Riders roll to Grey Cup

The home of the Blue and Gold was littered with green and white confetti on Sunday.

Sorry Bomberland, sometimes nightmares do become reality.

After watching Winnipeg represent the West in five straight title games, the Saskatchewan Roughriders responded by walking into their Prairie rival’s backyard and beating the Montreal Alouettes 25-17 to capture the 112th Grey Cup.

“It feels even better to do it here,” said Riders defensive tackle Micah Johnson.

“I know they’re mad.”

It’s the first time the Riders have won the top prize in Canadian football since 2013 and just their fifth championship in franchise history.

And it wouldn’t have happened without a career-defining post-season run by their 39-year-old quarterback Trevor Harris. Since breaking into the league in 2012, Harris has experienced it all. He’s been demoted to backup, suffered serious injuries, and been cast aside by several organizations. But his fifth team, the Riders, is where it all came together for the Ohio product.

Harris, who had never won a CFL crown as a starter, went 23-for-27 with 302 yards and zero turnovers to be named the night’s Most Valuable Player.

“When I first took this job, Trevor was the first person I called and talked to. I told him that we were gonna do this, and I wanted to do it for him, and tonight’s the night, man,” said Riders head coach Corey Mace.

“I don’t want to make this moment about me. This is about this team. This is awesome, man. I’m really grateful.”

“He’s a Grey Cup champion as a starting quarterback, you can’t say s—- about that no more. He’s a Grey Cup MVP, you can’t say s—- about that. You just put hall of fame next to his name.”

Harris led Ottawa to the 2018 Grey Cup and threw three interceptions in a loss to Calgary.

On Sunday against the Als, he played clean football and helped his side take a commanding 25-7 lead late in the third.

“I’m just so happy that we get to bring this trophy back,” said Harris.

“I don’t want to make this moment about me. This is about this team. This is awesome, man. I’m really grateful.”

Riderville’s 2025 season – which saw them finish first in the West at 12-6 — wouldn’t have had a storybook ending if it wasn’t for their defence.

They led 25-17 with less than seven minutes to go when their embattled kicker Brett Lauther, a 35-year-old from Nova Scotia who’s been a Rider since 2018, missed a 39-yard field goal wide right.

Lauther has made the entire province of Saskatchewan hold their collective breath all season as his 72.2 per cent conversion rate was the lowest in the three-down loop.

Montreal marched 90 yards down the field and were a yard away from the end zone when short-yardage quarterback Shea Patterson lost the ball on a sneak and defensive back Marcus Sayles recovered.

Sayles also had an interception on Montreal’s opening drive.

“We needed it. Obviously, missing that one, I could’ve put us up a couple scores,” said Lauther.

“And then that turnover, it’s gonna live in Rider history forever. Defence has been unreal all year. So, it was never in doubt. We just trust. It’s not over until it’s over.”

Als quarterback Davis Alexander will be one of the faces of the CFL for years to come, but on this occasion, it wasn’t meant to be.

The chatter all week was his left hamstring and whether or not he’d look like the guy who was riding a perfect 13-0 career record heading into championship Sunday.

The 27-year-old downplayed the significance of his injury, but it was evident that he was far from 100 per cent. Alexander completed 22-of-34 attempts for 284 yards, zero touchdowns, and three picks — making it the first time this season he’s had two or more INTs in a game.

“Man, I feel like we’re the best defence in the world and we showed it today,” said Riders defensive back C.J. Reavis.

“He’s a quarterback, he’s cocky, but he’s a great player. I’m glad we got the dub today, that’s all I care about.”

“They wanted some noise to be made and that’s what we did.”

Riders receiver Samuel Emilus, a Montreal native, was named the Most Valuable Canadian with 10 catches for 108 yards. Running back A.J. Ouellette was brilliant on the ground with 17 carries for 83 yards and a touchdown, plus one catch for 32 yards.

“We love each other, man. For real,” said Mace.

“This is exactly how it was supposed to end.”

It’s an incredible feat how quickly Mace turned the Riders around. They were an undisciplined mess in 2023 under Craig Dickenson and went 6-12.

In two short years, Mace revamped the culture and brought Saskatchewan back into the winner’s circle in front of a sold-out crowd at Princess Auto Stadium that was predominantly filled with Bomber fans cheering for Montreal.

“Corey Mace loves the province, so he was gonna do whatever it took to get them what they needed,” said Riders defensive back Antoine Brooks Jr.

“They wanted some noise to be made and that’s what we did.”

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