Trevor Harris had to take a moment to kneel down on the field and soak it all in.
In his 13th season in the CFL, the 39-year-old finally had a Grey Cup title as a starting quarterback.
Harris led the Saskatchewan Roughriders to their fifth championship and their first since 2013 with a 25-17 win over the Montreal Alouettes in Winnipeg Sunday. An organization that has longed for a title saw the green and white confetti fall to the turf in enemy territory.
It was a battle until the end, and Saskatchewan has been through many of them throughout the season, but the Roughriders were the best team in the CFL from start to finish this year.
So many times, the Roughriders have seen their title aspirations end in heartbreak, but now they can boast that they are the Grey Cup champions.
The Roughriders played winning football again on Sunday with multiple crucial plays. Head coach Corey Mace, a champion in his second year, made a call that ended up being a timely one for his team when he challenged for pass interference in the first quarter. What was going to be a turnover on downs was flipped to a touchdown for the Roughriders, a play that kick-started a big run for Saskatchewan.
However, as the Alouettes made a push and got to within a score, the Roughriders needed their MVP to come through.
Harris had the best completion percentage in Grey Cup history at 85.2 per cent in what can only be called a trademark performance by the veteran quarterback.
Not only was Harris accurate with the football, but he also made sure it was coming out of his hands quickly and to his playmakers. The strategy worked as Harris was not sacked and did not have a turnover.
“We had some big second-down conversions,” Harris told reporters after the game. “I didn’t throw any touchdowns but we had some big-time second down conversions through the air.
“We ran the ball well, we were able to stay on the field and that last drive we were able to get some first downs and bleed some clock to really put the pressure on them.”
Saskatchewan also had some breaks go their way, including a drop by defensive back Kabion Ento, who looked like he was going to take an errant pass by Harris all the way back for a pick-six, but he couldn’t secure the ball. And a fumble by Shea Patterson at the Roughriders’ three-yard line took away Montreal’s best chance to tie the game in the dying moments.
As has been the case all season, Harris was not the only player on the Roughriders to make a big impact on the game. So let’s take a look at some of the big performances in these takeaways from the 112th Grey Cup.
Alexander does his best
No storyline heading into the Grey Cup was brought up more than the injury concerns for Alouettes quarterback Davis Alexander, given the unknown status of his hamstring.
Give credit where it’s due, Alexander battled and was clearly not 100 per cent. The pain got to a point where he couldn’t get the power he needed on deep throws, and he only broke out of the pocket for a pair of runs, one of which led to him reaching back for his hamstring.
However, the tone was set early in this game when Alexander had a deep ball for Tyson Philpot intercepted by Marcus Sayles. It was one of three interceptions thrown by the Alouettes quarterback as he tried to do what he could to put his team in the best position to win the game.
After the game, Alexander made it known that he didn’t have the same zip on his throws and was a little out of rhythm.
“When you get outplayed in the quarterback position, you put your team at a deficit right away. Our guys battled out there. Our guys battled for me. They kept me in it,” Alexander told reporters after the game. “They gave us a chance. Yeah. Ultimately, I have to be better for this organization in the biggest moment of my life and the biggest game of my life.”
He still pushed the ball down the field and made the defence respect the fact that he wasn’t going to settle for just short throws. But his final line of 284 passing yards with zero touchdowns and three picks wasn’t good enough.
Patterson’s game-changing fumble
There will be a lot of wondering what could have been for a lot of plays made and not made in this game.
However, a defining moment had to be the fumble by Shea Patterson with Montreal pushing to try and tie the game late in the fourth quarter. Instead, on the third-yard line, the ball was knocked out of Patterson’s hands and recovered by the Roughriders. It ended what could have been an incredible comeback for the Alouettes, who trailed 25-7 late in the third quarter before cutting the lead down to a single score.
“I can’t even describe the feeling,” Patterson told 3DownNation, speaking softly. “I had a chance to convert a first down and get us in position to score and tie the game up. I don’t know. The guy made a good play, hit me from the side. I’ve gotta hang onto the ball.”
Some will be wondering whether the Alouettes should have done something differently in that situation. While quarterback sneaks are the standard in short-yardage situations, teams sometimes rely too much on those plays.
At the end of the day, Patterson also scored on a quarterback sneak earlier in the game and had the trust of the coaching staff to do it again.
What comes next for Harris?
No one would fault Harris if he decided he still has a lot left in the tank and delayed the questions about retiring for at least another season.
It should come as no surprise that he brushed aside those talks, but at some point, he will have to make a decision.
“I think that’s for you guys to talk about,” said Harris. “I’m just grateful for my teammates. I’m so thankful for my teammates.”
Harris doesn’t have anything left to prove at this point, as he can say he’s Grey Cup champion as a starter. His previous rings came in games he didn’t start.
Given the success they had, the Roughriders certainly won’t be pushing for Harris to hang up his cleats just yet, but at some point, they will need to know his plans.
Ricky Ray, a former teammate of Harris, faced a similar situation late in his career. Unfortunately, after winning a Grey Cup in 2017, Ray would return for another season only to suffer a season-ending injury and never play again.
This season, Harris was able to stay healthy, which was an issue in the prior two seasons. Considering how this season went in Saskatchewan, there could be some convincing done for Harris to return alongside as much of the championship core as possible.
If not, it will be interesting to see what comes next for a quarterback who has now cemented his legacy with a Grey Cup as a starter.
