Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback Mason Fine, left, throws under pressure from Toronto Argonauts' Jonathan Jones, centre, and Adarius Pickett during the first half of CFL action in Halifax on Saturday, July 29, 2023. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese)

By Canadian Press

Riders

Fine unbothered by QB controversy as Roughriders get set to host Redblacks

Aug 6, 2023 | 10:00 AM

The Saskatchewan Roughriders are in the midst of some quarterback controversy, but current starter Mason Fine is adamant the outside noise does not have an effect on him.

In two contests since Fine took over as starter from injured veteran Trevor Harris, the Riders lost 19-9 to the B.C. Lions and 31-13 to the Toronto Argonauts, with Fine unable to lead the Riders to an offensive touchdown.

Backup Jake Dolegala, meanwhile, played the last drive against the Argos and went 4-for-5 passing for 100 yards, including a 31-yard touchdown pass to Shawn Bane Jr.

But it’s Fine who will get the start again in Sunday’s game at Mosaic Stadium against the Ottawa Redblacks

Fine’s struggles, along with Dolegala’s successful drive and impressive training camp, have fans and pundits calling for a quarterback change.

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When asked if he was facing additional pressure because of the controversy, Fine said that he is his own toughest critic.

“There’s always going to be outside noise, especially when you’re a quarterback and a quarterback for the Saskatchewan Roughriders,” said Fine. “There’s no one that’s a harsher critic than myself.

“I want to win just as bad as anyone else does and so when we don’t, I feel like I’m not only letting myself down, but I’m letting the team and the fan base down.”

Fine, who is 64-of-87 passing for 702 yards with two touchdowns and four interceptions this season, has a simple measurement of what success looks like to him.

“It just comes down to getting the win. That’s all that success is, no matter how we get it done,” he said. “It’s a success if we walk off that field tomorrow with a win.”

Head coach Craig Dickenson doesn’t see the situation as a quarterback controversy.

He feels it’s just a normal football scenario of a team searching for a quarterback that can help the team win.

“Trevor Harris is gone so now it’s a matter of finding a guy that can lead our team to some victories and do a good job of directing the offence,” said Dickenson. “I don’t necessarily see it as a controversy.”

The Riders are on a three-game losing streak after starting the season 3-1.

Although it’s too early in the season to label Sunday’s tilt as a must-win game for the Riders, Dickenson knows what his team must do to get back on the winning track.

“We’ve got to start fast,” said Dickenson. “We’ve talked about it all week. We’ve been playing from behind too much and when you play from behind, you can’t make any mistakes or else you get even further behind.

“The last few weeks we’ve been we’ve been playing a lot of catch up and you don’t play your best ball that way.”

One bright spot for the Riders has been Bane, who joined the team after spending his first two seasons with Calgary. Bane played 13 games for the Stampeders, catching 24 passes for 388 yards and two touchdowns.

He’s having a breakout season with the Riders and was leading the CFL in receptions (41) and yards after the catch (221) entering Week 9. His 527 receiving yards were second in the league to teammate Tevin Jones, who has 548.

Bane enters the game on a streak of back-to-back 10-reception games.

He hauled in 10 passes for 74 yards against the Lions and followed up with 12 catches for 144 yards against the Argos.

The last CFL player to record consecutive games with 10 receptions or more was Ben Cahoon of the Montreal Alouettes in the 2007 season.

Bane’s success isn’t a surprise to Dickenson.

“We felt like he was that good of a player. He was just kind of stuck behind some really good players in Calgary,” said Dickenson. “We felt like if he got his opportunity, you’d see the production and that’s what’s happened.”

OTTAWA REDBLACKS (3-4-0) AT SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS (3-4-0)

OFF AND RUNNING: The Redblacks have committed to the running game in the past five games, averaging 29 attempts for 164 yards over that span. The average rushing attempts is the highest in Redblacks history for any five-game stretch.

TOUGH LUCK: It’s been a rough start to the season for Riders receiver Brayden Lenius. He missed the first six games of the campaign after suffering a lacerated kidney in the final pre-season game, a 28-16 victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on June 2. Lenius returned to the lineup on July 29 for the Touchdown Atlantic game against the Argos but he suffered a foot injury that has landed him back on the six-game injury list.

A QB WITH WHEELS: Ottawa quarterback Dustin Crum has rushed for 339 yards in the last four games. Projected over an 18-game season, that average of 84.75 yards per game would total 1,525 yards.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 5, 2023.