The Banjo Bowl will be a homecoming game of sorts for Roughriders receiver Nic Demski.
Saturday’s game will be the first time Demski will play in his hometown since being drafted by the Riders in May.
“I’m just excited, really. That’s all (that’s) really going through my head,” said Demski.
“Hopefully I can make a big play or two.”
It’s the first time Demski will be walking into Investors Group Field as the enemy. Before joining the Riders, Demski played for the University of Manitoba Bisons who also play at the Blue Bombers Stadium.
Since the new field opened a couple of years ago, Investors Group Field has quickly built a reputation as a tough place to play. Because of his experience there, Demski feels that he’ll be comfortable even if most of the stadium isn’t on his side.
“I made a lot of plays out there. I have a lot of history back. I can’t wait to put on for my home crowd and turn some Bombers fans into Rider fans,” he said.
Not everyone in the stadium will be cheering against Demski as he’ll have plenty of friends and family in attendance.
Demski has had to buy a number of tickets to the game but some of his friends have also bought tickets on their own. Demski even had some friends make the trip from Winnipeg to Regina for the Labour Day Classic. That purchase more or less got those friends to the front of the line for Banjo Bowl stubs.
Most of Demski’s army will be wearing green as well, something that might have been unheard of just a year ago for the Manitoba-based family.
“I got them all jerseys. They’ll be suited in green and white. They’ll be cheering us on,” he said.
One thing that Demski will have to be mindful of on Saturday is his emotions.
We’ve already seen Demski get a little too excited perhaps after scoring his first touchdown in the CFL last week against the Bombers.
It’s something the coaching staff has discussed with Demski.
“One thing I’m say about Nic is I’m happy to see his confidence back. If you saw Nic as a college player he was an exuberant player. He showed a lot of emotion when he played. I think that helps get him to be an exciting player,” said interim head coach Bob Dyce.
“So, I want him to keep his emotions in check. But, I want him to play with confidence that allows him to perform at a high level.”
It’s a message Demski appears to have heard loud and clear.
“I’m going to keep my cool and composure now. At the same time, I definitely get excited when I score. I can’t bundle it all in but I’m going to cool it down for sure, a little bit.”
Be sure to tune in to CKBI 900 AM for all your Roughriders coverage. Pre-game starts at 3:30 p.m. with the kick-off at 4:30 p.m.
