Saskatchewan Roughriders’ linebacker Micah Teitz is happy to have the support of his family in Calgary who will be wearing an unpopular colour at McMahon Stadium on Saturday.
“Everyone’s in Rider green,” Teitz told the media with a chuckle. “My family’s loyal to me, not to the city.”
The Calgary native is in his third season with the Riders but still has strong ties to his hometown. Teitz rose to stardom with the University of Calgary Dinos, which led him to being selected in the second round of the 2018 CFL Draft.
His younger brothers Daniel and Nathan are currently playing for the Dinos at linebacker and defensive end, respectively. The Teitz brothers have plenty of familiarity with McMahon Stadium in Calgary, which has long-served as the home to both the Dinos and Stampeders.
“I do enjoy it,” said Teitz regarding playing at his old stadium. “I’m very familiar with the field and it’ll be nice to have some family and some friends in the crowd again. But really it’s just another game, honestly. You kind of forget about all of that stuff when the kickoff starts.”
Teitz became a full-time starter at weak-side linebacker for the first time this season and has done an excellent job replacing Cameron Judge, who left for Toronto via free agency. He has recorded a team-high 38 total tackles and two sacks in seven games, while Judge has made just 11 tackles in six games with the Argonauts.
The 25-year-old knows that Saskatchewan’s three consecutive upcoming games against Calgary will have a big impact on the West Division standings.
“I think they’re a little bit desperate right now. They really need a win,” said Teitz. “We have an opportunity to really elevate our stance in the West and we have the ability to really put them down, so these are big games coming up.”
Bo Levi Mitchell has been a shadow of his former self this season, completing just 58 percent of his passes and throwing a league-high seven interceptions. Despite his recent struggles, the Riders aren’t going to take the two-time Most Outstanding Player lightly.
“He’s been dominant in the CFL for such a long time and even if you have some bad games, we still know that he’s always capable of putting up big numbers, big games. We just gotta limit the big plays and play our game and not get too caught up in the moment,” said Teitz.
Saskatchewan (5-2) visits Calgary (2-5) on Saturday for a 7:00 p.m. ET kickoff at McMahon Stadium.
