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Ajou Ajou to make Calgary Stampeders debut against B.C. Lions
by 3Down Staff August 12, 2026
The Calgary Stampeders will have Canadian receiver Ajou Ajou in the lineup when they host the B.C. Lions on Thursday evening. The team released its official depth chart on Wednesday morning.
The 24-year-old signed with the Stampeders at the end of June immediately following his reinstatement by the CFL. He is now eligible to play after serving his six-game suspension.
Ajou was suspended by the league in April after a third-party investigation determined he made what was termed "aggressive and unwelcome physical contact" with multiple women at a Regina restaurant. The alleged incident occurred shortly after the Roughriders won the Grey Cup, and led to his release from the team.
The native of Brooks, Alta. was reinstated after he met the conditions outlined by the league following his violation of the CFL's gender-based violence and harassment policy. He completed 15 counselling sessions conducted by a gender-based violence expert, a psychological assessment by another independent expert, and a meeting with CFL commissioner Stewart Johnston.
The allegations against Ajou have not been tested in court.
The six-foot-three, 218-pound target was selected in the seventh round of the 2024 CFL Draft and played 12 regular-season games as a rookie in Saskatchewan, making 20 catches for 307 yards and two touchdowns.
Ajou returned to the team partway through the 2025 season following a stint in the NFL and made 22 catches for 212 yards over eight regular-season games. He also started the Grey Cup, making two catches for 13 yards to help the Roughriders defeat the Montreal Alouettes.
He will dress as a backup on Thursday behind standout slotback Jalen Philpot. In a corresponding move, the Stampeders have placed Canadian linebacker Terrence Ganyi on the practice roster.
The rest of Calgary's roster has remained unchanged from last week.
The Red and White have only eight players out due to injury, making them one of the CFL's healthiest teams alongside the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
The Calgary Stampeders (4-5) will host the B.C. Lions (3-5) at McMahon Stadium on Thursday, August 13 with kickoff scheduled for 9:00 p.m. EDT. The Lions narrowly beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats last week, while the Stampeders suffered a close loss to the Toronto Argonauts.
The weather forecast in Calgary calls for a high of 15 degrees and a 90 percent chance of rain. The game will be broadcast on TSN and RDS2 in Canada, CBS Sports Network in the United States, and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune-in on Sher-E-Punjab Radio AM 600 (Punjabi) in Vancouver or 770 CHQR in Calgary.
https://3downnation.com/2026/08/12/ajou-ajou-to-make-calgary-stampeders-debut-against-b-c-lions/
Stanley Berryhill III to return for B.C. Lions against Calgary Stampeders
by 3Down Staff August 12, 2026
The B.C. Lions will have receiver Stanley Berryhill III back in the starting lineup when they visit the Calgary Stampeders on Thursday night. The team issued its official depth chart on Wednesday morning.
The 28-year-old caught three passes for 46 yards in B.C.'s season-opener but was then placed on the six-game injured list. He will start at slotback in place of Kieran Poissant.
The five-foot-ten, 190-pound target has dressed for 33 regular-season games over three seasons with the Lions, recording 91 catches for 1,128 yards and eight touchdowns. The native of Tucson, Ariz. had stints with the Atlanta Falcons, Arizona Cardinals, and Detroit Lions prior to coming north.
The Lions have also made a change at running back, where Zander Horvath has been listed as the starter over James Butler.
Horvath had a breakout game against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers two weeks ago, when he rushed 17 times for 191 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-19 win. He was also productive last week against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, recording 16 carries for 62 yards and one score.
Butler rushed for a career-high 1,213 yards and 11 touchdowns last season but has been relatively quiet thus far in 2026, rushing 66 times for 311 yards and four scores.
B.C. has also moved first-round 2026 CFL Draft pick Nate DeMontagnac to the active roster in a depth role behind Jermaine Jackson.
The native of Mississauga, Ont. was a collegiate standout at the University of North Dakota, where he caught 64 passes for 775 yards and four touchdowns over 40 games. This will be his first career CFL game.
Chase Henning, a seventh-round pick out of the University of British Columbia, has been promoted from the depth chart to fill a depth role at linebacker.
The Lions have also moved Canadian fullback Jacob Bond (knee) to the one-game injured list, Canadian receiver Nick Cenacle to the reserve roster, and American returner Jayden Williams to the practice roster.
