Roughriders defeat Stampeders 40-37 in overtime

CALGARY – The Saskatchewan Roughriders prevailed on a strange night and held off a late push by the Calgary Stampeders in a 40-37 overtime victory Saturday in the CFL.

Roughriders backup quarterback Tommy Stevens scored the second of his two short field goals in overtime for the win.

Saskatchewan led until Calgary quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. connected with Tevin Jones in the end zone in the final minute of regulation time for a converted touchdown to tie the Stampeders even.

Roughriders coach Corey Mace joked after the game that his jaw hurt from chewing gum so hard.

“I had to put that fifth piece of gum down to go to overtime,” Mace said. “So my jaw is clicking, but my heart is fine.”

The start was in dry and sunny conditions, but winds of over 50km/h during the game swayed the goalposts and was a factor in the management of the game.

Kian Schaffer-Baker caught a pair of passes for the Roughriders (2-0). He has amassed 295 receiving yards on 19 catches in his first two games this season.

“They call me 7-11. I’m open 24 hours. I’m always open,” Schaffer-Baker said.

KeeSean Johnson also caught a punt, and Saskatchewan’s AJ Ouellette rushed for 84 yards and contributed a two-point conversion for the defending Gray Cup champions.

Alex Hale kicked eight points including field goals of 27 and 38 yards. He lost by 47 in the wind.

Quincy Vaughn scored a pair of touchdowns, Tyreik McAllister had a 120-yard punt return and Jones had a touchdown for the Stampeders (0-2), who lost their first two games of the season for the second time since 2009.

Dedrick Mills, the CFL’s leading rusher last season, finished with 103 yards.

It was the second CFL game in Alberta to go into overtime on Saturday as the Edmonton Elks were defeated by the Montreal Alouettes 32-29.

Calgary lost another heartbreaker after a close 30-28 loss to Winnipeg. In both losses, Adams orchestrated late touchdowns to give Calgary a chance to win.

“Resilient group, we just have to find a way to win,” Stampeders head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson said. “We probably, honestly, got outplayed, but we had our chances. We kept fighting. We kept working. We connected, we went into overtime. A call here, a call there, an opportunity here, an opportunity there.

“The momentum was with us, but in extra time we couldn’t win it.”

Jude McAtamney hit field goals of 22, 17 and 24 yards for Calgary in front of an announced 21,262 at McMahon Stadium.

Roughriders quarterback Trevor Harris completed 23 of 36 pass attempts for 349 yards and three touchdowns. Adams went 20-for-30 for 254 yards and a touchdown.

All of Saskatchewan’s shots were scored in the wind and a couple of long field goals gave Saskatchewan the added bonus of keeping Calgary’s offense off the field and unable to take advantage of the breeze at their backs.

“I try to keep the nose down and wind it up and not throw it too badly out of a spiral,” Harris said. “You get those rough balls that get caught in the wind, but I thought for the most part we did a pretty good job.”

But the Stampeders were still within striking distance early in the fourth quarter, as Vaughn scored the second on a one-yard run for Calgary to follow with a converted punt.

Adams’ fumble to Jones in the end zone with 34 seconds left capped an 88-yard, nine-play drive to tie the game.

The two teams traded field goals to start overtime – McAtamney from 17 yards and Hale from 38. McAtamney kicked another from 24 yards before Stevens punched in the game-winning TD on a one-yard plunge.

“There’s a lot of people who would love to be in our locker room, and I’m very, very grateful to be here,” said Stevens, who played his first three CFL seasons in Calgary before signing with Saskatchewan.

Harris threw a three-yard touchdown pass to Johnson to cap an 82-yard, nine-play drive in the third quarter. Saskatchewan led 31-17 after Ouellette’s two-point conversion.

Saskatchewan led 23-14 after a wild finish to the first half. An 81-yard Saskatchewan drive into the wind ended with Harris throwing Schaffer-Baker into the end zone for the latter’s second touchdown.

With 13 seconds left in the half, Kerfalla Exume recovered the ensuing fumble for Saskatchewan, and the Roughriders went into field goal range for a chance to add to their lead.

But Calgary returner McAllister tipped Hale’s 47-yard punt attempt wide in the end to cap off a 120-yard punt return.

“We had a lifeline there with Tyreik at the end of the first half. I don’t know if we can get back into that game without that play,” Dickenson said.

Calgary’s offense mustered just eight net yards on the wind in the first quarter.

“I started to slow down in the first half and the defense was on the field a lot,” Adams said. “I need to make more plays for my team early and often.”

UP NEXT

Roughriders: Host the Toronto Argonauts (1-1) on Friday.

Stampeders: Visit BC Lions (0-2) Saturday, June 27, in Kelowna, BC

This report from The Canadian Press was first published on June 20, 2026.

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