![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761730697_160_indicator-big.gif\")
<\/p>\n\u201cThat\u2019s way more important than trying to lead the league (in receiving yards) or having the most catches. I want to get that big one at the end.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t<\/p>\n
The six-foot-four, 215-pound Rhymes was Calgary\u2019s leading receiver this season \u2014 his first with the club \u2014 registering 50 receptions for 886 yards and six touchdowns. His 17.7-yard average per catch was a career high. With veteran Reggie Begelton (knee) missing most of 2025, it\u2019s been up to Rhymes and the club\u2019s other receivers to shoulder the load.<\/p>\n
Canadian Jalen Philpot (team-high 61 catches, 830 yards, three TDs) and Erik Brooks (51 receptions, 824 yards, two TDs) both cracked the 800-yard plateau. Tevin Jones (47 catches, 618 yards, four touchdowns) and Canadians Clark Barnes (35 catches, 601 yards, two TDs) and rookie Damien Alford (20 receptions, 407 yards, five TDs) were also significant contributors.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh man, it was tough (losing Begelton) because he\u2019s been a leader here, especially in the receiver room, for so many years,\u201d Rhymes said. \u201cBut there\u2019s been so many other guys step up.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt shows the depth of this room and strong chemistry we have that we\u2019re still able to be successful, produce and have explosive plays in the passing game.\u201d<\/p>\n
But there\u2019s much more to Calgary\u2019s offence than a balanced passing attack. The Stampeders led the CFL in rushing (126.7 yards per game) and attempts (415) and were tied for second in average yards per carry (5.5), meaning their receivers also had to be proficient blockers.<\/p>\n
The ground game was anchored by Dedrick Mills, who led the CFL in carries (250) and rushing yards (1,409, 5.6-yard average, 11 TDs).<\/p>\n
\u201cWe take pride in (blocking),\u201d Rhymes said. \u201cIf you\u2019re able to block, you\u2019re being more physical than the other team and if you\u2019re being more physical you can impose your will.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know Dedrick is a bruiser. Once he gets past the defensive line and linebackers, no defensive back will want to tackle him so if we do our job, he\u2019s going to be able to do his.\u201d<\/p>\n
Saturday\u2019s contest will be a homecoming for Calgary quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., who spent two seasons with B.C. before being dealt to the Stampeders after last season.<\/p>\n
But Rhymes will also face the team he spent three seasons with (2021-23) and enjoyed his best campaign as a pro (CFL all-star with 85 catches, 1,401 yards, 11 TDs in 2022).<\/p>\n
\u201c(Redemption) is the furthest thing from our mind,\u201d Rhymes said. \u201cWe\u2019re in Calgary building something special.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s playoff time, the most important thing in the playoffs is to not lose because if you do, you go home. Everyone is 0-0, there\u2019s no record so you treat this like the first game of the season. You\u2019re trying to get a win to get going, that\u2019s our mindset.\u201d<\/p>\n
Calgary returns to the CFL playoffs after finishing fifth in the West Division last season with a 5-12-1 record. Before that, the Stampeders had made 18 straight post-season appearances, last winning the Grey Cup in 2018.<\/p>\n
But the Stampeders will have to become road warriors to capture another CFL title, a challenge Rhymes said they relish. Calgary was 7-3 within the West Division and 5-4 away from McMahon Stadium although B.C. swept the season series 2-0.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think if anyone wants to accomplish something great, they want to go through the greatest challenges,\u201d Rhymes said. \u201cYou tackle every obstacle, you overcome everything that\u2019s in your way. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe just have to know we\u2019re going into very hostile territory (Saturday) where it\u2019s us against everybody in the stadium. Just play together, play the best football you\u2019ve ever played. Don\u2019t worry about making mistakes, worry about playing your heart out \u2026 eliminate their big plays and make more big plays.\u201d<\/p>\n
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 31, 2025.<\/p>\n
Dan Ralph, The Canadian Press<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cThat\u2019s way more important than trying to lead the league (in receiving yards) or having the most catches.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":252986,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[437],"tags":[879,49,48,521,522,2467,520,2461,2468,2460,2462,2463,44,2464,2465,2466,82],"class_list":["post-252985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cfl","tag-breaking-news","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-canadian-football-league","tag-canadianfootballleague","tag-central-vancouver-island","tag-cfl","tag-nanaimo","tag-nanaimo-breaking-news","tag-nanaimo-news","tag-nanaimo-news-now","tag-nanaimonewsnow","tag-news","tag-oceanside","tag-parksville","tag-qualicum","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=252985"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252985\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/252986"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=252985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=252985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=252985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}