The B.C. Lions (3-5) will visit the Calgary Stampeders (4-5) at McMahon Stadium on Thursday, August 13 with kickoff scheduled for 9:00 p.m. EDT. The Lions narrowly beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats last week, while the Stampeders suffered a close loss to the Toronto Argonauts.
The weather forecast in Calgary calls for a high of 15 degrees and a 90 percent chance of rain. The game will be broadcast on TSN and RDS2 in Canada, CBS Sports Network in the United States, and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune-in on Sher-E-Punjab Radio AM 600 (Punjabi) in Vancouver or 770 CHQR in Calgary.
https://3downnation.com/2026/08/12/stanley-berryhill-iii-to-return-for-b-c-lions-against-calgary-stampeders/
Surprise I don't think I've ever seen Dickie win a challenge, he usually throws them away too early in the game.
Must be nice to have a QB who can throw 52Y point-to-point while sprinting across the field and doing a little hop!! And hit a receiver (J.Jackson) in stride.
Rourke probably could have ripped it for 70Y without trying.
Quote from: Tecno on August 14, 2026, 02:00:04 AMMust be nice to have a QB who can throw 52Y point-to-point while sprinting across the field and doing a little hop!! And hit a receiver (J.Jackson) in stride.
Rourke probably could have ripped it for 70Y without trying.
Collaros wouldn't have escaped the pocket and that's the difference. It also makes the offensive line look great when they probably weren't.
How come every CGY D player more than 4Y away from the ball is just quitting, or trotting, or laying down for a nap? They can't be tired already -- CGY has had the ball 75% of the half.
Weird lack of effort. As guys who recently got hosed by BC, I'll give them a little tip: try harder or BC will rip you a new one.
Quote from: Sir Blue and Gold on August 14, 2026, 02:05:00 AMCollaros wouldn't have escaped the pocket and that's the difference. It also makes the offensive line look great when they probably weren't.
Ya, BC OL is not that great. That RT is very suspect. Rourke makes them look like all-stars.
Wow, it's quite incredible to watch Rourke's fast-twitch acceleration when he gets a whiff of pocket breakdown. If you're a DE tasked with contain, you can never, ever, try an inside move on the BC pocket, because you'll never catch up to Rourke.
Also, VAJ outran Betts on a full-on 1-on-1 race to the edge. Crazy.
Us teams with oldster, slow, QBs really need to do what SSK did with Trevor and HAM with Bo. We can't just play normal ball like BC or CGY or MTL (or even TOR) and expect to compete with these young, agile QBs.
I have no idea why we haven't retooled to do this.
Quote from: Tecno on August 14, 2026, 02:27:07 AMWow, it's quite incredible to watch Rourke's fast-twitch acceleration when he gets a whiff of pocket breakdown. If you're a DE tasked with contain, you can never, ever, try an inside move on the BC pocket, because you'll never catch up to Rourke.
Also, VAJ outran Betts on a full-on 1-on-1 race to the edge. Crazy.
Us teams with oldster, slow, QBs really need to do what SSK did with Trevor and HAM with Bo. We can't just play normal ball like BC or CGY or MTL (or even TOR) and expect to compete with these young, agile QBs.
I have no idea why we haven't retooled to do this.
With the emergence of Rourke and Alexander other teams are looking at 5-10 years of league dominance that will not be beaten with anything other than an elite QB. Wonder how long it will take till a QB of that caliber emerges in Wpg? Hopefully the answer is not never.
Haha, CGY didn't look at the BC@WPG film! Here's a hint on Horvath: you need a 2nd level of D. A LB spy or something, and probably a FS spy. Every 4 runs the dude will break the line and then he's fast enough to out-sprint your whole team.
And cut Butler. This tandem RB thing is so stupid. Butler is useless and has been for quite a while.
Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on August 14, 2026, 02:40:34 AMWonder how long it will take till a QB of that caliber emerges in Wpg? Hopefully the answer is not never.
SSK/HAM have shown you don't need that. You can Ricky-Ray it.
Looks like in the CFL you have 2 paths right now:
1. Young stud QB who is super mobile and can throw 80Y, OL not as important, RECs important
2. Old fogey QB who is stuck in the pocket and cannot take a hit; OL critical, RECs not as important, run game important
Anyone trying to do some hybrid is failing (us, OTT). EDM is an interesting case because Cody is still mobile "enough" and they have the league-best RB that needs 3 spies to stop.
We should have decided to go "full SSK" in FA26, but we didn't. Should have upgraded 2 more OL -- spend whatever it takes to have the league-best. And eschewed Nield and just made Corcoran work (he could produce those bad numbers just as easily) or because of big spending on OL been able to start Singer.
