The history of the River City Roughriders stems back to the fall of 2002 in which co-founders Paul Anderson and James Larson met with league officials from the Mid-America Football League a semi-pro football league based out of the twin cities about having a team in Winona MN and playing their home games at Maxwell Field on the campus of Winona State University for the start of the 2003 season. The MFL granted a team to Winona and a decision was made by the organizers( Paul Anderson,Bob Formanek,Paul Van Beek,James Larson) to name the team the River Cities Roughriders. The team was set up as an non-profit organization to promote football and to give players from Winona and LaCrosse an opportunity to continue their football career after high school or college in a very professional setting.  The Roughriders already had a base of players to choose from because Paul Anderson was an assistant coach with the Mississippi Rivermen a semi-pro team based in Winona a couple years earlier and some of those same players are still with the Roughriders team in 2012.

The Roughriders officially began operations in February of 2003 and the team won its first game which was against the Shopkee Warriors on July 20,2003. The Roughriders were a huge success the years in Winona from 2003 to 2007 in where the team won the organization of the year in the MFL twice and led the league in attendance all five football seasons. The games in Winona where noted for their great hard hitting football, family entertainment and the great fan participation. In 2008 the team moved to Lacrosse WI and a new group organizers took over the team and continued the great success of the team which was enjoyed in Winona. In the 2008 and 2009 seasons the team played at Freedom Park on the north side of Lacrosse and in 2010 the team began playing at the University of Wisconsin- Lacrosse. The Roughriders continues with the hard work of owner/coach Dan Bridges and will continue to be an organization set up to promote football and entertainment to the Lacosse,Winona and the surrounding communities.

The Roughriders have had stability with the coaching staff too with only having two head coaches(Bob Formanek and Paul Anderson) through their ten year history and an consistent assistant coaching staff also. The team also could not survive this long without the passion of their players, who are emotionally attached to the team and who have a lifetime of memories of playing football with the Roughriders. The former organizers and current Roughriders owner are very proud of what this team has accomplished over the years and look forward to the future for the same success.