Grey Cup Week 2025 is underway!
And one of the staples of any Grey Cup Week is the CFL Awards, which are set for Thursday evening at Winnipeg’s Club Regent Event Centre.
To help get us set for this year’s show, we’ve got the biggest and most compelling reason each finalist should take home some hardware later this week.
112th GREY CUP
» The Weekly Say: Picks for the 2025 CFL Awards
» Watch the CFL Awards live on CFL+ on Thursday
» KPMG Playoff Probability: Who will win the 112th Grey Cup?
» 3 storylines that could define the 112th Grey Cup
MOST OUTSTANDING PLAYER
Bo Levi Mitchell | Hamilton Tiger-Cats: Bo Levi Mitchell’s biggest trump card is the fact that he was wire-to-wire the league’s best quarterback. Consistent from start to finish, starting 18 games along the way, Mitchell led the league with 5,296 passing yards, 36 touchdown passes, 428 completions, and 626 attempts.
Nathan Rourke | BC Lions: With an incredible run upon returning from injury in Week 5, Nathan Rourke’s biggest selling point is his sparkling 112.2 quarterback rating. It speaks to just how dynamic Rourke was, as he racked up 31 passing touchdowns and 10 more on the ground. And just to drive the point home further, Rourke finished the season as the top-ranked quarterback at Pro Football Focus.
MOST OUTSTANDING DEFENSIVE PLAYER
This is Howsare’s house 😤
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— CFL (@CFL) November 8, 2025
Julian Howsare | Hamilton Tiger-Cats: Speaking of PFF, despite not leading the league in sacks (he finished second with 13), Julian Howsare was their highest-ranked defensive player at the end of the regular season. It’s an illustration of how disruptive Howsare was all season, which is evidenced by his stat line: 13 sacks, one interception, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and one defensive touchdown.
Mathieu Betts | BC Lions: This is easy on the Mathieu Betts front. For the second time in three years, BC’s devastating defensive end led the league in sacks, finishing the campaign with 15. There are a few players in this league that opposing offensive coordinators will specifically game plan for, and Betts is undoubtedly one of them.
MOST OUTSTANDING CANADIAN
Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund | Montreal Alouettes: In a year full of outstanding Canadian defensive performances, Dartmouth’s Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund was the best…and that’s his biggest selling point for this season’s MOC. In his second year with Montreal, Adeyemi-Berglund set a new career high with 11 sacks and was a factor every snap off the edge.
Nathan Rourke | BC Lions: Rourke’s case is fairly simple here. Typically, when you’re up for MOP, then the case for this award is that much stronger. The most recent example is Winnipeg tailback Brady Oliveira, who was a finalist for both awards the last two seasons and took home Most Outstanding Canadian both times.
MOST OUTSTANDING OFFENSIVE LINEMAN
Jermarcus Hardrick anchors a Saskatchewan line that did not surrender a sack to the BC Lions in the Western Final (Arthur Ward/CFL.ca)
Brandon Revenberg | Hamilton Tiger-Cats: Brandon Revenberg’s primary calling card is also his biggest strength in this conversation, and that’s his remarkable consistency. While he’s never taken home the ultimate prize, this is Revenberg’s fourth time as the East Division finalist for this award. And that consistency was on display all season, as Revenberg was a steady force at guard on a line that finished fourth with just 27 sacks allowed.
Jermarcus Hardrick | Saskatchewan Roughriders: Now in his 11th CFL season, Jermarcus Hardrick was the driving force on one of the league’s top offensive lines. From his usual perch at right tackle, Hardrick led a line that helped the Riders average 103.8 rushing yards per game and tied for second with only 26 sacks allowed. And just for supporting evidence, Hardrick was PFF’s top-ranked tackle by a significant margin.
MOST OUTSTANDING SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER
Lirim Hajrullahu | Toronto Argonauts: All Lirim Hajrullahu does is kick field goals at a high rate and thus was one of the league’s most accurate kickers once again. That’s why he might take this one home on Thursday. Hajrullahu finished second with 57 successful field goals, while his 89.1 per cent accuracy rate had him at fourth overall.
Trey Vaval | Winnipeg Blue Bombers: What looks best on Trey Vaval in this conversation is his ability to excel in returning both punts and kicks. Vaval led the league with 957 punt return yards, while his 918 yards returning kicks placed him fifth. When you put it all together, Vaval was second to Edmonton’s Javon Leake with 1,845 total return yards and did it with one fewer appearance. And when you factor in a return score on a missed field goal, Vaval led the league with four return touchdowns.
MOST OUTSTANDING ROOKIE
Devin Veresuk | Hamilton Tiger-Cats: The word “complete” is what comes to mind when talking about Devin Veresuk. The second overall pick at the 2025 CFL Draft, Veresuk had himself as balanced a stat line as you’re going to find. After being eased into the lineup early on, Veresuk finished with 66 defensive tackles, two sacks, one interception, one forced fumble, and two defensive touchdowns.
Trey Vaval | Winnipeg Blue Bombers: We’ll say “all of the above” when referencing what we’ve previously stated about Vaval and add one more caveat. On top of Vaval’s outstanding return work, he also admirably stepped in on defence when called upon. Jumping in as boundary corner for seven starts, Vaval racked up 21 defensive tackles and an interception.