CALGARY — The 2025 CFL season will be a proving ground for the Calgary Stampeders.
The Stampeders want to show themselves and their fans that the team has what it takes to get back into the playoffs after falling short of the post-season for the first time in 19 years.
There will be unprovens in starting jobs for the Stampeders from the defensive backfield to the return game to punting to offensive short-yardage situations. Players have the chance to make a name for themselves and raise their CFL stock.
"We've got maybe a different type of athlete," said head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson, who enters his third season in the dual roles.
"We do have more size. We've got to find playmakers. It does feel like the guys believe that we have the pieces in place. It's about going out winning games and if we can put it together on that field on that new turf, we'll be a happy group."
Calgary opens at home Saturday against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell, who won two Grey Cups and two CFL Most Outstanding Player awards as a Stampeder.
Vernon Adams Jr. makes his Stampeder debut Saturday. Calgary acquired the 32-year-old quarterback in a trade with the B.C. Lions, a month after the Stampeders closed out their dismal 2024 campaign.
"He understands that he is on the pedestal and all eyes are on him," Stampeders receiver Reggie Begelton said. "But at the same time, we win or lose as a team. In that locker room, we have his back no matter what."
Adams led the CFL in passing yards in 2023 (4,769) and ranked second in touchdowns (31). He was in the MOP conversation in 2024 with B.C. before he was sidelined with injury in August.
Jake Maier, who replaced Mitchell and is now with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, didn't have much success in Calgary with 11 wins over two seasons.
But Calgary's defence was also the worst at stopping the rush and 537 points against was the second-worst in 2024.
"First thing for the offence, we've got to not turn the ball over as much," Dickenson said. "We had too many of those interceptions and costly ones, and for a multitude of reasons though, not necessarily just quarterback play.
"Defensively, we've got to stop the run. Then special teams, to me, just effort and execution. The execution maybe needs to be better."
The latter department falls to Dickenson's older brother Craig, who was Saskatchewan's head coach for four years. He takes over for Mark Kilam, who, after 15 years as Calgary's special teams co-ordinator, is Edmonton's head coach.
Bob Slowik was promoted from linebackers coach to defensive co-ordinator after Brent Monson was hired by Hamilton. Pat DelMonaco starts his sixth season as offensive co-ordinator.
But seven new position coaches on Calgary's staff represent a seismic shift for a football club known for coaching continuity and retaining position coaches for multiple years.
But finishing last in the CFL prompted the shake-up of a franchise accustomed to playing high-stakes games in November.
"We've had to put it behind us. It's easier because there's really not a lot of guys here from that team," Dickenson said. "We don't even really talk about it. We understand history is history and it's certainly something that'll always be there for the guys that were (here) in 2024, but it's certainly a big-time different team.
"We're just a young team and also an inexperienced team, so every day, you have to make it count. What I mean by that is every practice, every meeting really has to count."
Begelton, who signed a contract extension that would make him a Stampeder for a ninth season in 2026, feels the Stampeders are ready for a turnaround in 2025.
"Energy, vibes, you can't deny something when you feel it," Begelton said. "There's belief here.
"We know what it takes. We've got a lot of veterans on this team that have been here and been on winning teams, and they know what it takes."
2024 record: 5-12-1, fifth, West Division
Did you know?: New quarterbacks coach Dakota Prukup played for Oregon the year after Vernon Adams Jr. did.
Key additions: QB Vernon Adams Jr.; REC Dominique Rhymes; REC Tevin Jones; RB Jeshrun Antwi; DL Folarin Orimolade; LB Gary Johnson Jr.; LB Derrick Moncrief; DB Damon Webb.
Key losses: QB Jake Maier (Saskatchewan); QB Tommy Stevens; OL Sean McEwan (Saskatchewan); Punter Cody Grace (Edmonton); LB Micah Awe (B.C.); LB Cam Judge (Toronto); DL Mike Rose (Saskatchewan).
Players to watch: Dominique Rhymes has chemistry with Adams Jr. from the season and a half they were teammates with the B.C. Lions.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2025.
Donna Spencer, The Canadian Press
