The Saskatchewan Roughriders staged a dramatic comeback to defeat the BC Lions 24-21 in the Western Final, securing their spot in the Grey Cup. Trevor Harris activated his final form as he passed for 124 yards and a game-winning touchdown in the final 6 minutes. After reviewing the film, here are the standout performers from both sides, followed by some thoughts on the game.
Jonathan of the Game: QB Trevor Harris
Harris was surgical in the win over the Lions as he completed 26 of his 38 passes for 305 yards and 2 touchdowns. His 28-yard pass to Kian Schaffer-Baker in the second quarter was elite as he dropped it into a tight window with 4 defenders around the receiver.
Harris made some heroic plays, such as a 10-yard run to set up 1st and 10 on BC’s 9-yard line in the third quarter. He showed good pocket presence, navigating the pocket when there was pressure and stepping into a hit to make a 31-yard pass to Tommy Nield in the 4th quarter.
In the final 6 minutes, he put together a 63-yard drive that ended in a field goal and then a 76-yard drive that ended in a touchdown.
He was the only passer to surpass 300 yards, the only one with more than 1 touchdown, and the only one without an interception or turnover-worthy throw.
Stand Out Performances Among Roughriders
RB A.J. Ouellette
Ouellette rushed 17 times for 113 yards and had 2 missed tackles forced along the way. He also caught 2 passes for 13 yards.
WR Samuel Emilus
Emilus caught 9 of his 10 targets for 100 yards and had 5 missed tackles forced.
WR Tommy Nield
Nield caught all 3 of his targets for 29 yards and a 3-yard game-winning touchdown, surviving contact with cornerback Garry Peters and the ground.
LT Payton Collins
Collins only allowed 2 pressures by my count, 1 of which was a secondary source of pressure on the play.
ED Habakkuk Baldonado
Baldonado had the most successful day in pass rushing by my count, as he had a sack and 8 additional players where he generated pressure past a blocker, 1 of which was a secondary source of pressure on the play. He had 4 tackles and was in on 2 shared run stops.
ED Malik Carney
Carney had 3 tackles, including a solo run stop, 2 shared run stops. He had 4 pressures past a blocker in the pass rush, 3 of which were a secondary source of pressure.
LB Jameer Thurman
Thurman had 7 tackles, including a solo run stop, and had 2 shared run stops. In coverage, 6 targets came his way, resulting in 3 catches for 37 yards.
CB Marcus Sayles
Sayles had a lockdown day as 5 targets came his way, resulting in 2 completions for 22 yards, a pass breakup, and an interception. He had 2 tackles over the game.
HB Rolan Milligan
Milligan had 5 tackles, including a solo stop against a passing play. He had 5 targets come his way for 47 yards, including a 19-yard touchdown on a play with the coverage was not being that the same page, which was not his fault alone, if at all.
Stand Out Performances Among Lions
QB Nathan Rourke
Rourke completed 20 of his 30 passes for 290 yards and a touchdown with 1 interception. His numbers would have been better if not for 4 drops in the game, including one on the interception. It was not a perfect game, as he did have a turnover-worthy throw. He did have 1 turnover-worthy throw, which resulted in an incompletion early in the game.
Rourke was highly impressive, making plays under pressure, such as on a 15-yard play to Butler when he flipped the ball to his back as he actively withstood being tackled as long as possible.
RB James Butler
Butler had over 100 yards from scrimmage despite playing through an ankle injury. He rushed 12 times for 58 yards with a missed tackle forced and caught 5 passes for 43 yards with an additional missed tackle forced.
WR Keon Hatcher
Hatcher caught 4 of his 8 targets for 75 yards and had a missed tackle forced, however, he did have a drop on a throw that was placed a bit behind him that resulted in an interception in the red zone.
LT Jarrell Broxton
By my count, Broxton only allowed 1 pressure in the game.
DT Jonah Tavai
Tavai was credited with 1 tackle on the stats sheet and was in on an additional 2 shared run stops. He pressured at a rate that is rare for interior defenders, generating pressure on 7 plays, 1 of which was a secondary source of pressure.
