1989 Saskatchewan Roughriders season

The 1989 Saskatchewan Roughriders was the club's 80th year of operation, 75th season of play, and its 32nd season in the Canadian Football League. The team finished in third place in the CFL West Division with a 9–9 record. The Roughriders defeated the Calgary Stampeders in the West Semi-Final and then defeated the heavily-favoured Edmonton Eskimos who had finished with a CFL-record 16 regular season wins. Due to their West Final win, the Roughriders qualified for their first Grey Cup game since the club's loss in the 1976 championship game.

1989 Saskatchewan Roughriders season
General managerAlan Ford
Head coachJohn Gregory
Home fieldTaylor Field
Results
Record9–9
Division place3rd, West
Playoff finishWon Grey Cup
Uniform

In the 77th Grey Cup, the team faced the 12–6 Hamilton Tiger-Cats who had already defeated the Roughriders in both regular season matches. However, the Roughriders kept it a close game and ultimately won with a Dave Ridgway field goal to win the championship. It was Saskatchewan's first Grey Cup win in 23 years (since the 1966 Grey Cup), and only their second in team history.

Offseason

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CFL Draft

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Round Pick Player Position School
1 2 Kevin Smellie RB Massachusetts
1 3 Andrew Thomas CB Massachusetts
1 4 Donovan Wright CB Slippery Rock
2 9 Dan Payne DT Simon Fraser
5 36 Rob Zimmerman FB Calgary
7 52 Kelly Trithart LB Saskatchewan
8 60 Greg Galan QB Saskatchewan

[1]

Preseason

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Game Date Opponent Results Venue Attendance
Score Record
A Sun, June 25 vs. Winnipeg Blue Bombers W 37–7 1–0 Gordie Howe Bowl 1,500
B Wed, June 28 vs. Edmonton Eskimos W 28–24 1–0 Winnipeg Stadium 18,988
C Tues, July 4 at BC Lions L 13–30 1–1 BC Place 38,492

[2][3]

Regular season

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Standings

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West Division
Team GP W L T PF PA Pts
Edmonton Eskimos 18 16 2 0 644 302 32
Calgary Stampeders 18 10 8 0 495 466 20
Saskatchewan Roughriders 18 9 9 0 547 567 18
BC Lions 18 7 11 0 521 557 14

[4]

Schedule

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Week Game Date Opponent Results Venue Attendance
Score Record
1 1 Wed, July 12 vs. Calgary Stampeders W 32–29 1–0 Taylor Field 21,595
2 2 Tues, July 18 at BC Lions W 42–37 2–0 BC Place 41,427
3 3 Fri, July 28 vs. Hamilton Tiger-Cats L 17–34 2–1 Taylor Field 25,996
4 4 Wed, Aug 2 at Winnipeg Blue Bombers W 29–27 3–1 Winnipeg Stadium 21,753
5 5 Mon, Aug 7 vs. Ottawa Rough Riders W 58–22 4–1 Taylor Field 22,194
6 6 Fri, Aug 18 at Hamilton Tiger-Cats L 40–46 4–2 Ivor Wynne Stadium 19,336
7 7 Thu, Aug 24 vs. BC Lions L 25–37 4–3 Taylor Field 23,544
8 8 Wed, Aug 30 at Edmonton Eskimos L 19–45 4–4 Commonwealth Stadium 31,667
8 9 Sun, Sept 3 vs. Winnipeg Blue Bombers L 20–28 4–5 Taylor Field 28,315
9 10 Sat, Sept 9 at Toronto Argonauts W 29–24 5–5 SkyDome 35,281
10 11 Sun, Sept 17 vs. Edmonton Eskimos W 48–35 6–5 Taylor Field 24,776
11 12 Sun, Sept 24 at Ottawa Rough Riders L 27–36 6–6 Lansdowne Stadium 17,284
12 13 Sat, Sept 30 vs. BC Lions L 30–32 6–7 Taylor Field 25,013
13 14 Sun, Oct 8 at Calgary Stampeders W 39–26 7–7 McMahon Stadium 30,174
14 15 Sun, Oct 15 vs. Toronto Argonauts W 24–18 8–7 Taylor Field 20,953
15 16 Sun, Oct 22 vs. Calgary Stampeders L 17–23 8–8 Taylor Field 25,200
16 17 Sun, Oct 29 at Calgary Stampeders W 34–19 9–8 McMahon Stadium 20,754
17 18 Sun, Nov 5 at Edmonton Eskimos L 17–49 9–9 Commonwealth Stadium 27,242

[2][3]

Postseason

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Schedule

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Round Date Opponent Results Venue Attendance
Score Record
West Semi-Final Sun, Nov 12 at Calgary Stampeders W 33–26 1–0 McMahon Stadium 16,286
West Final Sun, Nov 19 at Edmonton Eskimos W 32–21 2–0 Commonwealth Stadium 35,112
77th Grey Cup Sun, Nov 26 vs. Hamilton Tiger-Cats W 43–40 3–0 SkyDome 54,088

Grey Cup

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Teams 1 Q 2 Q 3 Q 4 Q Final
Hamilton Tiger-Cats 13 14 3 10 40
Saskatchewan Roughriders 1 21 12 9 43

[5]

Grey Cup aftermath

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For the Grey Cup celebrations, 18,000 fans showed up at Taylor Field, in minus 10 degree Celsius weather to welcome back the club.[6] A few weeks later, it was revealed that the playoff run nearly bankrupted the team. Instead of a projected $85,000 profit, the Riders lost $195,000 due to the cost of the three road games.[6] General Manager Al Ford declared that the team's debt increased to 1.6 million dollars.[6]

Awards and honours

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1989 CFL All-Stars

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1989 Western All-Stars

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References

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  1. ^ "1989 CFL Draft". Canadian Football League. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "1989 CFL Season Schedule & Scores". Canadian Football League. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  3. ^ a b "1989 Saskatchewan Roughriders". Pro Football Archives. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  4. ^ "1989 CFL Season Standings". Canadian Football League. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  5. ^ "1989 Grey Cup". Canadian Football League. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  6. ^ a b c Weird Facts about Canadian Football, p.218, Overtime Books, First Printing 2009, ISBN 978-1-897277-26-3