They called it training camp for the players but when it came to his near-daily question-and-answer sessions with the gathered media, Saskatchewan Roughriders head coach Corey Mace was already in mid-season form.<\/p>\n
Here are some of the best quips, jokes, anecdotes and insights Mace shared during the 2026 preseason.<\/p>\n
MAY 11<\/a><\/p>\n On defensive lineman Jaylen Pate\u00a0\u2014 \u201cHe’s a horrible dancer. He was doing some Michael Jackson last night. It was bad. It was bad.”<\/p>\n On the importance of keeping penalties down \u2014 \u201cThe undisciplined teams usually tend not to be the good ones.\u201d<\/p>\n MAY 12<\/a><\/p>\n On defensive lineman Caleb Sanders\u2019 absence from that day\u2019s practice \u2014 “He’s just an ugly guy. We didn’t feel like dealing with him. Love Caleb. Sorry Caleb. But you know you’re ugly.”<\/p>\n On a training camp matchup between quarterback Trevor Harris and halfback Rolan Milligan Jr. \u2014 “Trevor’s gonna carve him up every time.”<\/p>\n On diminutive rookie receiver\/returner James Letcher Jr.<\/a> \u2014 “He’s the only guy at camp with a king-size bed.”<\/p>\n On his own introduction to the CFL as a player, while discussing the Riders\u2019 newly-signed players acclimating to their first time in Canada \u2014 \u201cTrue story, I’m a horrible Canadian. I hate to admit it but I did not know when I came up into Calgary that there was a city. Honestly, I thought it was just gonna be kind of prairie farm and then we flew in and I saw all the buildings, the mountains and I was like \u2018wow!\u2019 So that’s embarrassing. Being from Vancouver I should have known that.\u201d<\/p>\n MAY 16<\/p>\n On his players\u2019 chances of transitioning to pro basketball<\/a>\u00a0after an impromptu pickup game before an indoor practice in Saskatoon\u00a0\u2014\u00a0\u201cAbsolutely not. Not one person. We are really bad at basketball. At least we can\u2019t shoot. I assume we could foul, maybe play a little defence. But other than that, pass the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n MAY 18<\/p>\n