Coan or Schager? Riders with choice to make at backup quarterback

With the final day of Saskatchewan Roughriders camp, the coaches begin trimming roster for upcoming season, with QB2 still undecided. Donovan Maess has more.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders know who their starting quarterback will be, but a battle for backup has emerged as training camp comes to a close.

With Trevor Harris’ spot at QB1 all but locked up and Tommy Stevens set for another season of short yardage, Jack Coan and Brayden Schager seized every opportunity through the preseason in an attempt to earn the backup spot.

“I had a lot of growth throughout camp,” Coan told CTV News Friday. “I made some mistakes, but I feel like I learned a lot from being put in a lot of different situations and through the experience of getting reps at plays I maybe haven’t gotten before.”

“I’ve shown what I can do on the field,” Schager said. “I’m happy and proud of what I’ve put out there. It’s out of my hands now, but I’m proud of the work that I put together and of the future I think I could have, especially here.”

Number two on the depth chart is a wide-open race after former backup Jake Maier signed with the Ottawa RedBlacks this past offseason.

Coan, who signed with the club in 2024, is entering his third season with the Green and White.

He has dressed for 23 regular season games over his previous two seasons, throwing for 138 yards on 12 completions and one touchdown.

The former Notre Dame Fighting Irish pivot was on the active roster for just five games in 2025.

Coan believes the body of work this training camp was enough to earn the spot.

“We’ll see. I mean, I definitely tried my hardest and worked as hard as I possibly could,” he said. “Now it’s up to the coaches and the GM, but I worked my hardest and we’ll see what happens.”

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Except that’s the way Schager felt, too, about his training camp.

Schager first arrived in Saskatchewan in September 2025, signing as a free agent out of the University of Hawaii. The 23-year-old spent the remainder of the season on the practice squad, looking to take the next step in his career.

“I’ve had my three-week audition to prove to [management] my abilities,” Schager told reporters after Friday’s practice.

“I’ve been able to put some good stuff on tape. I think now you take a little step back just for a second, but then, if I’m given the opportunity, it’s right back to work.”

Four quarterbacks, four personalities

Harris, Stevens, Coan and Schager each bring a different style and personality to the Riders’ quarterback room.

“They all bring themselves and that’s what I love about our room; there’s so much authenticity,” Harris said while speaking to media Monday. “Jack, you guys think of this stoic, never says a word. He’s actually the biggest clown of all of us.”

“Tom, he’s kind of our moderator of our debates, he’s always fact checking everybody. And, he’s as knowledgeable as it gets across the board in terms of football play and concepts he’s seen and done. Brayden, young guy soaking up everything he can. He’s got a tremendous personality and I think he’s got a bright future. A lot to learn, but shoot, it’s a brand new game and Brayden’s on the right track,” he added.

The young quarterbacks in Coan and Schager say they are doing everything they can to learn from the experienced veteran who is their starting quarterback.

“Trevor is the old vet, so he’s got tons of experience and tons of knowledge about the game,” Coan said. “Everybody picks his brain and Coach Mueller, obviously, knows a ton about the game as well, and he’s an unbelievable guy to learn from.”

“We all do a really good job of learning from each other, listening to what the coaches are telling us and building off of each other,” added Schager. “It’s a very healthy room and it’s really good we all get along well; it’s not like that everywhere.”

Four different players and people, who bring their own flavour to the field.

“Jack’s been here for two years, it’s his third season, he’s gotten better every single day,” described Riders’ offensive coordinator Marc Mueller. “He works really hard, he puts in all the time. He operates the offense and understands the ‘why’ of the offense and what the plays are.”

“Schager is a firecracker with a live arm and he’s super competitive,” head coach Corey Mace added. “They’re all different, but they all have a positive future ahead of them.”

Saskatchewan did hold four quarterbacks on the roster in 2025 and seem poised to do it again this year.

However, Mace would not reveal his plans, just yet.

“There’s potential,” he said. “We’ve got to sit down and hammer through all the stuff like this afterward, after we get through meetings. You’d like to say, ‘Yeah, of course,’ just because of what it’s been. But I can’t promise anything in this, we’ll always just make the best decision for the team.”

Teams have until 11:59 p.m. Saturday local time to make final cuts and round out their rosters for the regular season.