DE Levi Bell
Bell had a tackle plus 2 shared run stops. He generated pressure on 8 total plays, 3 of which were a secondary source of pressure on the play.
LB Micah Awe
Awe had 6 tackles, including 2 shared run stops and a solo stop against the pass. He had 1 target come his way, which he limited to 3 yards.
LB Josh Woods
Woods had 6 tackles officially, 3 shared run stops, and a solo pass stop. He had 5 targets come his way, which resulted in 4 catches for 68 yards, inflated by a 28-yard and 25-yard pass from Trevor Harris, and had a pass breakup.
S Jackson Findlay
Findlay had a team leading 7 tackles. He had 2 targets come his way without a completion. He had 1 pass breakup officially, but may have also gotten a piece of the ball on the first target as well.
RB Robert Carter
Carter was busy in coverage as 6 targets came his way for 5 completions for 45 yards. All but one were under 10 yards. He had 4 tackles, including 3 solo stops against the pass.
HB Ronald Kent Jr.
Kent Jr. had 5 targets come his way, resulting in 2 catches for 42 yards. He had only 1 pass allowed for 19 yards until a 23-yard pass came his way in the final minute in a zone coverage scheme that’s debatable on who is responsible for the result of the play.
A Few Thoughts on the Game
Uncalled Facemask/Unnecessary Roughness
With 3 and a half minutes left, Trevor Harris scrambled away from pressure on an awkward 4-yard rush to BC’s 10-yard line. Harris was clearly tackled by Levi Bell and Josh Woods before Mathieu Betts came in and made contact on Harris, who was on the ground, to his head, landing with his right hand. Betts' momentum was carrying him past the tackled quarterback, and it seemed to me like he cut back towards Harris.
Regardless of intent, it was a sizable contact to the facemask that halfway removed Harris’ helmet, a play that must be a penalty. We cannot have quarterbacks getting free shots to the head in a Division Final.
Coffee’s For Closers
When the Roughriders chose to kick a field goal from the 5-yard line with 2:44 left in the 4th, I thought that’s it, the game is over. BC is going to win. However, that is where the nightmare began for BC. They went 3 and out and punted it away, using up only 38 seconds. Remarkably, BC’s defense got them the ball right back; however, BC went 3-and-out again, punting it away after using up only 37 seconds.
Credit to Saskatchewan for being clutch in the final minutes of the game on both sides of the ball. They prevented BC from closing out the game and stole all the coffee.
Kicking a Field Goal Made No Sense Even After it Worked Out in the End
Saskatchewan choosing to kick a field goal from the 5-yard line on a 3rd and 5 with 164 seconds left in the game was a decision I questioned as foolish. Even after it worked out for Saskatchewan, I still don’t agree with it for the simple reason that you’re more likely to score a touchdown on a 3rd and goal from the 5, rather than on a drive starting first and ten from deep in your own territory.
Saskatchewan later scored a touchdown on first and goal from the 3-yard line with 11 seconds left on the clock, capping off a 76-yard drive that started with 1:03 left on the clock. Saskatchewan needed to make a defensive stop twice against an offense that has been really hot as of late, then they needed a 76-yard drive with just over a minute left. Those are scenarios I would want to avoid as a coach by trying to score from the 3rd and goal at the 5 situation. Regardless of how they handled that scenario, they needed a touchdown at some point.
It worked out for the Riders, so you cannot really question it, but I still do.
BC’s Late Game Prevent Defense Prevented Themselves From Going to Winnipeg
Over the first 54 minutes of the game, Trevor Harris completed 17 of his 24 passes for 181 yards and a touchdown. In the final 6 minutes, he completed 9 of 14 passes for 124 yards and a touchdown.
Credit to Trevor Harris for his clutch comeback performance. There was, however, a noticeable shift in defensive scheme in that stretch; BC’s defensive backs were playing very deep, making the coverage zones stretch far more than necessary. It was an easier defense to read with DBs often dropping back far before the snap. The Lions went prevent defense to close out the game, and it prevented them from going to the Grey Cup.