'Absolutely electric': Riders prepare for Labour Day Classic

Saskatchewan Roughriders receiver Shawn Bane Jr. (15) runs the football as Winnipeg Blue Bombers defensive back Deatrick Nichols (1) runs during the second half of CFL Labour Day Classic football action in Regina, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2023. (Heywood Yu/The Canadian Press)

There will be a sold-out crowd at the Labour Day Classic on Sunday, when the Riders take on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Riders’ quarterback Trevor Harris said while he knows the intensity heightens for Labour Day games, he’s not going to treat the game any differently.

“The atmosphere is going to be absolutely electric. We couldn't be more excited about it as a team, but to me, there's nothing really better than these type of games once you get to this time of the year, but at the end of the day, it’s 12 on 12 and we’re going to go out there and do our best,” he said.

Harris said the Blue Bombers are going to be a great challenge but the Riders intend on being a great challenge for them as well.

“It’s our job to go out and execute and make sure that we can keep them off balance,” he said. “Whatever we decide to do in terms of the way we want to attack them, we want to make sure that we’re pushing the envelope.”

Head Coach Corey Mace said following the Riders loss against the Toronto Argonauts, they need to regroup and find ways to win heading into Labour Day.

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“We got to be better but as the football gods continue to do, they leave us with the keys in our hands to really drive this thing so learn, push forward, it’s Labour Day, so everybody’s gassed up,” he said.

“If it comes down to the wire, we gotta be on it, because [the Bombers are] ready to go.”

Shawn Bane Jr. said the offence’s mindset heading into the Labour Day Classic is to head back to the drawing board.

“Back to the fundamentals and just doing what we do,” he said. “We’ve got the talent, we’ve got the pieces in the locker room and the offence, so just executing what we need to execute and just go have fun.”

If fans missed tickets for the Labour Day Classic, they can still head over to the Riderville website for tickets to the green and white’s last three regular season games of the year. 

Kickoff for the 59th Labour Day Classic is 5 p.m. at Mosaic Stadium.