‘I just wanted to be a champ’

When Jermarcus Hardrick left the Winnipeg Blue Bombers to sign with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in February of 2024, his decision went beyond the numbers on the offer sheet.

The then-33-year-old coveted right tackle — who had grown accustomed to long playoff runs and appearances in the Grey Cup, playing in four straight with the Blue and Gold from 2019-2023 — had bought into the words of newly minted head coach Corey Mace and the culture he was trying to build within a franchise that hadn’t sniffed the big game in more than a decade.

“They said they were looking to start something new,” Hardrick said. “They wanted to play a physical brand of ball, and they wanted to have fun. Sounded like everything I wanted to do.”

On Sunday, approaching two years since he agreed on a pact to become the foundational pillar of another franchise, Hardrick and Mace’s plans delivered.

A 25-17 triumph over the Montreal Alouettes at Princess Auto Stadium, in the city where he experienced an early career revival, ended the Riders’ 13-year Grey Cup drought and put Hardrick at the top of the three-down mountain for the third time in his career.

“I just wanted to be a champ. I don’t care if we did it in a parking lot,” the three-time CFL all-star said.

When it came time to hoist the Silver Mug, it wasn’t quarterback Trevor Harris — named the game’s Most Valuable Player — to get the trophy first, nor was it receiver Samuel Emilus, the Most Valuable Canadian: it was the 11-year pro out of Batesville, Mo., who let out a roar to both the fans who currently root for him, and those who used to, as confetti flew across the field.

“I don’t know. They just gave it to me. It was amazing,” Hardrick said. “We’re champs, baby — Saskatchewan Roughriders.”

These are the games the Roughriders signed Hardrick for — the 35-year-old led a sensational effort by Saskatchewan’s offensive line. The front-five paved the way for running back A.J. Ouellette, who racked up 83 yards on 17 carries, while keeping quarterback Trevor Harris’ jersey spotless.

Hardrick was named the league’s Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman for the first time in his career earlier in the week, and he looked every bit of that distinction.

“It’s been amazing, and it’s something I will never forget. My wife, my kids, they got a chance to witness this,” Hardrick said, embracing his wife as his three children stood close, waiting for dad. “My wife, I love her. I’m just grateful they got a chance to witness this, and we did it as a team.”

During that same free agency period early in 2024, Mace also looked to another former Bomber, this time on the defensive side of the ball.

He plucked veteran cornerback Marcus Sayles off the wire, adding a trusted veteran to a secondary that would ascend to one of the best units in three-down football.

Sayles, who, like Hardrick, won a Grey Cup with Winnipeg in 2019, played a major role in ending Saskatchewan’s drought. The Manhattan, N.Y., native logged a pair of tackles, came down with the first of three interceptions thrown by Alouettes quarterback Davis Alexander in the opening quarter and jumped on a crucial fumble at the goal line, lost by Montreal’s backup quarterback Shea Patterson.

Big performances in big games are nothing new to the now two-time champion. Sayles led the Bombers with six tackles on that blissful night in 2019.

“My wife and I were sitting at a restaurant, and coach Mace called me, and his energy— he just knew that we (were) about to win,” said Sayles, who went West to B.C. for three seasons after his time in Winnipeg.

“When he called me, he knew that if I was going to be a part of this group, we (were) gonna win something. And not even just him: Trev (Harris) hit me on Instagram, Yoshi (Hardrick) hit me on Instagram — right when I got cut, they said, ‘Yo, you come here, we’re definitely gonna win,’ and, man, I trusted the process, I believed, and this is the result of what we do.”

The third Roughrider who was integral to the Bombers’ run in 2019 was homegrown talent, running back Andrew Harris.

The 38-year-old Winnipegger, who joined the Riders as a running backs coach this season, is a Grey Cup champion for the first time as a coach.

“It feels different,” Harris said. “As you play, it’s almost self-fulfilling, where now you’re more proud of the guys that you’re around and you work with. You put so many hours in as a coach, so just trying to find ways to get the most out of them. It’s rewarding in a completely different way.”

Harris had a profound impact on Ouellette, who rumbled to a career-best 1,222 yards and eight rushing touchdowns after a down year in 2024. Like Harris in Winnipeg, Ouellette, in many ways, was the engine of the Roughriders’ offence in 2025.

“He meant everything,” Ouellette said of Harris. “The trust to come in here, after I had a terrible season, to pick me as the running back that he trusted for the year, and his ability to step in— I know he wanted to play so bad. He’s a competitor, and I appreciate the work that he put in. And that dude just wins, right?”

Indeed, Harris is five-for-five in the big game, winning with the B.C. Lions in 2011, and in 2019, 2021 and 2022 with the Bombers. Now he’s done it from the sidelines, while being on the other side of the Prairie rivalry.

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