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Features August 30, 2025

It’s Rhymes’ Time For Milestone

Vernon Adams Jr. and Dominique Rhymes have co-existed in the Canadian Football League universe since 2017 when they were East Division rivals.

That year, Adams was in his second season as a quarterback with the Montreal Alouettes while rookie receiver Rhymes was breaking in with the Ottawa Redblacks.

Their careers progressed on separate tracks for the next half-decade – Adams spent part of a season with Saskatchewan and attended training camp with Hamilton before returning for a second stint with Montreal; Rhymes signed with the BC Lions in 2020 after three seasons with Ottawa – until a fateful day in August of 2022.

That’s when the Lions, with starting quarterback Nathan Rourke on the shelf with a serious foot injury, made a swap with Montreal for Adams’ services.

The veteran pivot won’t soon forget the way Rhymes welcomed him to Vancouver.

“You’ve got to understand,” said Adams.  “Nathan Rouke was having an MOP season before he got hurt. That’s what the standard is there. So I get there and it’s a completely different offence and I get thrown into the fire right away. So I don’t do as well. It was up and down a little bit and I could feel that the guys were missing Nathan. But Dom? He was the one guy in that whole building who was still talking to me and wanting to hang out. He told me, ‘Hey bro, you’re good.’ He never complained.

“Dom is the most unique receiver and human that I’ve been around in a locker room. I owe him so much for that. He’s just the ultimate team player and a great football player at that.”

The warm reception for Adams is part of a well-established pattern for Rhymes, who has been a popular teammate since the first day he set foot in a CFL locker room.

“He was very well-liked when he first got to Ottawa,” said former Stampeders defensive coordinator Rick Campbell, who was Rhymes’ first head coach in Ottawa and later was also his boss in BC. “We had a veteran receiving group – guys like Brad Sinopoli and Greg Ellingson – and they really liked Dom when he came in because he was a hard worker and he’s got a good personality.

“You could tell he was going to be a really good player in the future . . . and that obviously came true.

“I know the coaches and players that work with him sure like him a lot and appreciate him a lot. He was a big part of the locker room both in BC and Ottawa.”

And now in Calgary, too, as the veteran has been a mentor to the young members of the Stampeders receiving corps. Rhymes says he’s merely passing along the lessons he learned from Sinopoli and Ellingson.

“Those are the guys (responsible) for me still playing today because they taught me how to be a professional,” said Rhymes. “Those guys were legendary. I put in the hard work and I just watched them every day and I knew when my time would come, I would pass the torch along.”

Stamps rookies Damien Alford and Kaylon Horton as well as young vets such as Clark Barnes and Jalen Philpot are just a few of the beneficiaries of Rhymes’ wisdom.

“I’m a guy who wants to pay it forward,” said Rhymes. “Years down the line, when I finish playing football, I want to see those guys flourishing. Being top of the league, and knowing I was able to have a hand in that. I think that’s the greatest joy in life.”

In the meantime, though, Rhymes still has plenty of game left himself.

Heading into the Labour Day Classic, the Murray State alum – who turned 32 in June – leads the team with 30 catches and 543 yards and a fourth career 1,000-yard season is within reach. Earlier this year, Rhymes joined Reggie Begelton, Nic Demski, Eugene Lewis and DaVaris Daniels as the only active CFLers with at least 5,000 career receiving yards.

By the way, the quarterback who has contributed the most yardage to Rhymes’ total – 1,356, to be exact – currently wears No. 3 for the Stamps.

The Adams-Rhymes partnership in BC lasted a total of 18 games over two seasons before going on hiatus in 2024 when the receiver returned to Ottawa. The duo was back in business this past off-season when the Stampeders traded for Adams and signed Rhymes as a free agent.

If he returns to the lineup on Monday after missing a game with a thigh injury, Rhymes will join Adams in a different sort of club as he plays his 100th career regular-season game. The QB reached that milestone in 2024.

“It’s been fun,” said Rhymes. “It’s been a path full of trials and tribulations, but it’s been a path of perseverance. That’s been my whole career – fighting through adversity to be the player I am today. To be respected by so many around the league. It’s a milestone you can’t take for granted.

