Saskatchewan Roughriders head coach Craig Dickenson during a game against Toronto Argonauts, in Regina, Sask., on Oct. 21.Heywood Yu/The Canadian Press
Craig Dickenson paid the price for the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ shortcomings on Monday as the CFL club announced it would not renew his contract as head coach.
His departure came two days after the Roughriders capped a 6-12 season with a 29-26 loss to the Toronto Argonauts. The result extended Saskatchewan’s losing skid to seven games and cost the team a playoff spot.
“I want to thank coach Dickenson for everything he has given to the Saskatchewan Roughriders over his 10 years in Green and White,” general manager Jeremy O’Day said in a release. “From his time as special teams co-ordinator to his five seasons as a head coach, he gave all he had to the team and did it with kindness and respect.
“We appreciate his hard work and dedication and wish him all the best moving forward.”
The Roughriders also announced that O’Day, who also serves as vice-president of football operations, had agreed to a new contract.
There was no immediate word on the timeline for plans to name Dickenson’s replacement. O’Day and president and CEO Craig Reynolds were scheduled to hold media availabilities later Monday.
It was the second straight year that Dickenson guided the team to a 6-12 mark and the team missed the playoffs. Saskatchewan also dropped seven in a row to close the 2022 campaign.
After the home loss to the Argonauts, he accepted responsibility for the team’s struggles.
“At the end of the day, it’s all on me,” Dickenson said. “Like I said a month ago, it was a different team than last season, but we didn’t win any more games. We felt like the formula was to get a little better, character wise, and I felt we did.
“We tried to put a little more emphasis on the offensive line, which I felt like we did, but it didn’t translate into wins. So, at the end of the day, this season was a failure. We didn’t get to where we wanted to which was get in the playoffs and compete for a championship. We weren’t able to do that.”
The 52-year-old from Great Falls, Mont., is the older brother of Calgary Stampeders coach Dave Dickenson.
The Roughriders went 13-5 under Dickenson in 2019 and 9-5 in 2021. Saskatchewan lost to the eventual Grey Cup champion Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the West Division final both years.
The 2020 season was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dickenson also served on the coaching staffs of the Blue Bombers, Calgary Stampeders, Edmonton Elks and Montreal Alouettes during his 20-plus years in the CFL. He won the Grey Cup with Calgary in 2008 and Edmonton in 2015.
O’Day, meanwhile, began his career as a player with the Roughriders in 1999. He joined the football operations staff in 2011.
“Jeremy has an excellent track record of identifying and bringing in quality talent to the Saskatchewan Roughriders with many players having gone on to have successful seasons including two 1,000-yard receivers in 2023,” Reynolds said.
“I am confident in his ability to find the next great head coach of the Saskatchewan Roughriders and to put together a team Rider Nation can be proud of.”