The 1978 Ottawa Rough Riders finished in first place in the Eastern Conference with a 12–4 record.
In 1978, Tony Gabriel was named the Outstanding Player in the CFL. He was the first Canadian to win that honour since Russ Jackson in 1969. No other Canadian has won the award since Gabriel. By 1978, Condredge Holloway's interception totals had dropped from 9, 6 and 5 in his first three years to just 2 on 214 attempts in 1978. Holloway's share of Ottawa's passing yards was between 25.7 – 32.8 percent over the first three years. In 1978, it soared to 49.7 percent. Holloway's higher profile and obvious improvement would be factors in Clements' May, 1979 trade to Saskatchewan.
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record A June 14 at Hamilton Tiger-Cats W 24–16 1–0 B June 21 vs. BC Lions L 20–21 1–1 C June 28 vs. Montreal Alouettes L 4–25 1–2 D July 4 at Winnipeg Blue Bombers L 27–28 1–3
Regular season
Standings + Eastern Football Conference Team GP W L T PF PA PtsOttawa Rough Riders 16 12 4 0 395 261 22 Montreal Alouettes 16 8 7 1 331 295 17 Hamilton Tiger-Cats 16 5 10 1 225 403 11 Toronto Argonauts 16 4 12 0 234 389 8
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record 1 July 11 vs. Montreal Alouettes W 17–10 1–0 2 July 26 at Toronto Argonauts L 16–20 1–1 3 Aug 1 at Edmonton Eskimos W 24–23 2–1 4 Aug 8 vs. Toronto Argonauts W 37–18 3–1 5 Aug 15 vs. Hamilton Tiger-Cats W 32–6 4–1 6 Aug 23 at Hamilton Tiger-Cats W 36–8 5–1 7 Aug 30 vs. Calgary Stampeders W 27–16 6–1 8 Sept 5 at Montreal Alouettes W 23–18 7–1 8 Sept 9 vs. Winnipeg Blue Bombers L 29–31 7–2 9 Bye 10 Sept 24 vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders W 53–18 8–2 11 Sept 30 at Toronto Argonauts W 24–3 9–2 12 Oct 9 at Hamilton Tiger-Cats L 5–25 9–3 13 Oct 15 vs. Montreal Alouettes W 13–10 10–3 14 Oct 21 at BC Lions L 17–20 10–4 15 Oct 28 vs. Hamilton Tiger-Cats W 34–9 11–4 16 Nov 4 at Montreal Alouettes W 34–9 12–4
Postseason Round Date Opponent Result Record East Final Nov 19 vs. Montreal Alouettes L 16–21 0–1
Player stats
Passing Player Attempts Completions Percentage Yards Touchdowns Interceptions Tom Clements239 15263.619901712Condredge Holloway214132 61.71970122
Receiving Player Games Played Receptions Yards Average Long Touchdowns Jeff Avery16 50 76715.3683Tony Gabriel16 67 107016.08011Art Green16 4058014.5476
Rushing Player Rushes Yards Average Touchdowns Long Art Green582384.1364
Awards and honours CFL's Most Outstanding Player Award – Tony Gabriel (TE) CFL's Most Outstanding Canadian Award – Tony Gabriel (TE) CFL's Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman Award – Jim Coode (OT) Roster 1978 Ottawa Rough Riders final rosterQuarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers P
DB
Tight ends
Offensive linemen G T T G T G C T
Defensive linemen DT DE DT DE DT DT Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams K P
Italics indicate International player References