REGINA -- Jason Maas is trading in his green-and-gold for green-and-white after being hired as the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ new offensive coordinator.
“Just really excited to be a part of Rider Nation. You hear and everyone knows about it, but it’s one of those things, it’s a bucket list thing if you’re a CFL guy,” Maas said at Friday’s introductory media conference.
The Riders reached out to Maas after he was fired as the head coach of the Edmonton Eskimos at the end of the 2019 season, which was his fourth at the helm.
The deal came together over the past week and the Riders decided not to retain Steven McAdoo, who had his contract expire after his fourth season in Saskatchewan.
Riders head coach Craig Dickenson says Maas’ track record as an offensive mind was too much to pass up.
“I feel like the offence he’s put out there through the course of his career has always been physical, that’s one thing you’ve always noticed about his offence and I just felt like moving forward, we wanted to have a little more tempo at times on offence and he does a great job of that,” he said.
Maas signed a two-year contract with the Riders through 2021.
He takes over an offence that finished second in the CFL in yards per game and fourth in points.
Maas’ contract matches up with quarterback Cody Fajardo, who led the league in passing yards in 2019.
“I’m looking forward to working with him,” Maas said. “He’s young, he hasn’t played a lot, to play one year and do what he did in one year is outstanding and now it’s about putting that together and continuing to progress and I think there’s room for improvement.”
During his tenure with the Eskimos, Maas became known for his fiery persona on the sidelines. He says that’s his personality.
“I am who I am, I’m not going to change that,” Maas said. “I care about football, I’m passionate about football, I love the guys that I work with, I love the guys I coach, so when you put everything into something and you will at times show that emotion.”
The Riders also announced they’ve signed defensive coordinator Jason Shivers to a contract extension through the 2021 season.
Dickenson added he hopes to announce the full coaching staff before Christmas.
“We’re going to consider every coach that we can and we’re going to try to bring in the best staff,” he said. “[Maas] is going to have a large say in who he has around him because I want him to be comfortable, but ultimately, we’ll put together the best staff that we feel fits the room and fits the culture that we’re trying to create here.”
The Riders also announced that Jason Shivers has been extended as defensive coordinator. Shivers joined the team before the 2019 season.
Both Maas and Shivers have been signed through the 2021 season.
The Riders finished with a 13-5 record in the 2019 season and lost in the Western Final to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
