Riders edge Bombers in overtime thriller to take 58th Labour Day Classic

Riders victorious in 2023 Labour Day Classic WATCH: The Riders took the overtime win in the 2023 Labour Day Classic. Brit Dort reports.

It was an ending to the 58th playing of the Labour Day Classic that Roughriders quarterback Jake Dolegala couldn’t have even dreamed of.

“Really gotta lock in. Gotta trust your guys,” Saskatchewan’s pivot told media following the team’s 32-30 overtime win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Sunday night.

“That was a beauty. That was one of the most fun games I’ve ever won,” head coach Craig Dickenson said with a smile.

Saskatchewan opened the extra session with Antonio Pipkin’s second major of the game on a one-yard quarterback sneak. Dolegala connected with Shawn Bane Jr. to complete the two-point convert to give the Riders a 32-24 lead.

Winnipeg answered back immediately. Quarterback Zach Collaros, who entered the contest undefeated in all six of his Labour Day starts, hit Kenny Lawler in stride for a 35-yard touchdown that silenced much of the 33,350 fans in attendance.

It was down to the two point convert. That’s when Riders rookie defender Jaxson Ford, in the game for an injured Jaden Dalke, made the biggest play of his young career.

The former Regina Rams stand-out, and grandson of former Riders GM Al Ford, leaped at a pass attempt and tipped the ball with his outstretched fingers. The ball fell to the ground in front of the intended receiver.

The game was over.

“It was supposed to be a blitz by [Derrick] Moncrief but we flipped it and I ran off the edge the best I could to make a play. It was a rush of energy,” Ford said.

“He’s a good player. Every time we put him out there, he’s done what we’ve needed him to do. We feel like he could start and win a game for us,” Dickenson said of his rookie defender.

The Riders forced overtime with an 18-yard field goal by Brett Lauther, his fifth of the contest, with just 31 seconds remaining.

An unnecessary roughness penalty with under four minutes to play almost cost the Roughriders dearly.

Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros threw an incomplete pass and the play was over. That’s when Riders defender Pete Robertson drove his helmet into the face of Collaros knocking him to the ground.

Robertson was given an unnecessary roughness penalty and the Bombers got the ball on the three yard line.

Winnipeg’s Brady Oliveira slashed his way into the end zone for what could have been the game winning touchdown.

Neither Dickenson nor Robertson believe he’ll be suspended for the play.

“I’ve got to learn to control myself a little bit but it’s the game, you can’t really do extra with a quarterback, especially a guy like Zach,” Robertson said.

“Playing against Winnipeg, it’s always a physical game.”

Dickenson told reporters that he didn’t see the play happen so he couldn’t comment on it directly.

“That was an emotional game. We lost our composure a couple of times,” he said. “I lost mine a little bit, as well. We definitely have to clean it up.”

Roughriders quarterback Antonio Pipkin scored the game’s first major with just over six minutes to play in the second quarter on a quarterback sneak, reaching the ball over the end zone from his back.

The eight-play, 106 yard touchdown drive, gave the Riders a 10-0 lead.

“I told the guys in the huddle, let’s just take it one play at a time,” Dolegala said.

The Bombers answered on the ensuing drive. Collaros engineered a three-play, 100-yard touchdown drive featuring a stunning 46-yard reception along the west sideline and Drew Wolitarsky’s 34-yard major.

Dolegala finished the game completing 22 of 39 passes for 326 yards.

Collaros connected on 13 of 26 for 279 yards, one touchdown and an interception.

With the win the Roughriders improve to 6-5 on the season.

Offensive lineman Chris Kelly left the contest with a knee injury in the second half and did not return.

Dickenson didn’t have an update on his condition but said it “didn’t look good.”

The game did go on as planned despite a poor air quality index from Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) who had rated it at 10 or extremely high just a couple of hours prior to kick-off.

The smoke is from wildfires in both B.C. and The Northwest Territories.

By game time, the rating had dropped to eight and continued to trend downward.

Next up, it’s the banjo bowl. The Riders face the Bombers in Winnipeg on Sept. 9 at 2 p.m.