WINNIPEG — Leave it to the quarterback to know the count.
Trevor Harris put it all in perspective after piloting the Saskatchewan Roughriders to Sunday’s 25-17 Grey Cup victory over the Montreal Alouettes at Princess Auto Stadium.
After receiving MVP honours and celebrating on the field with teammates, family members and friends, Harris was asked about the significance of the win for the community-owned franchise and its fans.
“You can kind of feel the weight,” he said during a post-game media session. “Everybody keeps saying, ‘You’ve only won four. You’ve only won four.’ You see your fans online defending the team when people say, ‘You guys only have four Grey Cups.’
“Well, now we have five. And I’m sure you’ll say, ‘You only have five,’ but we won the most-recent one.”
And they won from the pole position, if you will.
Until 2025, the Roughriders had never finished first overall in the CFL and won a Grey Cup in the same season.
Only once before had Saskatchewan finished first in the West Division and captured a championship. That was way back in 1966.
The Roughriders’ next Grey Cup winner (the 1989 edition) was a third-place team. Saskatchewan subsequently won it all in 2007 and 2013 after finishing second in the West.
Then came 2025, when the Green and White clinched first in the West and improved its record to 12-4 on the same day (Oct. 10). Back-to-back losses ensued, but neither game had a bearing on the Roughriders’ playoff placing.
Factor in the Western Final and the Grey Cup and this year’s Roughriders were 14-4 when they did not rest any starters as a precaution.
“I’m just grateful to be a part of this team,” Harris said. “For us to start off 12-4 and go into the playoffs rested, that’s really what this is about — not really worrying about anything but winning on the third Sunday in November.
“And we did it.”
It is a subjective assessment, of course, but this could very well be considered the greatest Riders team ever.
Granted, there have been seasons in which Saskatchewan has boasted a better regular-season record. Not until Sunday, however, had the Riders followed up by running the table in the playoffs.
“Our fans deserve this,” President-CEO Craig Reynolds said on the field, with confetti flying in the background.
“To only have four Grey Cup championships and bring a fifth one home, I couldn’t be prouder of this group.”
The fans deserve it. Absolutely. They are the engine behind everything.
Reynolds deserves it, too. To have the honour of working for him is to understand and appreciate leadership at its finest and most selfless.
If times are tough, he steps to the front and takes the heat. In times of prosperity, he wants everyone but himself to receive the credit. But nobody gets any credit if an organization isn’t rock-solid at the top. That also includes the Board of Directors, led by first-year Chair Doug Hodson.
Two years ago, following a second successive 6-12 season, Reynolds endorsed Vice-President of Football Operations and General Manager Jeremy O’Day, who was awarded a contract extension.
One of O’Day’s first subsequent moves was to name Corey Mace the 48th head coach in franchise history.
After the ingenious hiring, O’Day and his football operations associates — Kyle Carson (Assistant GM), Paul Jones (Assistant GM) and Larry Dean (Player Personnel Co-ordinator) — made it a mission to provide Mace and his coaching colleagues with the best possible talent.
The past two seasons have proven that there is talent on top of talent. The Roughriders’ depth, personnel-wise, is nothing short of extraordinary.
A knee injury prevented KeeSean Johnson, the team’s leading receiver, from taking part in the playoffs or the Grey Cup.
Even without an All-CFL performer who caught 86 passes for 1,159 yards in 16 regular-season games, Harris was precise in November. He was 23-for-27 for 302 yards in the Grey Cup win.
And, yes, it was O’Day who signed Harris as a free agent on Valentine’s Day, 2023.
On a day like this, it sure looks like a sweetheart deal — one of many key transactions that helped to build a champion.
“I’m just so happy for everyone here, top to bottom,” kicker Brett Lauther said.
“This organization, man … Craig Reynolds, J.O, Kyle, Larry. You can go down the list. Gordie (Gilroy), Ty (Robinson) in the equipment room and all our staff in the medical room. The security at the building.
“With the guys in this room, I’ll never be part of a group like this again. I’m going to miss these guys but, Rider Nation, we’re back on top.”