I think we're going to suffer in this limbo world like OTT.
CGY as a team doesn't look ready or awake or interested. Weird, as they usually try harder at home.
And the CGY players need to stop thinking Rourke is going to step OOB. The league really needs to find a balance on hits started before the rail-running QB steps OOB on purpose just to draw a flag. A DB can't be faced with an impossible choice of let him run another 12Y vs draw a UR.
Never bet good money on V.A., he always comes up short.
Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on August 14, 2026, 02:54:01 AMNever bet good money on V.A., he always comes up short.
Except that other week where he threw 5 TDs and over 400Y(?). The Stampede Bowl. I swear they rig that game, just like the 2nd Kelowna Bowl.
CGY letting is slip away. They just don't care. Kind of like us in the last 3 mins vs BC. Everyone just moping around. No leaders. Hmm, sounds familiar.
They feel the coaches & coords have let them down and the plan can't succeed. They probably aren't wrong. Most people picked CGY, so for pickems sake, CGY needs to find a spark. VAJ should pick whatever REC is willing to try, and chuck some mid/deeps.
Here comes another BC TD.
Quote from: Tecno on August 14, 2026, 03:09:16 AMCGY letting is slip away. They just don't care. Kind of like us in the last 3 mins vs BC. Everyone just moping around. No leaders. Hmm, sounds familiar.
They feel the coaches & coords have let them down and the plan can't succeed. They probably aren't wrong. Most people picked CGY, so for pickems sake, CGY needs to find a spark. VAJ should pick whatever REC is willing to try, and chuck some mid/deeps.
Here comes another BC TD.
V.A. can't find any open receivers, they need to switch to dink and dunk quickly or this game is over.
VA looks to have serious head and or neck injury
Edit looks ok
Mills gone to dressing room
Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on August 14, 2026, 02:40:34 AMWith the emergence of Rourke and Alexander other teams are looking at 5-10 years of league dominance that will not be beaten with anything other than an elite QB. Wonder how long it will take till a QB of that caliber emerges in Wpg? Hopefully the answer is not never.
lol. Neither of those guys has won a thing yet.
I said after my WPG@BC review that BC's D was actually very, very good. Sankey just killed us. And their DC knows what you are going to do, and guesses with high success. When they know what you're going to do, they can easily stop it.
Well that's the end of that game with VAJ gone. This could be a neck/back thing.
VAJ, like Dru & Zach & Trevor & Bo, needs to be told you ALWAYS hook slide. Maybe in the div.final and GC you can try it. But anytime else you need to slide on time. Dru did the same thing and took himself out of it. It's simply not worth it. Yes, you'll be called a wuss and fans will hate you for not going for it, but being out for weeks is not worth it.
Quote from: Jesse on August 14, 2026, 03:20:19 AMlol. Neither of those guys has won a thing yet.
It's coming, don't worry. The young studs are the future (incl Kelly). The old farts only matter when their OLs & RBs are league-best.
If Alexander hadn't had that hammy in the GC, you think they don't score on their last 2 drives, esp the 3-down one?
The acceleration by that huge/heavy Horvath is totally insane. Power AND speed, sign me up!
What a strange-shaped RB. I'd have to guess he has a weakness: probably will get injured a lot -- as tall guys generally do.
Quote from: Jesse on August 14, 2026, 03:20:19 AMlol. Neither of those guys has won a thing yet.
Is that how you prepare for the future?
Blow to the neck. Technically RTP
Kinda stupid, but that's in the rules
Wooooooooooooooooooooooow. Command setting new precedent and going against the rules. This is Johnston's doing of "more show". He doesn't care about anything but show.
Wow, BC's D trying to hurt CGY's new QB.
Rule 7.4.g
UR: Delivering a blow to an opponent in the neck or head.
Seems pretty clear to me and they ALWAYS enforce that on QB hits! We've seen hands brushing helmets flagged as RTP! That was a pretty big hit to the neck. Rourke was even sitting there feeling it after, unless he was "soccering" it.
Not like I care though, I picked CGY. I just hate command inconsistency. They need to follow their own dumb book and be consistent!
Amazing how different a team looks when a couple of sparks occur! CGY was totally dead before that INT and were going to lose bad. Now a backup QB and a nobody 3rd string RB are going to win the game. CFL is nuts.
