Stampeders hold off Riders to continue hot run
REGINA – Vernon Adams Jr. threw for 242 yards and four touchdowns as the Calgary Stampeders won their third straight game to continue their hot pursuit of a CFL playoff berth with a 37-31 victory over the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Friday.
Calgary improved to 8-8 while the Riders dropped their third straight to fall to 8-7. Saskatchewan could have clinched a playoff berth with a win but the Stampeders instead won the season series to have a tiebreaker over the Riders.
The West Division standings are tight with four teams fighting for playoff spots behind the first-place, playoff-bound Edmonton Elks (11-4). The B.C. Lions are 8-6 while the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are 7-7. On Saturday, the Lions play the Toronto Argonauts while the Bombers take on the Montreal Alouettes.
Carrying a 20-13 lead into the fourth quarter, the Stampeders put the game away with two touchdowns.
After quarterback Adams connected with Erik Brooks on a 19-yard touchdown pass with 9:13 left in regulation, the Stampeders increased their lead to 34-13 on a four-yard touchdown reception by Jalen Philpot with 5:19 remaining.
It was the seventh game of the season for the veteran quarterback with three or more touchdown passes and no interceptions. Adams finished 22-of-29 passing.
The Riders scored three late touchdowns. Daniel Wiebe caught a 13-yard touchdown pass from Trevor Harris with 2:42 remaining, Dhel Duncan-Busby nabbed a five-yard scoring pass with 1:04 left and Johnny Johnson had an eight-yard TD reception on the final play of the game. The Riders failed two-point convert attempts after all three touchdowns.
Calgary kicker Rene Paredes made a 42-yard field goal in between the first two of those three Saskatchewan touchdowns.
The Stampeders took a 17-10 lead into halftime with touchdown receptions by Clark Barnes (13 yards) and Damien Alford (48 yards), along with a 51-yard field goal from Paredes.
Calgary’s opening major came after Saskatchewan’s Quali Conley fumbled a punt with the Stampeders recovering on the Riders 34-yard line. Barnes scored two plays later.
Kian Schaffer-Baker scored Saskatchewan’s lone touchdown in the opening half, hauling in a 23-yard major. Schaffer-Baker had three catches for 64 yards on the touchdown drive.
Rookie kicker Dawson Hodge had a 38-yard field goal but missed from 54 and 45 yards in the second quarter.
Harris completed 36 of 50 passes for 453 yards with four touchdowns and one interception.
Stampeders: Travel to Winnipeg to play the Blue Bombers on Oct. 10.
Riders: Visit the league-leading Alouettes in Montreal on Oct. 12.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 2, 2026.
