Somewhere in an alternate universe, Trevor Harris is preparing for his 112th Gray Cup in a Montreal Alouettes uniform.
The 39-year-old quarterback has embraced the green and white of the Saskatchewan Roughriders since signing with the organization, but that was never his plan. Harris won the starting guard position in Montreal in 2022 and had every intention of staying there for many yearsbefore fate intervened.
“It killed me. It was very, very hard because I didn't really want to go anywhere,” Harris recalled this week. “The writing was on the wall that the organization had no owner. We didn't know what was going on, and I have a family to take care of.”
Alouettes majority owner Sid Spiegel passed away before the 2021 season without ever seeing his team play a game. His estate controlled the team for two years before he decided to pull the plug on the team, ending all funding in the 2023 offseason.
While the CFL eventually took over the franchise on the eve of free agency, general manager Danny Maccioscia failed to offer players any money in the weeks leading up to it. This included his franchise reversal.
“There were a lot of unknowns. Full transparency, there was a point where I didn't even know if there would be a franchise in Montreal with everything that happened,” Macciosia explained, noting that other star players like Eugene Lewis and Adarius Pickett left as a result.
“We went back and forth and I talked to (Harris') agent. Deep down I couldn't offer him anything, and even if I did, I knew I couldn't sign up for it. At some point, Trevor has to do what's best for Trevor and his family.”
The Saskatchewan Roughriders offered Harris a rather attractive life raft, but he left a piece of himself on the sinking ship.
The CFL veteran arrived in Montreal in mid-2021. via trade with Edmonton Elks after a tumultuous final season with the team. He says the experience included rampant organizational chaos, a neck injury, and the unceremonious benchexperienced it personally, professionally and spiritually. His love for the game was damaged, but the Alouettes were his salvation.
“For Danny Macciosia to trade for me and for (former head coach) Khari Jones to become the way he was when I was there, it brought the joy back into the game. I was terrible at football in 2021 before I got to Montreal and when I got there I loved playing football again,” Harris said.
“They were the only team that was even willing to bring me back and offer me any kind of contract. When I went back there, they knew who I was, and then Danny trusted me to hand me the keys to the franchise in terms of being the quarterback there. That's something I'll never forget.”
Harris started the final three games of the 2021 season for Montreal in place of the injured Vernon Adams Jr., as well as the team's playoff game. After signing a one-year extension, he took over the starting job from VA early the following season, throwing for 4,157 yards, 20 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. The Waldo, Ohio native led the Alouettes to a playoff victory and was one touchdown shy of leading them to the Gray Cup.
With the arrival of Jason Maas as head coach this offseason, all signs pointed to the start of something special. The defender and coach communicated regularly in anticipation of a contract extension, which will never happen for reasons beyond the control of both of them.
“I always had the utmost respect for Trevor and completely understood where he was coming from, because uncertainty in this profession is never good,” Maas recalled. “When you can be given some certainty in your life, for your family, I understand that. I wish we had more time to allow him to make a different decision.”
“Once the decision is made, and he has decided to move on, there is nothing more to say except: 'Good luck.' After this, your relationship will go differently.”
Harris struggled with this decision in large part because of the powerful relationships he had built in such a short period.
“It was really hard because of how much love and admiration and respect I have for not only Danny Maciosia but Jason Maas. I felt like that's where my heart was and I owe a lot to Montreal,” he said.
“Machiochia will always have a big place in my heart. I love the man. He's amazing and I'm very grateful to him because the city of Montreal is where I brought back the joy of playing football.”
Harris' departure proved to be a turning point for both sides. Left without any other options in the offseason QB carousel, the Alouettes brought in former Saskatchewan starter Cody Fajardo. New owner Pierre-Carl Péladeau restored stability to the organization, and Maas ushered in an on-field renaissance, leading the team to a Gray Cup victory in his first season at the helm. Fajardo was named that game's MVP after giving the team his signature pregame speech.
Things didn't go so well for the man who left, as the Riders missed the playoffs after Harris suffered a season-ending tibial plateau fracture. Instead of wallowing in bitterness, he was delighted with his former teammates.
“You're excited about these guys; they're a great group. It's been fun watching them,” he said. “We knew we were close in '21 and '22, and we were within striking distance against Toronto, which we lost in the Eastern final that year. It was just a matter of getting over the hump. I feel like they did a great job.”
Two years later, Harris is ready to find his own stardom. The arrival of head coach Corey Mays and offensive coordinator Mark Mueller in Saskatchewan after that brutal 2023 season opened a new chapter in the Riders' history, with their solid prop playing some of the best football of his 14-year CFL career.
I'm waiting for him on Sunday in a game that could make or break his legacy these are the same Alouettes, this time led by hot young QB in Davis Alexanderwhom he coached as a 2022 rookie. This is the type of cosmic alignment that a devout man like Harris can only explain through divine intervention.
“It's a real God moment because I'm very happy with where I am and I know they're very happy with who they have at the helm there,” he said. “We never know exactly what’s going on in the moment, but God knows.”
“The way God intended these moments, I'm very grateful to come to Saskatchewan and be a defenseman here. I know it worked out well for them. They've won a Gray Cup since then and they have a guy in their future who will probably be playing long after me.”
Maciosia agrees on this point. He has nothing but praise for Harris as a player and person, but believes everyone ended up where they were meant to be.
“That situation led to where we are now. And look, it worked for him and in the end it worked for us,” he said. “I’ll chalk it up as a positive experience and it’s always nice to see it now when we run into each other.”
Despite his sentimentality about what Maas, Macciosia and Montreal meant to him, Harris' commitment will not be questioned once the match begins. He is a Rider through and through – nothing else matters.
“I have one goal and I want my teammates to lift this Cup over their heads,” he stressed. “I want us to score more points than the other team, no matter who it is.”
The Saskatchewan Roughriders (13-6) and Montreal Alouettes (12-8) will meet in the 112th Gray Cup at Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg on Sunday, November 16, with kickoff scheduled for 6:00 pm EST.
The weather forecast for Winnipeg calls for a high of two degrees, sun and clouds. The game will be broadcast on TSN, CTV and RDS in Canada, CBS Sports Network in the US and CFL+ worldwide.
