Each week of the CFL season, The News Review Sports will recap the week that was in Rider Nation as well as preview the upcoming week's action in a weekly segment called Rider Report.
After a week of "Will he, Won't he" being played as Rider Nation eagerly anticipated the debut of Geroy Simon leading up to the Riders home opener against the Calgary Stampeders, the 35, 296 fans who piled into Taylor Field/Mosaic Stadium on Friday night would have to wait another week to see the CFL's all time receiving leader in the green and white, but they did not leave disappointed.
Kory Sheets' 130 yard rushing performance and Chris Getzlaf's eight catches for 97 yards were the highlights of a 36-21 over the Calgary Stampeders that kicked off Saskatchewan's countdown to the 2013 Grey Cup in style as the newly constructed South End Zone bleachers were filled to near capacity for the home opener.
Calgary opened the scoring up and looked as if they were up to the task of playing spoiler on the road in the first half as Drew Tate hooked up with Nik Lewis early and often and Kory Sheets was stymied in the running game, earning just 30 yards on eight carries in the first half before exploding as Riders offensive coordinator George Cortez' relied on his standout running back to get the job done for Saskatchewan when the teams returned to the field for the second session.
Sheets carried the ball a staggering 18 times in the second half, running for 107 yards and one touchdown, chewing up the clock in the fourth quarter as the Riders dominated the Stampeders on both sides of the ball in the second half as the defense gave Darian Durant and the Riders plenty of good field position in the game's final two quarters as Calgary failed to cross their own 55 yard line until the final drive of the game when it was too late. Even then Macho Harris intercepted Kevin Glenn's pass as time expired to finish the celebration.
The strong team effort that was on display in the win over Calgary will need to be replicated in Week Three as the Riders travel to Toronto to take on the defending Grey Cup champion Argonauts who lost in Week Two to the Lions and will be looking to avoid starting a losing streak when Saskatchewan visits on Thursday night.
Saskatchewan blew Toronto out in their only visit to the Rogers Centre in 2012, winning 36-10 in Week 15 before the Boatmen got revenge in Week 18 winning 31-26 at Mosaic Stadium.
As for the potential of Geroy Simon playing his first regular season CFL game for the Riders after leaving B.C. in the offseason? He says he is still day to day. After saying he was going to play last week, it may be more promising in Week Three, but for now the Riders are 2-0 without their star signing and things are looking up in Saskatchewan.
