Bring on the Bombers! Roughriders readying for to Western Final

11/05/2024 11:08 AM

Trevor Harris hopes to engineer several long drives at Princess Auto Stadium.

That will be the site of Saturday's CFL Western Final between the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers (5:30 p.m., TSN, CKRM).

"I think it's the matchup that everybody who follows the West wants to see — Winnipeg-Sask," Harris stated.

"They've been the big dogs for the last five years. I think it's only right that we go to Princess Auto Stadium and play there. They've earned it over the last number of years.

"So let's tee it up and let's go play ball."

The Roughriders are preparing to meet Winnipeg with a Grey Cup berth at stake for the third time in a span of five seasons. Those teams also collided in the 2019 and 2021 Western Finals.

Winnipeg capped both seasons with a Grey Cup victory. The Blue Bombers subsequently won two more Western titles before losing naibiters in the championship games of 2022 (when the Toronto Argonauts won it all) and 2023 (Montreal Alouettes).

This past regular season, Winnipeg posted an 11-7-0 record and placed first in the division for the fourth year in a row.

Saskatchewan (9-8-1) ascended to second after going 6-12-0 in 2022 and 2023 and missing the playoffs each time.

Then came Saturday's 28-19 victory over the visiting B.C. Lions in the Western Semi-Final. It was the Roughriders' fifth consecutive win with Harris as the starting quarterback.

"We've got guys that love football, that love to work, and are constantly pursuing being better," he said, "and that's the mark of a great team."

It is a team that employs Jeremy O'Day (vice-president of football operations and general manager), Kyle Carson (assistant GM), Corey Mace (head coach) and Marc Mueller (offensive co-ordinator), to name just a few of the key builders.

"J.O., Kyle, Mace, Mueller … they all did a tremendous job of constructing this team in terms of the type of football players we have, but also the type of men," Harris continued, "and that goes a long way.

"You guys (in the media) probably all looked at me sideways when we hadn't won our seventh game in a row, but I have an unflinching, unwavering belief in these guys and I stand by it.

"But make no mistake: The job is not finished."

Not until a Grey Cup is won.

"That's all I've wanted since I got in the CFL," offensive lineman Logan Ferland said. "I want that ring. I don't want just one ring. I want to continue this and get some repeats out of it.

"We're building something special. It is about the Grey Cup at the end of the day, but it's also about the family we're building and the legacy we're trying to build here."

The Western Final is another crucial step in the building process.

"The key is to continue to be who we are," defensive tackle Miles Brown said. "Continue to define the things that we see as important, continue to build on the things that we see as important, and continue to be dominant.

"We're going in there understanding that it's going to be a dogfight and that we're going to have to fight for a full 60 minutes, but we're going to fight."

And rest assured: The perennial West champions will not go down without a fight.

"I'm not ignorant to the fact of what they've been able to accomplish in the last four years," Mace said. "They've got outstanding staff, outstanding players, a veteran group that has tons of experience in the post-season.

"I feel like if you're going to go and make your run, these are the ones that you look forward to. I know the guys in the room are going to look forward to this one, so I can't wait."