Wow, the mugging of all muggings on that McInnis huge pickup. CGY dude used his arms, and would have lost a DPI challenge -- that's why McInnis did it. It was a bail-out play in case they didn't convert. But refs missed it, and BC had no challenges, and it didn't matter at all anyhow.
Oh ya, someone fire that CGY K. He has missed 4 points, and that's exactly the difference in this game.
No Adams, no Mills, no chance, no matter how many breaks the Stamps get.
Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on August 14, 2026, 03:46:34 AMNo Adams, no Mills, no chance, no matter how many breaks the Stamps get.
They had a chance on that last turnover, in the red zone. Had to get a TD there. BC was reeling.
Now they have to do it the hard way on their own merit.
On the bright side, CGY has more than enough time to run the standard O.
Wow, D.Williams could have ended the game had he closed his hands a little faster.
Hand it to the CGY OC -- they are calling the PERFECT plays to fight that BC pressure.
Now the issue is don't TD too fast. You are down 4 (though you'll go for 2). Don't want to give Rourke 1 min to play with.
Everyone is playing close. Do a corner fade, or RB draw with McAllister
Well that was stupid, Everyone playing tight, you go to the back of EZ, not the front!! Wide open flat, a RB draw would have done it. Or a QB draw.
Oh well.
Hand it to the much-beleaguered Bene. His D calls bent but didn't break in this one.
TJ Lee stole it from Philpot The Lesser. Philpot needs to come back for that one -- a catch 2-4Y out of the EZ still gives them 1 more chance to punch it in. Philpot thought no way he's the target when he's that well covered. Kid needs to understand that everyone else might be just as covered -- and they were! It was cover 1 man and everyone was blanketed.
Love looked ready and capable. 10X more ready and capable than Elgs. Why is that?
Quote from: Tecno on August 14, 2026, 04:01:56 AMTJ Lee stole it from Philpot The Lesser. Philpot needs to come back for that one -- a catch 2-4Y out of the EZ still gives them 1 more chance to punch it in. Philpot thought no way he's the target when he's that well covered. Kid needs to understand that everyone else might be just as covered -- and they were! It was cover 1 man and everyone was blanketed.
Love looked ready and capable. 10X more ready and capable than Elgs. Why is that?
The 29 year old in his second year with the team who completed 6 passes for a 5.8 yard average and an interception?
That was 10x more capable than Elgs?
QuoteThe 29 year old in his second year with the team who completed 6 passes for a 5.8 yard average and an interception?
That was 10x more capable than Elgs?
Agreed, and he should have thrown another interception but the lions defender dropped it. I thought he looked brutal, deer in the headlights look. You're at the 9 yard line and all you have to do is not throw a pick and what does he do, pick city. He looked just as bad as all the other brutal 2nd stringers , they give you no hope of winning and look horrible in the process. The thing that got me is Adams on the sideline with towel on his head trying to look all cool, dang, get in the game and try and win it for your team instead of playing the cool dude part. If you're standing on the sideline you're in the game. He s such a primadona
Quote from: Jesse on August 14, 2026, 04:26:03 AMThe 29 year old in his second year with the team who completed 6 passes for a 5.8 yard average and an interception?
That was 10x more capable than Elgs?
Uh, the dude drove the field and came within 9 yards and 2 shots to win the game. Under intense pressure at home with limited time. And he didn't even need the 3rd down, excluding 1y sneaks. And it was more pass than run, including a mid zone dime. And his star rb was missing! And bc sent nonstop crazy pressure!!
So ya, 10x elgs, and the whole country would have taken notice had his oc called some makeable corner fades instead of interceptable short curls.
I'm not saying he's good. He probably isn't. But that's my whole point!
I'm not sure but I think the Lions winning did us a favour. Stamps now sitting in 5th place.
Quote from: Blue In BC on August 14, 2026, 01:03:38 PMI'm not sure but I think the Lions winning did us a favour. Stamps now sitting in 5th place.
Bombers have to win this game tonight.
Quote from: blue_gold_84 on August 14, 2026, 01:28:43 PMBombers have to win this game tonight.
Yes that is true. OTOH we're going into a very hard part of the schedule against top teams. Injuries have forced some changes but we've stood pat on things we might have changed
I think we believe we'll win tonight but we thought that in other games and came out flat.
It will be interesting to see if any of the strategies have changed in the game plan. I really expected some movement with new players added to the PR. Obviously they are mostly for look see auditions and rarely play in the current season.
From my point of view that at least signifies not sitting on their hands.
Our IR list has gone down this week and Kramdi might the only player that returns eventually to the AR. The others appear to be season ending injury situations.
