For KeeSean Johnson and Dohnte Meyers, the competition doesn’t just stop on the field.
The two Saskatchewan Roughrider wide receivers aren’t just teammates, they’re roommates as well this season.
“We both got close last year, but I stayed with Jerreth Sterns, and he stayed with someone else. We just knew in the offseason we got close and we talked throughout the offseason and when it came time to come back up here and find somewhere to stay, it just made sense for us,” Meyers said.
That’s also led to them competing with each other in almost every aspect of life, which has helped them on the field.
“It’s only going to make us push harder from week to week each week because we hold ourselves to a high standard,” Johnson said. “If we push each other in the room, that’s only going to push each other on the field.”
The competitions at home started organically between the two.
“Once we got here, we started going to the grocery store and started cooking and it’s just a friendly competition with both of us messing around and having fun with it,” Johnson said.
So, who is the maestro in the kitchen between the two? That depends on who you ask.
“I’m going to go with me,” Johnson said when asked who was the better cook.
“It has to be me,” Meyers said.
When it comes to video games, the two split the series, but that depends on what game is being played.
“When it comes to first-person shooter games and things like that, that’s me,” Meyers said. “When it comes to (the NCAA video game) and sports games, that’s him.”
The two have also found themselves on the opposite teams in a long-running game of spades with two other receivers.
“My partner is Sam Emilus, and his partner is Dhel Duncan-Busby. And me and Sam are up right now, but it gets real competitive,” Meyers said. “It’s rolled over from last year.”
On the field, the two are nearly neck-and-neck when it comes to the stats.
Johnson currently sits fifth in receiving yards with 682, while Meyers is not far behind him with 641 yards (seventh in the league).
Meyers does hold the edge in touchdowns over Johnson by a five-to-three margin.
“We feel happy for each other and want the other to have success,” Johnson said.
There is some trash-talking going on as well, but Johnson said that applies to everyone on the team.
“When it’s the defence against the offence or the offence against the offence, if we lose a rep, we will talk trash to each other so the next one they will go out and try that much harder to win,” Johnson said.
Both will look to continue to add to their season totals on Saturday when the Riders are in Calgary to take on the Stampeders. Kickoff for the game is set for 5 p.m. The Green Zone pregame show begins at 3 p.m.
The Stamps are the only team to beat the Riders this season, winning 24-10 at Mosaic Stadium on July 12.
“We let the fans down at our home stadium,” Meyers said. “We’re looking to go out there to Calgary and redeem ourselves.”