SASKATOON \u2014 JuJu Hughes, who had a highlight-reel interception during rookie camp, is already the Saskatchewan Roughriders\u2019 career leader in picks.<\/p>\n
Toothpicks, to be precise.<\/p>\n
The 27-year-old defensive back had a toothpick in his mouth while making a succession of impressive plays on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at Griffiths Stadium.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just something I started as a sophomore in high school,\u201d Hughes said. \u201cOriginally, it was to help me stop biting my nails. It worked for two weeks. I still bite my nails to this day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dave Thomas, CKRM\u2019s voice of the Roughriders, followed up by asking Hughes if the toothpick is part of games as well as practices.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s classified information,\u201d he replied with a laugh. \u201cI\u2019m not going to say too much, but it\u2019s definitely a comfortability thing. I train like that every day.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just part of me at this point. I keep it with me at all times.\u201d<\/p>\n
Isn\u2019t it dangerous, I wondered, to play a physical sport with a toothpick in your mouth?<\/p>\n
\u201cIt takes some getting used to for some people,\u201d Hughes said. \u201cI\u2019ve had coaches who were against it. For the average person, it might be a little dangerous, but I\u2019m so comfortable with it. I train like this and work out like this every day.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got five brothers at home (in Hanford, California). I wrestled with them and fought with them and stuff. It\u2019s not dangerous for me at this point. I\u2019m blessed to have had no problems as of yet.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy mom, as scary as she is about a lot of things, she\u2019s OK with this toothpick. She has seen me and this toothpick do a lot of things, so everybody\u2019s good with it. I make it work.\u201d<\/p>\n
The toothpick was part of the picture when Hughes attended Hanford High School and Fresno State University. At Fresno State, he was a teammate of current Roughriders receiver KeeSean Johnson from 2016 to 2018.<\/p>\n
After graduating from Fresno State, Hughes spent time with the Los Angeles Rams (2020-21), Detroit Lions (2022) and Arizona Cardinals (2022-23) before joining the UFL\u2019s Birmingham Stallions in 2024.<\/p>\n
Now in Riderville, Hughes enjoys renewing ties with Johnson, linebacker Antoine Brooks Jr. (a former Rams teammate) and defensive back Jerry Jacobs (Detroit).<\/p>\n
Roughriders Run Game Co-ordinator and Linebackers coach Travis Brown also has a history with Hughes. They were allies at Fresno State when Brown coached there.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe asked how I could get so comfortable and adapt so quickly,\u201d Hughes said of Brown. \u201cIt\u2019s easier when you\u2019ve got some familiar faces to talk you through it and tell you what to expect.\u201d<\/p>\n
There won\u2019t be anything easy about lining up opposite Johnson, a 2025 All-CFL receiver, when the main component of Coors Light Riders Training Camp opens on Sunday.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s going to be fun,\u201d Hughes said. \u201cWe used to have great battles in college. He was part of getting me out here. His pitch definitely sold me on it.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re both ultra-competitors, so it\u2019ll be good to get back out there. This is his territory right now. He\u2019s more comfortable than me here, so it\u2019s going to be exciting to get at it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hughes creates excitement with his play and outgoing personality, with an accompanying catchy name.<\/p>\n
How did \u201cJuJu\u201d come to be?<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got to ask my dad and my older brothers,\u201d he said. \u201cThey\u2019re all going to take credit for it. They\u2019re all going to say they called me JuJu first.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy government name is Juwuane, but I just go by JuJu day in and day out with everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
TD TALLY<\/p>\n
Throughout Roughriders history, 55 players \u2014 prospects included \u2014 have caught at least one touchdown pass in an NFL regular-season game.<\/p>\n
Three of those individuals are on the 2026 Coors Light Training Camp roster: Johnson (one TD), fellow receiver Freddie Swain (six) and running back Darrell Henderson Jr. (four).<\/p>\n
Among players who have tried out for the Riders, Gino Cappelletti leads the list with 42 touchdown receptions. Cappelletti, who attended training camp here in 1958, was a member of the Boston (now New England) Patriots from 1960 to 1970. The Patriots were an American Football League team for nine seasons before the NFL merger took effect in 1970. (The NFL now recognizes stats compiled in the AFL and the All-America Football Conference. The latter loop existed from 1946 to 1949.)<\/p>\n
