Hilltops lineman turns heads at Riders training camp on Thursday

Saskatchewan Roughriders training camp has been an adventure for rookie defensive lineman Johnathon Stevens.

On Thursday at camp, the Riders junior player invitee from the Saskatoon Hilltops was called upon to face veteran defensive lineman Micah Johnson in a one-on-one battle drill.

“He was begging to do the showcase and get a good rep, so I called him out there first to get his juices flowing. Then I put (him) at o-line,” Mace joked. “I thought it was a fun little way to end that.”

Mace said he called Stevens into the drill because he wanted the kid from Eatonia, Sask to “do him in.”

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“He did okay. I was hoping he’d put Micah on his back, but he’s an ox man. He’s a strong Joker.” Mace smiled.

Stevens said getting called into the drill to face one of the CFL’s best was an eye opening experience.

“I see all these guys on TV and try to watch or listen to every game that I can and just being able to go against them it’s just amazing,” Stevens said.

“His (Johnson’s) stance is actually pretty good for a defensive tackle. (I) could have done better, but I think overall, okay,” Stevens added.

The battle against Johnson was among one of highlights for Stevens at camp, but that wasn’t the only time he caught his teammates attention this week.

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At the start of camp, Johnson said Stevens had his shoe destroyed.

“John busted out of his cleats and we’re talking like the bottom open. He went like that for two days of practice until we’re telling him we’ve got to get you some new cleats,” Johnson explained.

“He was taping literally his whole cleat up to keep him going and practising like that and doing good,” Johnson laughed.

After two days of practising with his cleats taped together, newly acquired defensive lineman Mike Rose piped up and took him over to the Riders equipment manager Gordon Gilroy to get him some new shoes.

“We went to the equipment guy Gordy for him and he got some new cleats. Now that he got fresh cleats, he looks even better,” Johnson added.

Stevens said his shoes were barely a year old and was surprised they fell apart so quickly.

“The green shoes match better with the uniform anyway,” he chuckled.

Besides chirping him about his shoes or going up against him in a battle drill, Johnson has loved what he’s seen from Stevens at Riders camp.

“John’s been working super hard all camp. He’s improving every day. He’s a big, strong, physical kid. Everybody just tells him keep going. He’s looking good,” Johnson said.

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Stevens said he’s really been enjoying the opportunity to practise with the pros.

“All the guys here, they’re so nice and the vets have been so welcoming giving me pointers at any chance,” he said. “These are the best of the best. If I can learn from them, even take away at least one thing more, then also I’m going to be better. So that was the goal here.”

News and notes from Day 5 of training camp

For the third straight day, the Riders dawned the pads at Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon.

Despite the dog days of camp setting in, the competitive spirit and nature of the players was still high.

When it came to the best plays of the day, Antoine Brooks Jr. had a nice interception on quarterback Trevor Harris who threw a ball into double coverage.

The back up quarterbacks also had a good morning.

Jake Maier chucked a 30 plus yard pass to Dohnte Meyers for a touchdown and so too did Jack Coan, who found Daniel Wiebe for the score.

Mace said he opted to keep the pads on for a third day in a row because he wanted to keep the juice flowing.

“I thought we started pretty quick. We went straight to our little showcase,” said Mace.

“That third day of pads usually guys are dragging a little bit as they should, because they put it all out to the first two days, but I thought it carried through the rest of practice.”

When asked about offensive lineman Daniel Johnson, Mace said he’s been really impressed by what he’s seen so far.

“I would go out on limb and just say he’s probably been the most improved player for us at this camp. He’s been outstanding,” Mace said.

“I’m really pleased with D.J. and he’s a better person than he is a player and he’s a damn good player. Can’t say enough good things about D.J.”

The Riders are back on the field Friday morning at 8:30 a.m. at Griffiths Stadium.