Back to school: 2024 draftees Aduboffour, Mimbs re-sign with Riders after standout U Sports seasons
12/02/2024 03:13 PM
The Saskatchewan Roughriders' lengthy list of final cuts included two players who were (and are) very much in the CFL team's plans.
On June 1, defensive back Richard Aduboffour and receiver D'Sean Mimbs were among 21 players who fell under the all-encompassing category of "released."
Returned is more applicable, however, in the cases of Aduboffour and Mimbs. Having each completed one more season of Canadian university football, they recently signed new contracts with the Roughriders.
"It’s actually a pretty unique thing, being able to send guys back to school," Vice-President of Football Operations and General Manager Jeremy O'Day noted. "It's not something you can do in the NFL.
"I think it's great, personally."
That has been proven over time.
One shining example — perhaps the best one — is Rob Bagg, who was a popular and productive Roughrider for a decade after starring at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont.
Bagg made Saskatchewan's roster as a rookie after signing as an undrafted free agent in 2007. However, it was he who decided to return to the Queen's Gaels one more season in the U Sports ranks — to the surprise of the Roughriders' management, coaches and players.
"It just felt that when I didn't get drafted I needed to show everyone that I should have been, and that was the manner in which I felt like I needed to do that," Bagg said in a 2018 interview.
"One thing led to the next and fortunately I got another opportunity with the Riders the following year."
Bagg's final season at Queen's included a nine-catch, 341-yard, three-touchdown gem against the University of Toronto Varsity Blues on Oct. 20, 2007.
"That was the year when we won the Grey Cup and we always got on him about it," said a chuckling O'Day, who played for the Roughriders from 1999 to 2010.
"We were like, 'We can't believe you went back the year we won the Grey Cup,' but he wanted to go back and that was it.
"He just kept working and persevering and he had a great career."
Bagg caught 364 passes for 4,705 yards and 24 touchdowns for the Roughriders, for whom he played from 2008 to 2018.
A member of the Roughriders' 2013 Grey Cup championship team, he was named a divisional all-star the following year after catching 54 passes for 803 yards. That was one of four seasons in which he reached or exceeded 50 receptions.
The latter portion of Bagg's time with the Roughriders coincided with the early years of Mitch Picton's professional football career.
After being selected by Saskatchewan in the fifth round (37th overall) of the 2017 CFL Draft, Picton returned to the University of Regina Rams for one final Canada West season.
He caught eight touchdown passes — finishing with a school-record career total of 24 — before rejoining the Roughriders in 2018 and spending a second successive season on their practice roster.
Since 2019, he has caught 76 passes for 855 yards and six TDs in 45 regular-season games.
"It's beneficial for players to come to camp the first time and see what this league is and see the size difference," O'Day said.
"Once you're in it, you're going to be able to tell whether you're going to be able to make it or not, and you can gain some confidence as you go on."
The benefits were certainly evident in the case of Zack Fry, who was Saskatchewan's second-round draftee (16th overall) in 2022.
He attended the Roughriders' training camp that year before being released — returned to U Sports, actually — on June 4, 2022.
Fry became a full-time CFLer in 2023 after excelling as a graduating player with the Western Mustangs, based in London, Ont.
"When he came here, he definitely had the frame and the feet to be a good offensive lineman," O'Day said. "We wanted him to go back (to university) and gain some strength and he took it upon himself to do that."
Fry rejoined the Roughriders in 2023, when he suited up for four regular-season games and otherwise honed his skills on the practice roster.
This past season, Fry dressed for 12 regular-season games, starting at left guard in six of them. He was also the front-line left guard for both playoff games.
"This year was a big jump for him because he came back 15 pounds heavier and it was good weight," O'Day said. "You could tell that he had been spending a lot of time in the weight room.
"He took a big step forward."
Ideally, the same will be said of Aduboffour — a former college teammate of Fry's — and Mimbs after training camp opens in May.
Mimbs was the Roughriders' sixth-round draft choice (50th overall) in 2024.
In 11 games with the U of R this past season, the 24-year-old son of former Roughriders running back Robert Mimbs caught 45 passes for 512 yards and two TDs.
He also helped the Rams win the conference championship game (the Hardy Cup) for the first time since the year he was born (2000).
The rangy Aduboffour — Saskatchewan's eighth-rounder (68th overall) in 2024 — registered two interceptions and three pass knockdowns in 11 games as a senior at Western. He was named an OUA all-star.
"They're excited to get the opportunity to come back," O'Day said.
"We tell the guys that, 'It doesn't matter where you get drafted. Once you get into camp, you're all equal. Your play speaks for itself.' "
TUESDAY: A profile of D'Sean Mimbs.
WEDNESDAY: Richard Aduboffour's story.