Elbert Dubenion is second on the list, with 35 touchdowns (all with the AFL\u2019s Buffalo Bills). Dubenion attended the Roughriders\u2019 training camp in 1959 before being called home to Ohio because of a family emergency.<\/p>\n
Former Cleveland Browns star Mac Speedie is third with 33 TDs. Speedie, a 2020 inductee into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, played for Saskatchewan in 1953 and 1954.<\/p>\n
Jim Keane follows with 24 TDs \u2014 including 10 for the Chicago Bears in 1947. He had a two-game stint with Saskatchewan in 1952.<\/p>\n
The rest of the NFL-TD-catch list is as follows:<\/p>\n
15 \u2014 Jack Russell (1951 Roughriders).<\/p>\n
9 \u2014 Chaz Schilens (2014); Charlie Jones (2003 training camp).<\/p>\n
8 \u2014 Bob Bruer (1977-78); Daryl Hobbs (2000); Calvin Muhammad (1990 TC).<\/p>\n
7 \u2014 Dave Williams (1977 TC).<\/p>\n
6 \u2014 Swain (current); Ken Carpenter (1954-59); Cookie Gilchrist (1958); Geronimo Allison (2024 TC).<\/p>\n
5 \u2014 Shawn Collins (1996 TC).<\/p>\n
4 \u2014 Henderson Jr. (current); Jim Cason (1953); Robert Holmes (1976).<\/p>\n
3 \u2014 Rodney Parker (1978-79); Harlan Huckleby (1979); B.K. Williams (1991-93); Sinorice Moss (2012); Trent Richardson (2017); Jacoby Ford (2017 practice roster); Joe Morgan (2017 PR).<\/p>\n
2 \u2014 Tydus Winans (1997); Eric Guliford (1999-2001); Derick Armstrong (2001-02); Roell Preston (2001); Joe McKnight (2016); Ryquell Armstead (2024); Robert Woods (1981 TC); Quentin Griffin (2008 TC).<\/p>\n
1 \u2014 Johnson (current); Paul Dudley (1966); R.C. Gamble (1970); Rick Eber (1973); Rhett Dawson (1974-76); Tommy Reamon (1977); Jamie Holland (1995); Kenton Keith (2003-06); Karsten Bailey (2004-05); Marcus Thigpen (2009 PR, 2017-19); Naaman Roosevelt (2015-19); Tre Mason (2016); Duke Williams (2021-22); Ka\u2019Deem Carey (2025); Tom Barnett (1962 TC); Randall Burks (1976 TC); Secedrick McIntyre (1977 PR); Sylvester Stamps (1985 21-day trial); Reggie Rembert (1997 PR); Mario Bailey (1998 PR); Dwayne Jarrett (2012 TC).<\/p>\n
FISHING FOR IDEAS<\/p>\n
The varied skills and interests of rookie defensive tackle Thor Griffith were outlined in a story we posted on Friday<\/a>.<\/p>\n I did not include a tangential tidbit from his bio on the Harvest Crimson website, but this one simply had to appear somewhere: \u201cEnjoys exotic fish keeping, weightlifting and medieval samurai history.\u201d<\/p>\n Griffith is, as far as we can determine, the first exotic fish keeper in Roughriders history.<\/p>\n \u201cMy dad, when I was younger had all kinds of different tanks with cool fish,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s where my love for exotic fish came from. I haven\u2019t been able to partake in the hobby, just because of school and travelling and playing sports. Hopefully, once I get settled down, I can kind of re-start \u2014 or start my true collection.\u201d<\/p>\n Which brings us to \u2026 (drumroll, please) \u2026 great fishy names in Roughriders history!!!<\/p>\n \u2022 Doc Stringer \u2014 halfback, middle wing, outside wing; 1910-14.<\/p>\n \u2022 Curtis Bates \u2014 middle wing, inside wing, halfback; 1923-28. (Bates played junior rugby for the Regina Boat Club, so we have appointed him as the team captain.)<\/p>\n \u2022 Orville (Fishy) Heron \u2014 outside wing, halfback, inside wing; 1931-34, 1942.<\/p>\n \u2022 George Herring \u2014 quarterback\/defensive back; 1959.<\/p>\n \u2022 Robert (Tank) Holmes \u2014 running back; 1976.<\/p>\n \u2022 Tim Hook \u2014 offensive lineman; 1979.<\/p>\n \u2022 Randy Gill \u2014 linebacker; 1980 training camp.<\/p>\n \u2022 Daryl Bowles \u2014 running back; 1983 14-day trial, 1984 training camp.<\/p>\n \u2022 Rod Fisher \u2014 defensive back; 1987.<\/p>\n \u2022 Marlin Williams \u2014 defensive lineman; 1989 practice roster, 1992 training camp.<\/p>\n \u2022 Reggie Slack \u2014 quarterback, 1997-99.<\/p>\n \u2022 Pa\u2019tell Troutman \u2014 receiver; 2001 practice roster.<\/p>\n \u2022 Jake Waters \u2014 quarterback, 2016.<\/p>\n \u2022 TeGray Scales \u2014 linebacker; 2021 practice roster.<\/p>\n \u2022 Lake Korte-Moore \u2014 defensive lineman, 2023-present.<\/p>\n \u2022 Shane Ray \u2014 defensive lineman, 2025.<\/p>\n And, of course, \u201ctackle\u201d and \u201cline\u201d apply to everything.<\/p>\n ZERR\u2019S ZINGER<\/p>\n The quote of the week goes to Director of Communications Arielle Zerr.<\/p>\n As reporters gathered around Head Coach Corey Mace on Friday, I was a little late to join the group.<\/p>\n The aforementioned Dave Thomas stood to the left of Mace. Rawlco Radio\u2019s Scott Roblin was on the right. Everyone else was behind the cameras.<\/p>\n I faced a decision: Do I stand on the left or the right? Poised to create an imbalance regardless of the choice, I proclaimed: \u201cMy presence will determine the strong side and the weak side.\u201d<\/p>\n To which Arielle responded: \u201cWhatever side you are on will be the weak side.\u201d<\/p>\n EXTRA POINTS<\/p>\n \u2022 Kudos to the Saskatchewan Roughrider Foundation for infusing more than $5 million into communities across our province in 2025. That amount includes $3.3 million that was earmarked for amateur football.<\/p>\n