Saskatchewan Roughriders unsure if A.J. Ouellette will be healthy for Week 4

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Though it appears the ankle injury he sustained this past week wasn’t serious, it remains unclear if A.J. Ouellette will be healthy enough to play for the Saskatchewan Roughriders when they host the Toronto Argonauts on Friday night.

“You never know, but seeing A.J. after the game and seeing A.J. the last few days, and getting some reports back from the docs, it was certainly a relief,” head coach Corey Mace told the media on Tuesday.

“It’s still trending. I gave him a day today and we’ll see how it feels tomorrow, but with A.J., we can roll that thing all the way to the game. He’s done it long enough.”

“We’ll see with A.J.”

Ouellette rushed 18 times for 84 yards against the Calgary Stampeders this past week, helping the Roughriders improve to 2-0 with a 40-37 overtime victory. He left the game late in the third quarter and didn’t return.

Thomas Bertrand-Hudon took over the reins at running back, carrying the ball seven times for 30 yards. The team’s other running back is Quali Conley, a rookie who has opened the season on the practice roster.

The five-foot-ten, 211-pound ball-carrier finished his collegiate career at the University of Arizona in 2024, where he carried the ball 150 times for 745 yards and eight touchdowns, while adding 39 receptions for 245 yards and one score.

Conley has since been a member of the Cincinnati Bengals and Montreal Alouettes, though he’s yet to play in a regular-season game at the professional level.

Despite being relatively new to the team, it appears he’s earned the trust of the coaching staff.

“(Conley) came in late to camp. He digested it, worked his tail off to understand, knows who to block, knows who to pick up. A lot of running backs at this level, you hand them the ball, they’re going to know what to do once that gets going,” said Mace.

“He’s falling into our philosophies of what we feel at the position and listening to (running backs coach Andrew Harris). He’s been excellent, so if it goes down to that and he gets a shot to go, he’s been around long enough now to understand.”

Juju Hughes, who started in place of Rolan Milligan Jr. at boundary halfback this past week, appears to be done for the season with what the team has termed an ankle injury.

“That’s a tough one,” said Mace. “Unfortunately, Juju’s going to be out a long time, so just tough the way the cookie crumbles. It’s football, unfortunately, but rough. The kid was having a good game. Great camp, great player. Excellent kid. Just wish him well.”

In a corresponding move, the Roughriders have brought back American defensive back James Burgess Jr. The six-foot-three, 190-pound defender made two defensive tackles, one interception, and one pass knockdown during the preseason but was released as part of final roster cuts.

“That was one of those tough decisions, honestly, at the end of camp there. We thought he had a good camp, touched the ball a bunch of times in practice, got one in a preseason game as well,” said Mace.

“It was one of those hard conversations. You just tell him, ‘Hey, stay in shape, you just never know,’ and it was a situation where we were able to bring him back. Man, so happy to have him back.”

Per the team’s official report, other non-participants in practice on Tuesday were receiver Dhel Duncan-Busby (shoulder), defensive lineman James Vaughters (knee), and defensive backs Jayden Dalke (hand) and Nelson Lokombo (ankle). Receiver KeeSean Johnson (knee) and defensive lineman Benoit Marion (shoulder) were both limited.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders (2-0) will host the Toronto Argonauts (1-1) at Mosaic Stadium on Friday, June 26 with kickoff scheduled for 9:00 p.m. EDT. The Argonauts are coming off a 44-24 win over the Ottawa Redblacks, while the Roughriders beat the Calgary Stampeders in overtime.

The weather forecast in Regina calls for a high of 25 degrees and sun. The game will be broadcast on TSN in Canada, CBS Sports Network in the United States, and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune in on TSN 1050 in Toronto or 620 CKRM in Regina.