Nobody was talking about Saskatchewan Roughriders rookie kicker Alex Hale last week.
Nobody really noticed that Hale made both of his field goals and all four converts against the Toronto Argonauts.
“You do your job and that’s what everyone expects,” Hale said following a recent practice as the Roughriders prepared to visit the winless Ottawa Redblacks on Friday.
“Make your kicks and kinda help the team win. And if no one knows who your are, it’s a good thing, right?”
Instead of fretting over Hale’s kicking, fans, players and coaches had instead been wondering how the reigning Grey Cup champions surrendered another special-teams touchdown and lost to the Chad Kelly-led Toronto Argonauts at Mosaic Stadium.
They joked about the Riders’ hideous, unreadable, all-white Prairie Blizzard jerseys They worried about injuries to most of Saskatchewan’s starting receivers. They discussed a face masking penalty assessed by the God Centre that negated a pivotal Riders turnover.
“The kicks were all good, but the goal is to win the game,” said Hale. “At the end of the day, if I make them all or miss them all, I’m just trying to help the team win, so the win is most important.”
It was Saskatchewan’s first loss of the season, but Hale’s best performance.
An Australian who moved to the U.S. after high school to play college football at Oklahoma State, Hale had two tryouts with the NFL’s Green Bay Packers, where he handled similar weather conditions to chilly, rainy and ultra-windy Saskatchewan. Hale tore knee ligaments in college and last year suffered an eye injury that led him to wearing a contact lens and tinted protective goggles during games.
“I got a little bit of nerve damage so the pupil doesn’t quite control the brightness,” said Hale.
“These just take the edge off. I can play without them, but they help a little bit so …”
In his first two games with the Roughriders, Hale missed one of six converts and made only five of seven field goals, all shorter than 40 yards. His 71.4 per cent accuracy rate was worst among the CFL’s regular kickers.
One missed field goal was returned 120 yards for a touchdown by Calgary Stampeders returner Tyreik McAllister, creating immediate concern for a team that had released veteran kicker Brett Lauther following a season in which he made a career-low 72 per cent of his field goals.
That was the first of two straight game with a special-teams TD against the Roughriders — Toronto’s Janarion Grant returned a punt 68 yards to paydirt in the Argos’ 40-34 victory — as they look to face a team with another dynamite returner in Kalil Pimpleton.
Riders head coach Mace admitted he was concerned about his team’s kick coverages.
“It’s not ideal,” said Mace. “It’s stuff we talk about and drill constantly.
“You learn it from yourselves and you learn it from other teams as well, who find themselves in that position. It’s gonna be harping from the coaches, keep harping on the tape and showing the whys and where we went wrong and ultimately drilling it in and making sure we get that done on game day.”
The phone-in shows were rough on Hale following his first two outings, suggesting the Roughriders shouldn’t have released Lauther, referring to the newcomer as “Alex Fail” and speculating when he would be replaced.
Mace insisted the entire team had faith in Hale. Of course, that was a common refrain about Lauther in 2025 before he was waived and joined the Redblacks as a free agent.
“I think it’s just one of those things,” said Mace, when asked if Hale is settling into his role.
“You know, new to the league, the responsibilities of the job, the (bad weather) this guy’s had to deal with through the first part of the season are not ideal for any specialist. It’s good to gain confidence for himself because we see every day what he’s capable of.”
Lauther is 10-for-10 this season in field goals but has also missed a convert. Hale hasn’t met Lauther, but plans to say “Hello” in Ottawa.
“I know of him,” said Hale. “He was here for a long time and was a great, great kicker for a long time. I have plenty of respect for him and what he did here.
“I’m excited to meet him. Of course I’ll meet him because you’re never wishing bad upon anyone. As a specialist, you always go say hi to the opposing kickers and wish them good luck.”
They should have lots to talk about.
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Darrell Davis
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