Injury turns out to be a blessing in disguise for Roughriders linebacker

Scott Larson · CBC News

· Posted: May 14, 2025 5:28 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 minutes ago

Nick Wiebe had conscionable a tiny sensation of CFL enactment past year, playing successful conscionable 1 crippled due to the fact that of genu injuries.

This season, the 25-year-old linebacker and erstwhile University of Saskatchewan Huskie came into grooming campy healthy.

"I consciousness similar the buzz is truly palpable connected the field," Wiebe said after Wednesday's grooming campy league astatine Griffiths Stadium successful Saskatoon. "There's compete, there's immoderate trash talking, there's nasty worldly too, which is besides awesome."

Wiebe spent astir of past play moving his mode backmost from a genu wounded suffered successful his past twelvemonth of assemblage football.

He yet got connected the tract for the Banjo Bowl against Winnipeg, lone to tweak the genu again and extremity his season.

Wiebe said helium learned a batch astir himself and the resilience you request to travel backmost from injury.

"I grew up a batch during the process. So yeah, it hurt, but I'm a amended antheral for it now," Wiebe said.

"I deliberation everybody has experiences successful their beingness wherever they request to turn up and benignant of find a mode to excavation heavy and amusement up each day. And that's what I learned however to do."

The Calgary autochthonal played 2 years of Division 1 shot with the Oregon Ducks earlier transferring to Saskatchewan, wherever helium spent 3 years with the Huskies.

Despite being with the Riders each of past season, Wiebe still feels similar this is his rookie year.

"I didn't play precise overmuch past year, conscionable the Banjo Bowl, so I'm benignant of getting my feet bedewed and making definite I get comfy successful the CFL game," helium said.

"Then evidently gathering disconnected that and hoping to predominate arsenic soon arsenic possible."

Riders merchandise 7 players

The Riders released 7 players connected Wednesday, including erstwhile Huskie violative lineman Noah Zerr.

Zerr had joined the squad past twelvemonth arsenic a escaped cause and played successful 10 games.

Head manager Corey Mace said it was a pugnacious determination to fto Zerr go.

"We consciousness we person truly bully extent [at violative line] and it's conscionable just however it rolled for us," Mace said.

"I deliberation present Noah's a bully player, man.…  I'm definite helium won't beryllium waiting excessively agelong [for different squad to telephone him]."

Also fto spell were punter Joe Couch, antiaircraft backs Nicario Harper and Leon Jones, moving backmost Khalan Laborn, receiver Ty James and antiaircraft lineman Justin Jefferson.

Three players were enactment connected the suspended list: Offensive lineman Julius Buelow, and linebackers Justin Herdman-Reed and his member Jordan Herdman-Reed.