Riders’ head coach Corey Mace wins 2025 CFL Coach of the Year award

Mace said there were many people who helped him reach this point in his coaching career.

“Ironically, there’s going to be a lot of people in that room that are a part of it as well. I can go all the way back to some coaches from my youth playing days that were instrumental for me to get to this point,” Mace said. “There are just so many people that are a part of that journey, so I’m grateful.”

Riders general manager Jeremy O’Day said what makes Mace special is his ability to relate to the players.

“Whether you’re a player from a farm in Alberta or from Los Angeles, he has the ability to communicate with all of our players,” O’Day said.

“Very motivational. He understands our players very well. He has been in a locker room before, but he has a good feel for what the players are going through. He cares about them. I think that’s the biggest thing. When you go into games, you feel like the players want to play for him as well as each other. That kind of makes all the difference.”

Mace also brings a lot of positive energy to the team, O’Day added.

“He’s fun to be around. He’s a fun guy and he’s fun to work with. He works hard, and it’s not surprising that he’s been successful,” he said.

In 2025, Mace guided the Riders to a 12-6 record and first place in the CFL for just the fifth time in the team’s history. He has a 21-14-1 regular-season record as a head coach since he took over the job in 2024.

The culture he has built in the locker room in his first seasons as the head coach has paid major dividends. This past season, the CFL club lead the league in fewest points allowed (346), fewest rushing yards allowed (76.0 per game), fewest yards per opposing rushing attempt (4.6), average time of possession (31:47) and average yards per kickoff return (24.9).

After winning the CFL West Final over the B.C. Lions, the Riders went on to win the Grey Cup 25-17 over the Alouettes, marking the fifth time championship win in the team’s history.

Mace has been the West Division nominee for the award in each of his first two seasons as a CFL head coach, losing out to Maas in last year’s voting.

The Riders also won the league’s inaugural Ted Goveia Football Operations Award. Named in honour of the long-time CFL executive who died last September, the award recognizes a CFL club’s football operations department for outstanding achievements in scouting, player identification, roster building and leadership.

The Riders’ football operations staff, led by O’Day, featured contributions from a lot of people as the team put together the roster for last season.

Other major contributors to the football operations department include assistant general manager and director of player personnel Kyle Carson, assistant general manager Paul Jones, director of football operations Jordan Greenly and assistant director of player personnel Larry Dean.

“I think it’s cool to be in the same building year-round, because you see it hands-on – the communication, the hours these guys put in, the amount of film they watch, the understanding of what it is for certain positions that coaches like or feel like can fit the system, on top of just saying, ‘Hey, we think you can turn this guy into somebody,’” Mace said.

“I’ve been in a few organizations throughout my coaching career, and it’s not a secret why I think the football ops are up for an award. They are excellent.”

The 2025 Roughrider squad led the league with nine All-CFL honourees: Jacob Brammer, Tevaughn Campbell, Logan Ferland, Jermarcus Hardrick, KeeSean Johnson, Micah Johnson, Rolan Milligan Jr., C.J. Reavis and Jameer Thurman.

The other nominees for the award were the Calgary Stampeders and Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

by Britton Gray, CKOM News Staff

Riders’ head coach Corey Mace wins 2025 CFL Coach of the Year award

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