CFL.ca Staff

MONTREAL -- The Saskatchewan Roughriders will have a new face under centre when they take to the field at Percival Molson Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

On Saturday, the Riders announced that quarterback Drew Willy will make his first career CFL start, as starting pivot Darian Durant will be unavailable for action due to a hip injury he sustained in last week's victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

“(Willy) has grown pretty good,’’ Head Coach Corey Chamblin told the Leader Post. “He had one bad play in practice (Friday). He was pretty pissed about that play. That was probably the first time that I saw that. He was like, ‘I was rolling besides that,’ so it was good that he’s getting confidence in what he’s doing.’’

The Riders enter Sunday's game hoping to extend their win streak to three, after they swept a home-and-home series with the Bombers in Weeks 10 and 11.

Willy is confident that he'll be able to keep the Riders competitive while Durant continues to recover.

“I’m prepared to play and I’ve had a lot of reps this week,’’ said the 25-year-old Willy. “I feel good about where we are as a team and with the game plan. I’m comfortable.’’

Last week, Willy replaced Durant in the first quarter after the veteran passer went down with an injury and put together a strong performance, completing 17 of his 23 passes for 188 yards and a touchdown.

His introduction to the rest of the league was punctuated by a last-minute, four-play, 43-yard drive that allowed kicker Sandro DeAngelis to kick the game-winning field goal.