We all know the clichés when it comes to spring. This is a time of rebirth, renewal and all that sort of imagery.
However, with the weather here in Southern Ontario feeling more like the end of winter, it’s difficult to muster up that sort of flowery language.
But there is one constant that reminds us that summer is approaching: CFL training camps have officially kicked off.
The temperature around these parts may not be warm, but there are positional battles heating up all over Canada as new faces look to replace established veterans in the crazy competitive ecosystem of professional football.
One of the most important storylines is the jockeying for the backup quarterback position. It is a unique job, where, when everything is going right, we never hear about you, but this individual is one injury away from becoming the most important person on the team.
There are four specific teams where I find this battle the most intriguing.
CALGARY STAMPEDERS
This job feels truly up for grabs with the retirement of P.J. Walker and no established backup like in Edmonton, where the Elks have Taylor Powell behind Cody Fajardo.
Let’s start with some local talent in Quincy Vaughn, who was a star at Clarkson’s Football North in Ontario, and dressed for every game last year serving as the team’s short yardage quarterback. A versatile athlete, Quincy’s career path may not lead him to be a true backup, but this training camp should give us a better idea if we have another Canadian at this position.
The logical choice for the backup position is Josh Love, who saw some action in Week 20 against Toronto. Finally, the new guy in this three-way battle for the spot is Ben Wooldridge, the Sun Belt conference 2024 winner for Offensive Player of the Year while playing for the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Injury issues plagued him for much of his collegiate career, but he ran a 4.81 40-yard dash at his pro day and has spent time with the New England Patriots.
SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS
Can Tommy Stevens beat out Jack Coan for one of the most important jobs in the CFL?
The Roughriders are coming off winning the 112th Grey Cup championship and they have enough talent to repeat, but at 39 years old, there is no guarantee Trevor Harris will hit close to 500 pass attempts.
Stevens is a machine in short yardage situations. His conversion rate (91.7) is higher than any mark I got at school. Jeremy O’Day signed him to a two-year extension back in December, so the team believes in him. But with only 21 pass attempts in his career, it is fair to speculate just how high the ceiling is for him as a quarterback. Can he be Chris Streveler with greater accuracy?
As for Coan, this camp is his time to prove the team will not skip a beat after losing Jake Maier to the Ottawa REDBLACKS. Coan had a memorable year at Notre Dame including throwing for a Fiesta Bowl-record 509 yards and five touchdowns in 2021. This will be his third year with the organization and he is primed for the backup job, unless Stevens has something to say about it.
WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS
What does the future have in store for Canadian pivot Taylor Elgersma in Winnipeg? (BlueBombers.com)
If we were to rank our favourite big picture CFL questions, the Bombers’ succession plan at quarterback would be near the top.
Zach Collaros is a first ballot Hall of Fame quarterback who has won every award and accomplished every team goal. Winnipeg brought in Jarell Broxton and Tim White to see if he has one last elite run left in him. But at some point the Bombers will need that heir apparent to their 37-year-old quarterback.
Let’s get the obvious part out of the way, this job is most likely going to Terry Wilson this season. He is the logical choice to step in for the retired Streveler. Wilson has dressed for every game the past two years, bouncing between third string and Collaros’ backup whenever Streveler got hurt. Terry helped the Bombers to a 19-10 win over the Montreal Alouettes in the final game of the season.
The intrigue in Winnipeg is all about their 2025 second-round pick Taylor Elgersma. The Canadian quarterback dominated U SPORTS football in 2024 at Wilfrid Laurier, winning the Hec Crighton Trophy after putting up over 4,000 yards and 35 touchdowns. In the process, Elgersma became the first Canadian quarterback starting at a Canadian university to play in the Senior Bowl. If you thought the rise of Nathan Rourke stirred up patriotic feelings, just imagine the storylines if Elgersma shocks everyone and ends up standing closest to Collaros.
I know this makes it seem like I’m openly rooting for Taylor to beat out Terry, so in the spirit of fair and balanced journalism, check out this 48-yard run by Wilson in the 2024 Western Final. On this play, he breaks a Marcus Sayles tackle, a notable feat considering Sayles made the All-CFL team that year.
HAMILTON TIGER-CATS
Will it be Tre Ford as Hamilton’s No. 2 quarterback on the depth chart in 2026? (Ticats.ca)
You can’t really fault Jake Dolegala for not attempting a pass in 2025. Bo Levi Mitchell led the league with 626 pass attempts, over 100 more than anyone else. If you were a backup in Hamilton you basically had the best seat in the house to watch one of the game’s greats.
A successful training camp for Dolegala is one where there’s less talk about his height (six-foot-seven is tall) and more about his progression as a passer. His competition is a player we have all spilled so much ink about, Tre Ford.
It is hard to not be seduced by Ford’s passport and his powers. His days in Edmonton were the ultimate roller coaster. Some games he looked like a future All-CFLer, while others were filled with inconsistency.
If Ford needs inspiration, he can just look to the man in front of him. Mitchell went from the game’s best quarterback to being benched in 2022 by Calgary and again in 2024 with the Tiger-Cats. Since then, Mitchell has once again been one of the game’s most prolific passers.
There are a lot of lessons that can be learned by all the backups in Mitchell’s journey.
