Roughriders Mailbag: Alarming attendance? Draft Rourke? Bane update?

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Welcome to another edition of the Roughriders Mailbag where we answer questions readers have about the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

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With less than two weeks until the CFL Draft on April 29, teams are busy finalizing their prospect rankings. After the draft, those prospects and other first-year players will hit the field for rookie camps, followed by main camps opening on May 11.

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With anticipation building towards the start of the season, it’s time to answer some questions.

If you’d like to submit a question for the next Roughriders Mailbag, email your inquiry to: SaskatchewanRoughriders@postmedia.com.

• I believe the team is looking to be competitive and possibly a contender for the cup. My question is what is the president and board going to do about the lack of season tickets and butts in the seats. The Western semifinal attendance was alarming. And of course, the attendance figures for nearly every home game were very concerning. The pricing for merchandise is ridiculous and the entertainment value for the younger fans isn’t as good as it could be. From Steve D. (Question has been condensed)

This off-season, Roughriders president Craig Reynolds told the Leader-Post that the number of season tickets fell to 15,500 in 2024, which was the third straight year of a decrease in sales. Selling tickets is the club’s primary source of income and Reynolds said it’s the club’s No. 1 focus this off-season.

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Reynolds admitted they have some work to do in rebuilding the season ticket base and last week, the team unveiled a few new perks for season ticket holders including a separate entrance at each gate into the stadium, a dedicated account rep, a souvenir I.D. card and lanyard and a “thank you” gift that season-ticket holder can pick up as an exclusive pre-season event, which includes a tour of the locker room.

Whether that will sway fans to buy season tickets is to be determined. I’ve often heard the phrase that season ticket holders feel “taken for granted,” so maybe addresses some of those concerns. But is it enough? That’s an individual question each person needs to answer when it comes to how they want to spend their entertainment dollars.

While winning helps boost ticket sales, it isn’t everything. And these new perks are one way of trying to boost sales. I think it’s a step in the right direction.

• Is Kurtis Rourke on the radar for a potential draft pick this year? From Murray

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Rourke is not only the top quarterback available in this year’s CFL Draft, but he’s considered the best prospect, as he’s been listed No. 1 in the CFL Scouting Bureau’s draft rankings.

However, the younger brother of CFL quarterback Nathan Rourke is also an NFL prospect and could hear his name called in the later rounds of the draft south of the border from Apr. 24-26.

If he doesn’t get drafted to the NFL, Rourke could very well sign in the NFL as a free agent which would mean there’s a good chance he doesn’t come to the CFL any time soon.

However, I still think there’s a team in the CFL that will be willing to draft Rourke with the chance that he does come play in Canada one day. But how early are teams willing to select a player like that?

Roughriders’ general manager Jeremy O’Day has selected many “futures” picks over the years so maybe it will be the Green and White. I would certainly be willing to spend a mid-round pick on him.

• Is Shawn Bane Jr. on track to start the season healthy? From Steve J.

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After suffering an ugly knee injury in Week 17 of the 2024 CFL season on Sept. 28, Bane underwent surgery and missed the rest of the season.

The receiver posted to social media this off-season of him working out as he recovers from the injury. In February, Bane told Roughriders’ senior journalist Rob Vanstone that he was jogging and “things are pretty much looking on the up-and-up.”

When training camps open, it will be just over seven months from his initial injury and typically, recovery timelines after knee surgeries are between six to nine months, meaning Bane will have a good chance to be cleared around the time camp opens although time frames can certainly change player-by-player.

And when he returns to the field, Bane will be looking to hit the ground running as he looks to improve on last year’s totals (49 catches for 581 yards) after a breakout season in 2023 that saw him nab 93 receptions for 1,104 yards.

tshire@postmedia.com

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