Dave Thomas, a veteran broadcaster, has been chosen the Roughriders’ play-by-play announcer for their Canadian Football League games on 620 CKRM.
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Thomas, who has worked in radio in Saskatoon for the previous 20 years, succeeds Michael Ball, who was removed from the gameday broadcast crew earlier this year. Ball, who replaced Derek Taylor in 2022, has now departed Harvard Media.
Thomas, a Weyburn product, has spent years preparing for this CFL job.
“I’m basically a guy who started out in the minors if you compare it to hockey,” Thomas remarked following the official announcement on Wednesday afternoon. “I started off playing junior hockey, and then I was able to transfer over.
“I actually got to commentate high school football, junior football, made my way to the Canada West and now I’m here with the Roughriders which is really cool.”
Thomas has called games in the Western Hockey League, the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League, the National Lacrosse League, U Sports, and the Prairie Football Conference in addition to his radio job with the Saskatoon Media Group, which included “everything from morning shows to program director”.
He’s also covered the World Junior Hockey Championship and the Memorial Cup. Thomas previously worked as a visiting sideline reporter for CFL broadcasts on CKRM for three seasons, including the Roughriders’ 2013 Grey Cup victory.
Analyst Luc Mullinder will return for his sixth season, while Justin Dunk, who runs the CFL website 3DownNation, will join the broadcast team as the pre- and post-game hosts.
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