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Cody Fajardo will be wearing a different shade of green tonight as he makes his first start as an opponent since leaving the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
The Roughriders host the Edmonton Elks, who have made a quarterback change, electing to replace Tre Ford with the former Roughriders quarterback.
In his three seasons in Saskatchewan, Fajardo led the green and white to the Western Final on two occasions. Following the 2022 season, the Roughriders went in a different direction**,** signing Trevor Harris.
Fajardo signed with Montreal and led the Alouettes to a Grey Cup championship in 2023. After battling injuries in 2024, Montreal traded the 33-year-old to Edmonton during the offseason.
Edmonton began the season with Ford as their starting quarterback but stumbled to a 1-4 record. In five games, the Canadian quarterback recorded 984 passing yards with five touchdowns and three interceptions, along with 152 rushing yards.
Fresh from their bye week, Elks Head Coach Mark Kilam has elected to make the switch.
The Roughriders will only be making a couple of changes to their lineup after a convincing win against the BC Lions last week.
Langenburg product Noah Zerr will start at left guard as Zach Fry was placed on the one-game injured list.
After being re-signed to the team earlier in the week, Mario Anderson will make his first regular-season appearance on Friday night as the backup running back. Anderson was with Saskatchewan during training camp but was released after Ka’Deem Carey signed with the Riders. With Carey suffering a serious knee injury last week in BC, a spot opened up for Anderson.
Shawn Bane Jr. will remain out of the lineup this week as he continues his recovery from a knee injury that he suffered last year. The 2023 leader in receptions in the CFL was a full participant on Tuesday, but his return has been pushed back at least a week.
One reason for the possible delay in Bane Jr.'s return has been the emergence of both Joe Robustelli and Dohnte Meyers. Both Robustelli and Meyers have been recognized on the CFL Honour Roll over the last two weeks. Robustelli had 11 catches for 191 yards and a touchdown on July 12 against Calgary, while Meyers had 7 catches for 132 yards and a pair of touchdowns against BC last week.
Mario Alford will miss another week with a hip injury. Drae McCray will assume the returner’s responsibilities for a second straight week.
Friday night’s game is the first of two matchups between the Roughriders and Elks in 2025. The teams will square off in Edmonton on September 27.