Silver mug facts for Sunday’s big game
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With the 112th Grey Cup kicking off Sunday at Princess Auto Stadium, the Free Press welcomes Canadian gridiron enthusiasts to Grey Cup week with a video documenting the history of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the storied game — as well as a brief tee-up of Sunday’s clash between the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Montreal Alouettes.
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
Welcome to Grey Cup week in beautiful Winnipeg, Manitoba.
On Sunday, the championship game will kick off for the 112th time.
The first Grey Cup was played in December 1909, with the trophy donated by Gov.-Gen. Earl Grey. Ever since, the trophy has been a steady constant in Canadiana, surviving two World Wars and two pandemics.
The first time a Winnipeg team played for the Grey Cup was 1925, when the Winnipeg Tammany Tigers faced off against the Ottawa Senators in the 13th Grey Cup.
The first Western team to win the silver mug was Winnipeg in 1935 in the 23rd Grey Cup, when the “greatest senior rugby team the west has ever known” clashed against the Hamilton Tigers.
The franchise’s current Blue Bombers name is actually a nickname that stuck, and is credited to Jim Coleman of the Winnipeg Tribune.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have made the most Grey Cup final appearances — making their way to the championship 29 times — and claiming the banner 12 times.
The Bombers’ most famous appearance was in the 50th Grey Cup in 1962 — belovedly dubbed the “Fog Bowl” — which holds the record for longest championship game ever played in CFL history. The action lasted two days as the foggy Toronto conditions made it impossible to finish the fourth quarter on Day One.
CANADIAN PRESS FILES / THE HAMILTON SPECTATOR The 1962 Grey Cup game, known as the Fog Bowl, had to be played over two days because of zero visibility. Winnipeg Blue Bombers Leo Lewis (29) runs the ball as Hamilton Tiger Cats John Barrow (61) and Tim Reid (24) go in for the tackle. That year, Winnipeg Blue Bombers defeated Hamilton Tiger-Cats 28-27.
Sunday’s matchup will see undefeated starter Davis Alexander, helming the Montreal Alouettes, clash against Trevor Harris and the Saskatchewan Roughriders as Harris guns for his third Grey Cup title — but first as a starter — against one of his former teams.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders have won the Cup four times, while the Montreal Alouettes have carved their name on the mug eight times.
So enjoy Grey Cup week, and see you at Princess Auto Stadium.
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