As rookies began reporting to McMahon Stadium on May 25, a few familiar faces were interspersed with the new recruits.

Some might see it as a tough pill to swallow, having to report to rookie camp despite seeing game action in 2015.

Randy Richards, an offensive lineman acquired in a trade last season with Saskatchewan, is one of those players who played a few snaps in 2015 but not enough to lose his rookie status by league standards.

Offensive lineman Randy Richards at 2016 Stamps Rookie Camp (Photo by Molly Campbell)

But that doesn’t bother the big man from Missouri State. In fact, he’s grateful for the extra reps in preparation for main camp, which opens May 28.

“It’s great to get back out (on the field) and get things rolling,” says Richards, who was signed as a free agent by the Roughriders during 2015 training camp and later traded to Calgary. “You already know the calls and you already know the system, so everything is just kind of getting refreshed.”

Linebacker Cameron Ontko finds himself in a somewhat similar situation — brushing up on what he learned last year and focusing more on refinement rather than starting with a blank slate.

Last season, Ontko joined the Stamps practice roster late into the season and got on the field for special-teams duty. He didn’t get the benefit of a training camp to learn the nuances of the Canadian game and acclimatize to the pace.

Now as a “veteran rookie,” Onkto is excited to put into practice what he learned last year and get a full training camp under his belt.

“I’m excited to just have this camp now to learn from the beginning and just grow off that for training camp,” says Ontko. “I’m just excited because this camp (so far) I’ve had more reps than I have all year on defence. I feel like with more reps, I am feeling more comfortable with the defence.

“I still have a long ways to go, a very long ways to go, but if I can continue to get better each day, I’ll be alright.”

While Richards and Ontko are going through their first full Stamps camp, defensive back Dexter Janke is experiencing his second rookie camp with the Red and White after being taken in the fifth round (44th overall) in the 2015 Canadian draft.

Janke played his first game on July 24 against the Ottawa, recording four special teams tackles. The rest of the season he spent on the practice squad, and opportunity he says was valuable, especially in his preparation to compete for a full-time spot on the 2016 roster.

Defensive back Dexter Janke talks with guest coach Ahmaad Smith during 2016 Stamps Rookie Camp (Photo by Geoff Crane)

“I knew what to prepare for this time, coming into camp,” says Janke.

Last year, he says he was physically prepared to play but this time he comes in with improved mental preparation.

His experience last year taught him what it takes to make the active roster and stay on it. Now he can’t wait to put that knowledge into action.

“Coming with that mental approach now, you don’t take any plays off and you mentally prepare for every practice and every meeting,” says Janke. “Last year was definitely a learning experience and I took a lot of lessons from it. I took that into the off-season and really worked on it.

“Now I’m just looking to compete, compete with the vets that are coming in. Some of the guys I haven’t seen for a while. Just the competition will be good, to see where I measure up and how the off-season helped me.”

The 2016 season is definitely presenting a lot of opportunity for new players to make an impact.

A new head coach, defensive coordinator and the departures of players like Jon Cornish, Juwan Simpson, Keon Raymond and Eric Rogers, to name a few, have left openings on the roster up for grabs.

With the level of competition in training camp, a little experience may go a long way.