The score was fitting, in that No. 17 (Stevens) debuted as a Roughrider in \u201925. It was just a start.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the only deal that I was hoping for,\u201d said the Indianapolis-born Stevens, who plans to spend most of the off-season in Regina.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thoroughly enjoyed my time here this season \u2026 and who didn\u2019t?<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can get on the phone with any of the players from the 2025 team and I think every one of them will have good things to say.\u201d<\/p>\n
You can\u2019t say anything but good things about Stevens, who joined the Roughriders in February after being a short-yardage cheat code for three seasons with the Calgary Stampeders.<\/p>\n
That reputation was enhanced by his uncanny reliability as a first-year Rider. He converted 33 of 36 short-yardage situations \u2014\u00a0defined here as a first-, second- or third-down play with no more than two yards needed to move the chains. When called upon, he gained an average of 2\u00bd times the yardage required during the regular season.<\/p>\n
That was before he tied a Roughriders record for touchdowns in a Grey Cup Game, joining Kory Sheets and Geroy Simon (both of whom scored twice in 2013).<\/p>\n
\u201cI was just very thankful to have a role in the game and, obviously, affect the game in a positive way,\u201d Stevens said. \u201cThat\u2019s really all I ever want to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
The role was expanded beyond short-yardage situations by Offensive Co-ordinator Marc Mueller, who took advantage of opportunities to use the 6-foot-4, 245-pound weapon to close out games with hard-charging rushes that devoured yardage and valuable time on the clock.<\/p>\n
That was a complement to the many examples of Stevens gaining a crucial yard \u2014 and then some \u2014\u00a0when the alternative is a turnover on downs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe times I do get in the huddle and I get in there, you can kind of see it in people\u2019s eyes,\u201d he said. \u201cThey know what\u2019s about to happen and they\u2019re excited for their job. That\u2019s a really cool thing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been fortunate to be with two teams that took short yardage very seriously.\u201d<\/p>\n
The serious approach to football is such that pre-game jitters are part of the equation. That was true before the Grey Cup, to cite just one example.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt the same way for my jamboree game in the fourth grade,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s always the same feeling of nerves and it always goes away after the first hit. Once I was settled into the game, it was time to go.\u201d<\/p>\n
And a reason to stay in Saskatchewan.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing a football fan and a football lover, I couldn\u2019t imagine not wanting to be a part of this,\u201d Stevens said. \u201cIt\u2019s an awesome place. I think this is the best overall environment in this league, in this country, to play football.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s nobody I would rather play for than Coach Mace. There\u2019s nobody I would rather, in theory, go to war with than the teammates that I had here.\u201d<\/p>\n
That includes newly resigned quarterback Trevor Harris. Stevens lauded the 2025 Grey Cup MVP as someone who \u201ctruly taught me how to be a professional.\u201d High praise, indeed.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe embodies everything that everybody sees on the surface from the media side of things,\u201d Stevens said. \u201cThat\u2019s just Trevor. It\u2019s not a show. He\u2019s truly that every single day.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m thankful to be his teammate and thankful to be his friend. I truly wanted whatever was best for Trevor.<\/p>\n
\u201cSelfishly, I was hoping that meant that he\u2019d be back with us, and I was hoping that I could also be a part of it. I\u2019m glad that both things can hold true.\u201d<\/p>\n
That being done, Stevens looks forward to being a Saskatchewan Roughrider Foundation player ambassador and, in that capacity, visiting schools across the province.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s another awesome part of being here \u2014\u00a0having the Foundation,\u201d said Stevens, who turns 29 on Dec. 15. \u201cI\u2019m definitely excited to be a part of that. Any way that I can give back to the community and give back to the younger generation, I\u2019m happy to do it.<\/p>\n
\u201cFootball has done so much for me. I\u2019m so thankful that I come from a football family. I was born on a Sunday night in December and my dad said, \u2018The Raiders are playing.\u2019 They put a football in my crib the day that I was born.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wouldn\u2019t say it was destiny for this to happen, but it\u2019s definitely my dream.\u201d<\/p>\n
BRUNSTEIN BOASTS BIG NUMBERS<\/p>\n
In 137 years of covering sports, I\u2019m not sure I have heard of a receiver with college credentials quite like those of Collin Brunstein.<\/p>\n
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