Even though Saskatchewan Roughriders' linebacker A.J. Allen and B.C. Lions' quarterback Nathan Rourke are friends off the field, that changes when the two face each other in a CFL game.
"We want to win every game. He's the opposing quarterback, I want to make sure he has a horrible day, but also he's a great guy, he's a friend. You want to see people get out of the game healthy," Allen said.
"I hope with all due respect, he has a horrible day. I hope he can't see, I hope he's got two left eyes and two left arms and two left feet as well. And he throws 17 interceptions and he rushes for negative 80 yards. What else? And he fumbles eight times. I hope that because that means we're having a great day. Again, wish him the best. But right now, he's the opposing quarterback. We have things to achieve."
Allen registered a pick-six off Rourke last year which checked in at No. 10 on the CFL's top plays of 2024.
"Where's the dislike button?" Rourke joked on social media. "Right next to the super like button," Allen replied.
There's a habit Allen would jokingly like to break when it comes to him getting interceptions.
"My first two Interceptions in my career are on the first pass and play of the game," Allen said. "Keep being in the right spot at the right time. I told you last time, I'm trying to get a pick in the second quarter at this point. I got to stretch this a little bit because this is a crazy run of mine. Something later, not the first pass play, I'm aiming for that this week."
In the last game for the Green and White, the Riders lost to the Calgary Stampeders 24-10, marking the team's first loss of the 2025 CFL season.
"We feel confident. We feel prepared that we're able to rectify those mistakes, get on the right path, get back to playing Rider football and being us," Allen said. "Being us, showing an opportunity for us to really show who we are, we stop to run, we stop the pass and we are who we put on tape."
Allen finished the game against the Stamps with four defensive tackles, one interception, one forced fumble, one tackle for loss and one special team tackle. This season, the six-foot, 210-pound linebacker has played five games for the Riders, recording 23 defensive tackles, two special team tackles, one sack, one interception and one forced fumble.
According to Allen, he took inspiration from an NFL legend on how to overcome a loss.
"I think it was Ray Lewis. He's like: 'You want to learn from your wins as much as you learn from your losses. Because if you're only learning when you lose, you're only learning sometimes. If we went 18-0 you'd never learn anything anymore compared to going 0-18," Allen recalled.
"Either way, you're trying to learn something from every game, every day, every practice. If you're not, I don't want you in this building. That's what it needs to be. We're all striving to be great and none of us is perfect."
Saskatchewan takes a flight for their Week 7 CFL match-up against the Lions on Saturday. Be sure to catch the pre-game show with Teagan Witko, Justin Dunk and Wes Cates at 2 p.m. Dave Thomas and Luc Mullinder have the game call at 5 p.m. You can hear everything on the 620 CKRM Co-operators Rider Broadcast Network.
