Riders quarterback Bennett ready for the big stage

Typically over the years a Roughriders pre-season game wasn't a hot ticket, the stadium never full.

However this one coming up Saturday has all the makings of a sellout: the first game in the new Mosaic Stadium, and a former NFL pro-bowl quarterback making his Riders debut.

Now that Vince Young has been scratched due to injury, that puts all eyes on two youngsters.

With number one QB Kevin Glenn being saved for something more important, Brian Bennett and Brandon Bridge will split the majority of playing time.

Bennett especially will be scrutinized with every snap.

For the last two weeks fans have read training camp reports and seen how good Bennett has looked, outperforming all but Glenn as he remains on track for the backup job.

Now it's time for Bennett to climb up on the big stage and live up to the reviews.

"It's kind of what you ask for playing quarterback right," said Bennett after practice Thursday.

"You ask to get thrown in there and be the guy, so we're going to have an opportunity to go out there and play and give them a good time."

It won't be Bennett's CFL debut.

He played in two pre-season games with the Bombers a year ago and then spent the regular season on Winnipeg's practice roster.

Riders' head coach and general manager Chris Jones has been tracking Bennett's progress for years and finally got the opportunity to sign him once he became a free agent last winter.

"He's a good athlete, it's a matter of him learning our game. It's not just having the strongest arm or being the fastest guy. What we're looking for is efficiency," said Jones.

Quarterbacks coach Jarius Jackson has actually been working with Bennett to take a little off the ball because he has such a strong arm.

Saturday night, Jackson will want to see how his young quarterbacks manage the game.
 
"I think it comes down to seeing which guys can execute, seeing which guys the lights aren't too bright so to speak," said Jackson.

"As coaches we may have our opinions on certain things but when you get under the lights somebody that may not be a practice guy may be a gamer."

With Kevin Glenn expected to get the majority of the reps in the final pre-season game on June 16 in Vancouver, Bennett and Bridge will have to make the best of their opportunity this Saturday.

It's about the pecking order, says Jackson, and who will be the next man up after Glenn during the regular season.

Bennett has been tagged by some during training camp with the label "quarterback of the future."

But he's not exactly treating Saturday's game as potentially the first day of the rest of his life.

"I'm a guy that learned over the years that you kind of have to speak things into existence," he said. "I'm going to keep everything positive and do all the things that I want to do and try and avoid thinking about the wrong things.

"Just think about making the right reads and completing the football."

And Bennett, like most of the players, is not getting caught up in the hype of the new stadium.

"Obviously it's a great thing for the fans and some people who have been around for a while," said Bennett. "For myself I can't really get too caught up in it, being the new stadium, first time playing in it and all that. We just have to go out there and handle our business."

Bennett has looked great in the sun at training camp in Saskatoon. What matters come Saturday night is how he looks under the lights at the new Mosaic Stadium.