Riders hold off Alouettes to win 1st Grey Cup since 2013
Go grab some watermelons. Lord Grey's mug is heading back to the prairies.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders fended off a second-half comeback from the Montreal Alouettes to win the 112th Grey Cup, 25-17. It's the Green Riders' fifth championship and first since 2013.
Montreal scored 10 unanswered points in the second half to make it a one-score game and had the ball inside the Saskatchewan five-yard line with three minutes to play. But short-yardage quarterback Shea Patterson fumbled the ball back into Roughrider hands on his sneak attempt into the end zone.
The Alouettes got one more chance with under a minute to go, but starting quarterback Davis Alexander appeared to re-injure his hamstring on a run. Alexander gutted out the last drive to afford Montreal one last chance, but his Hail Mary fell incomplete in the end zone as time expired to ensure Saskatchewan's win.
Grey Cup MVP Trevor Harris threw for 302 yards in the win, earning his first Grey Cup ring as a starter. Running back A.J. Ouellette, a champion with Toronto in 2022, rushed for 83 yards and one touchdown on 17 carries along with a 32-yard reception. Backup QB Tommy Stevens also rushed for a pair of majors.
Saskatchewan trailed 7-1 after one quarter, but turned on the gas from there by scoring 21 straight points, including 14 in the second quarter. Ouellette's reception proved critical, as it set up his rushing TD that capped a 11-play, 87-yard drive in the second. Tommy Nield had a huge catch inside the five on the first drive of the third quarter that led to a Stevens score.
But the Alouettes did not go quietly. After a Saskatchewan field goal, Alexander led an eight-play, 70-yard scoring drive that ended in a Stevie Scott III touchdown to cut into the Roughriders' lead.
The comeback continued on the following Montreal offensive drive. Alexander had the ball at Saskatchewan's 11-yard line with nine minutes to play after Mike Rose was flagged for roughing the passer, but had to settle for a field goal. The Alouettes wouldn't score again.
Scott had one of his best games of the season on the ground for the Als, rushing for 78 yards and one touchdown on 15 carries. But the Roughriders held Montreal's talented receiving corps in check, with none of the Als' wideouts catching more than 87 yards. Alexander was also picked off three times and was held to just 14 rushing yards, likely because of his hamstring.
The win completed a dominant 2025 season for the Roughriders, who had the CFL's best defense and went wire-to-wire atop the West Division. This is the first time since 1966 that Saskatchewan won the Grey Cup after posting the league's best record during the regular season.