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Over 3,000 stuffed animals were tossed onto the ice.
It was a reunion of friends Monday as Weston Dressler and Mike McCullough were welcomed as the newest inductees into the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ Plaza of Honour.
“I was super-excited. I told Weston but he didn’t seem to care,” McCullough, 41, said with a chuckle. “It was amazing and I never really thought I was going to get in, especially since part of the criteria was all-star (awards). I leave that to Weston; he got all the all-star nominations.”
McCullough, who was a linebacker with the Riders for 11 seasons, is joined by Dressler and former offensive co-ordinator and head coach Ken Miller in the Class of 2022.
“When you hear the news, you’re immediately excited and I think it’s a chance to reminisce a little bit about my time up here, the friends we made and those types of things,” said Dressler, 36. “It’s exciting to be in this group and I am excited to be going in with Mike too.”
While the 80-year-old Miller wasn’t at the announcement, both McCullough and Dressler spoke highly of their former bench boss.
“Guys have a lot of respect for him,” McCullough said. “In a game where it can be pretty cutthroat at times (and) some relationships can be permanently scarred because of it, you’ve got a coach like Ken Miller who always gave it to us straight and gave it to us with compassion. All the guys loved him.”
“Coach Miller was my first head coach in the CFL and first head coach with the Riders. I owe him my gratitude just for providing me the opportunity. Not many places wanted a 5-foot-7 kid from North Dakota playing football for them,” Dressler added.
The inductees are to be honoured during a halftime ceremony at the Roughriders’ home game Aug. 19.
Dressler, a product of Bismarck, N.D., joined the Roughriders in 2008 and was named the CFL’s most outstanding rookie that season.
He appeared in 123 regular-season games with Saskatchewan during his career and recorded 539 catches for 7,797 yards and 51 touchdowns. The slotback had five seasons with at least 1,000 receiving yards.
Dressler also played in nine playoff games with the Roughriders, catching 44 passes for 695 yards and six TDs. He helped Saskatchewan win the 2013 CFL title at Mosaic Stadium.
During his time in Saskatchewan, Dressler became a fan favourite and was featured in many products found throughout the province — including being featured on a bag of chips.
“It’s overwhelming at times,” he said. “We had the chips, we had the fruit snacks for a while. It’s more than we deserve.
“We view ourselves as we’re just football players who happened to be pretty good at it and could make a living for a while doing it and appreciate having the opportunity to do it. The Rider fans are what make this place fun to be a part of as a player. I’ll have that bag of potato chips for the rest of my life sitting there.”
Dressler was named a West Division all-star in 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2013 and a CFL all-star in 2012 and 2013. After being released by the Roughriders, he finished his career with three seasons as a member of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
McCullough joined the Roughriders after being selected in the third round (23rd overall) of the 2003 CFL draft out of St. Francis Xavier University.
A product of Kingston, Ont., McCullough played all 11 years of his career with the Roughriders, appearing in 185 games. He’s second all-time in franchise history with 113 special-teams tackles.
“I’m super-excited. It’s a great honour just to be a part of it. I got to be here for 11 years and I think the longevity of my career is probably what helped get me into the Plaza,” McCullough said.
McCullough played in four Grey Cups with Saskatchewan, winning in 2007 and ’13.
Miller was with the Roughriders from 2007 through 2011, serving as the team’s offensive co-ordinator, head coach and vice-president of football operations during his tenure.
The product of The Dalles, Ore., was hired as the Roughriders’ offensive co-ordinator in the Grey Cup-winning season of 2007 under then-head coach Kent Austin.
Miller succeeded Austin in 2008 and guided Saskatchewan to Grey Cup appearances in 2009 and ’10. He resigned as head coach after the 2010 season but returned to the post midway through the 2011 season.
He recorded 36 regular-season wins and three post-season victories over his career as the Roughriders’ head coach.
Since its inception, the Plaza of Honour has inducted 135 people who have made significant contributions to the club. Three teams — the 1966, 1989 and 2007 Grey Cup-winning squads — also have been enshrined.