Saskatchewan Roughriders’ head coach Corey Mace provided reasons for the team bringing in American kicker Michael Hughes.
"He had a successful college career. We brought him in here to see if it could be a solution and also added competition as we push towards the back end of the season and the playoffs. We're going to try to find the best person to put out there at any position, so another option for us," Mace said.
"He's gonna be mad, but Tuesday he looked at me and said, 'Yeah, thanks, coach. What position do you coach?' He's still here, so good on him," Mace said with a laugh.
The 22-year-old Hughes continues to enjoy getting accustomed to the differences between Canadian and American football.
"It's about the same size as my college, so I've actually adjusted pretty well," Hughes told voice of the Riders, Dave Thomas. "App State prepared me extremely well for stadiums because our fans at App State are incredible. Being in a town like Regina -- the culture -- it's about the same, so I'm super excited to be here. I'm still adjusting to the 65-yard sidelines but you know, it's still ball and I'm going to enjoy every single moment of it.”
Before Hughes came to the Riders, he played for Appalachian State University from 2021 through 2024. He holds the school record as the all-time leader in field goal percentage at 83.3. His best season came in 2023 when Hughes made 19-of-22 field goals, which earned him recognition from the College Football Network as a second-team All-American and FBS Special Teams Player of the Year.
"My strength coach at App State tells me all the time I'm only as good as my next kick, so I can't worry about what I just did or my past reputation or my career in the past," Hughes said. "I can only focus on where my feet are right now, so I try to take it one kick at a time and do the best that I can for the team now and try to go 1-0 this week."
Luckily for Hughes, he is already familiar with one player currently on the Green and White roster, punter Jesse Mirco.
"I've known Jesse for a little over a year now. We met last summer, so I've known him for some time," Hughes said. "I consider him a good friend of mine, so trusting him off the field allows me to trust him a lot on the field as well. Getting to know Jorgen [Hus] really well, trying to get with those guys as much as possible, build a relationship quickly and trust him when my time comes."
Meanwhile, veteran Canadian Brett Lauther suited up for the team's Week 19 game against the Toronto Argonauts. He made all five field goal attempts in a 27-19 win over the Argos. Fellow national Campbell Fair, who missed two extra point attempts in his CFL debut during Week 18, was released on Sunday.
The Riders travel to Winnipeg to play the Blue Bombers on Friday with first place in the West Division already secured. Teagan Witko, Justin Dunk, and Wes Cates bring you the pre-game show at 3 p.m. Dave Thomas and Luc Mullinder have the game call at 6 p.m. Listen to our comprehensive coverage on the 620 CKRM Co-operators Rider Broadcast Network.