“One hundred games? That’s a lot of games playing a professional sport. You’ve just got to thank God that you’re able to get to this point and that you’re still able to play at a high level and still be productive. That’s just a testament to putting in the hard work from Game 1 to Game 100.”

Rhymes was in the midst of a career season with BC in 2022 when Rourke went down but the quick rapport he developed with Adams allowed him to continue on a path that resulted in career highs of 85 catches, 1,401 yards, 11 touchdowns and CFL all-star recognition.

His 2023 campaign was hampered by an injury that cost him eight games but after being released by the Lions and rejoining the Redblacks, Rhymes delivered the third 1,000-yard season of his career.

Ottawa was seemingly a good fit for Rhymes – he met his wife Mackenzie in the Nation’s Capital and makes his off-season home in the city – but the Redblacks cut the veteran receiver loose in February.

Three days later, Rhymes was a Stamp.

In Rhymes, the Red and White added a player with a stellar on-field resume and strong leadership skills. They gained a driven professional who routinely puts in extra work on the JUGS passing machine after practice has concluded.

They also picked up a guy with mischief in his heart and a perpetual twinkle in his eye.

At the introductory off-season press conference for Stampeders newcomers, Rhymes earnestly praised Adams’ generosity and leadership by telling the story of the time in BC the quarterback arranged a round of Booster Juices for the team. But he couldn’t resist a playful jab at Adams for not getting Rhymes’ favourite flavour.

When TSN personnel entered the Stamps locker room before a recent game to capture images of Adams at his locker, Rhymes performed dance moves off camera in a futile attempt to elicit a reaction from his quarterback.

And when members of the media converged on Stamps receiver Tevin Jones following his two-touchdown effort in an Aug. 9 victory over the Blue Bombers, guess who joined the scrum (while using a cookie as a microphone)?

“There’s no question about his work ethic,” said Campbell, “but he’s also going to make it fun. His energy will bring people along with him because you can tell he’s fully into it.”

“You need those guys who know when it’s time to lock in,” said Adams. “But you’ve got to have fun, too. We want it to be a kid’s game. When we were kids, we had so much fun playing this game and smiling and laughing. That’s when you win – when you’re having fun.”

Clearly, there’s Rhymes and reason to Dominique’s occasional zaniness.

“If I’m serious,” he explained, “I get bored with what I’m doing. If I’m playing around, it helps keep me relaxed, focused and locked in on what I have to do.

“If everybody’s smiling, that’s a sign of a good team. When everyone loves playing football, it’s easy to come into work every day.”

It’s an approach that has served him well through 99 regular-season games and counting.

In addition to finding football happiness north of the border, the wheels are in motion for Rhymes to become a Canadian citizen.

It’s a turn of events the kid from Florida who showed up at Ottawa’s training camp eight years ago wouldn’t have believed.

“I never imagined I would be living in Canada full time,” he admitted. “This is far from what I thought the future would hold for me. But it’s been the best thing. Me being up here has helped me become the best version of myself. The best man God intended me to be. A person who can help inspire others.

“I have so many friends up here and I’ve been able to do so much – like with (humanitarian organization) World Vision and going to Africa and trying to help change people’s lives. Inspiring youth in the community and being a mentor. This stuff is priceless. Money couldn’t buy the sense of happiness I have playing in the CFL.”

“He’s been productive every team he’s been on,” said Adams. “He’s not a ‘me’ guy. He does his job. He runs his routes hard. He blocks for the running backs. He’s a big-play guy and I trust him with everything I’ve got. I love the dude and I’m very happy for his success.”

Despite a long list of career achievements, the 2022 all-star nod remains the only such honour of Rhymes’ career. He shrugs when asked if he believes he’s been overlooked.

“You want the accolades,” said Rhymes, “but at the end of the day, what people are going to remember most is how you affected the people in the locker room and the man you were. I want them to say ‘Dom was a great guy’ and not just ‘Dom was a great football player.’ ”

And of course, “Dom was a champion” would be nice, too.

“The only thing I’m missing,” said Rhymes, “is a Grey Cup ring. And I’m on the right path to that.”