, regardless of the time of year.

But there’s no denying that when they host the Winnipeg Blue Bombers late Sunday afternoon in the Labour Day Classic, there will be a lot on the line for the long-time Western rivals.

After rallying for a 28-24 win last week against Toronto, Saskatchewan is 7-4 and a game back of Edmonton in the division. Winnipeg (6-5) comes off its best game of the year, a 44-28 pasting of East leader Montreal that wasn’t as close as the score indicated.

The fact that a West team could cross over into the third spot in the East makes this game even more crucial.

“We’ve got to gear down to make sure we’re playing our best football,” Harris said. “That’s what I’m focused on is making sure we have great energy, execution and being in attack mode.”

To make it tougher, Saskatchewan has another dose of injury woes to negotiate. Running back A.J. Ouellette practiced on Thursday and Friday but will miss his sixth straight game. Linebackers Josh Woods (ankle) and Nick Wiebe (knee) also won’t play.

Meanwhile, Winnipeg has its own injury concerns. Veteran receiver Nic Demski (ankle) will sit out while defensive back Jonathan Moxey (groin) is out for at least the next six games. But the Bombers will have star running back Brady Oliveira (ankle) available even though he was listed as questionable on the final injury report.

The Bombers go into this one as the most confident version of themselves after how easily they handled Montreal. Players like receiver Ontaria Wilson are looking forward to the loud atmosphere at Mosaic Stadium in Regina.

“Just a good, fun game,” he said when asked about going on the road. “We go out there and we know we’re going to play them back-to-back, so both games we obviously want to go out there and just win.”

The teams meet again on Sept. 12 in Winnipeg.

–Field Level Media