Hard to say what is happening in the back ground. We don't have an excess of players to trade besides some minor ST players. So nothing that would provide any immediate help.
Quote from: dd on August 14, 2026, 05:33:32 AMAgreed, and he should have thrown another interception but the lions defender dropped it. I thought he looked brutal, deer in the headlights look. You're at the 9 yard line and all you have to do is not throw a pick and what does he do, pick city. He looked just as bad as all the other brutal 2nd stringers , they give you no hope of winning and look horrible in the process. The thing that got me is Adams on the sideline with towel on his head trying to look all cool, dang, get in the game and try and win it for your team instead of playing the cool dude part. If you're standing on the sideline you're in the game. He s such a primadona
Pretty sure Adams was knocked out cold, he was laying on top of Casey Sayles like a rag doll. The towel on the head was probably an attempt to keep his head and neck warm on a cool rainy night, as Calgary is usually a windy hell hole even in the summer.
BC only had two picks in the first 3 rounds of the 2025 draft. They picked Hayden Harris and Jackson Findlay. Both big physical players.
Findlay DB/LB 44 DTs, 9 STs, 1 INT.
Harris DL 8 DTs.
Quote from: Pigskin on August 14, 2026, 06:31:36 PMBC only had two picks in the first 3 rounds of the 2025 draft. They picked Hayden Harris and Jackson Findlay. Both big physical players.
Findlay DB/LB 44 DTs, 9 STs, 1 INT.
Harris DL 8 DTs.
Yeah, our drafting has been terrible.
Quote from: Jesse on August 14, 2026, 07:50:50 PMYeah, our drafting has been terrible.
I do think Smith is the future at WLB or SLB.
Daniels needs the ball more at TE
Gatkoeuth needs more reps.
You should've paid Tyrell Ford
You gave up way too much for Dru Brown. That first could be a future guard to take over for Neufeld.
Quote from: CrazyCanuck89 on August 14, 2026, 08:38:26 PMI do think Smith is the future at WLB or SLB.
Daniels needs the ball more at TE
Gatkoeuth needs more reps.
You should've paid Tyrell Ford
You gave up way too much for Dru Brown. That first could be a future guard to take over for Neufeld.
I like Smith but right now he's a maybe. Daniels should be on the PR. Gatkoeth is getting reps but aside from that one 2 play stretch that one time, he's done nothing.
Funny, this game mirrored our game vs bc. Cgy kicking way too many fgs even though they move the ball well. Then qb gets pasted running in the middle and because he's out you lose with the young guy.
Quote from: Jesse on August 14, 2026, 07:50:50 PMYeah, our drafting has been terrible.
Fortin went 8th in same draft as Findlay and Harris. He's Calgary's start C.
Quote from: Pigskin on August 14, 2026, 10:29:19 PMFortin went 8th in same draft as Findlay and Harris. He's Calgary's start C.
That would have been such a good pick for us. But we picked Connor Shay - who has been useless.
And it's not like OL wasn't a need for us...
Quote from: Jesse on August 14, 2026, 10:35:58 PMThat would have been such a good pick for us. But we picked Connor Shay - who has been useless.
Worse than useless. He isn't even making plays on ST. I'm not even sure why he's dressing.
Will he magically be a starting MLB over an off-season? Or will he be Etienne. He's let himself be leapfrogged by Smith.
I'm not going to defend the Shay pick but I will say that the draft strategy seemed okay and hindsight is tough.
For one, we're starting too many Americans on defense and it's probably not sustainable to go 6 or 7 on offense and plus one on defense for long, and we've been forced into that a bunch of times this year. I think they saw that coming.
Had we drafted a more traditional Canadian prospect on the offensive line we probably would have PR'd them for a year so they would not be as far along as some other teams are with their same picks. You actually need to play to get better in most cases. Drafting and development are tied but Walters doesn't develop. That's O'Shea's job and I don't think he's very good at it.
On the other hand, we had pretty good offensive lines up until last year and we've got a couple blue chippers that if they hit would change the conversation: Kevin Cline in Miami and Giovanni Manu in Detroit. Manu seems more likely than before and Cline is going through camp one right now.
I can see where you're coming from, but with how we are deploying our ratio, it seems crazy that we haven't invested more resources into OL and WR - which is killing our O right now.
Manu was a lottery ticket never expected to come here. The only reason he seems somewhat possible at this moment is due to injuries. Kline was just this past draft and we've needed an influx for a few years now.