It’s one thing to say you’re confident, but it’s another thing entirely to back it up with actions.
That’s exactly what the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Montreal Alouettes have done all season. Both teams are now on the verge of accomplishing everything they set themselves to in 2025.
They went into the season with a mission: win the 112th Grey Cup. That mission is now just one game away, but at some point it was a whole season away, when the players spoke to CFL.ca back in April.
“You only have to win one game,” said past AJ Ouellette when asked to send a message to hypothetical AJ Ouellette who is about to play in the 112th Grey Cup. “It’s a football game. Let everybody hype it up. It’s the Grey Cup, but really, it’s just a football game.”
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QB Trevor Harris spoke to the media on Wednesday ahead of the 112th Grey Cup (Thomas Skrlj/CFL.ca)
The ability to focus on the task at hand is a common trait for athletes at the top of their profession. It’s the kind of ability that allows them to accomplish things that, to the outside eye, might seem impossible.
Take Tyson Philpot, for instance. The Canadian pass-catcher was coming off injury to begin the season, but was still confident that he would be exactly where he is right now, about to play in his second Grey Cup in three years.
“You’re not 100 per cent yet, but by the time you read this message, you’re going to be 100 per cent, you’re gonna achieve every goal that you set for yourself, and we’re gonna be talking again,” said Philpot in a conversation with CFL.ca back in April.
“Everything is going to go the right way.”
Maybe not everything has gone the right way for the Alouettes, but they still keep finding ways to overcome every obstacle.
That’s the case for Austin Mack, who has had to overcome his own injuries on the way to helping the Alouettes reach the highest stage in Canadian football.
Back in April, the receiver didn’t hesitate when asked what message he wanted to send to his future self.
“Consistency, speed, tenacity,” said Mack at the time. “You know who you are, go be that guy.”
Mack was certain the Alouettes would be in Winnipeg leading up to the 112th Grey Cup, but that confidence stems from more than just his trust in his own skills.
“It’s manifesting,” said Mack in Winnipeg after hearing his message to himself. “We’ve been here. We were here in 2023 but that team wasn’t just a one and done. We knew what we had in this building. The capability to become something special, that we were going to continue, and knowing that we had Davis (Alexander) at the helm, knowing the people that we had. I was super confident in the beginning of the year.
“We went on a five-game slide, and to come out of that to where we’re at and the playoff run we’ve had so far. Nothing surprised me. It’s everything that we’re built on and who we are.”
Confidence is a common trait that unites these two teams that are about to play in the biggest game of the year.
“I just I feel like we’re meant to be here,” said Harris. “We feel like we’ve earned the right to be here. I feel like the team we brought back, it was just a matter of us doing what we’re supposed to do. There’s no disrespect to any other team. You always should feel confident in your group.”
REC Tyson Philpot is also preparing to appear in his second Grey Cup (Thomas Skrlj/CFL.ca)
Harris’ message from before the season to himself was to, in case his team was able to win the 112th Grey Cup, ‘put your phone down. Don’t watch any TV, go celebrate with your teammates because those are the guys that you went to war with every day.’
Nothing has changed for Harris over the course of the season, says the pivot after hearing what his past self had to say.
“I’m encouraged to hear that, because I think that a lot of times we exist like, ‘Okay, what’s everybody saying?’ Who cares?” said the quarterback. “I’ve kind of learned that, through the years, there’s going to be people that have opinions and things that they want to say about you, but ultimately that’s not what defines you. What defines you is how you go about your process, how you do things, and how you make other people feel. The impact you make on others, and mainly how your people in your locker room feel about you, and I just try to keep my focus on that.”
“Hopefully we get to do that,” added Harris. “Hopefully we get to put that phone down and celebrate with our teammates.”
AJ Ouellette’s answer to his previous version exuded the same confidence that all of these guys have shown leading up to the big game.
“I think it was just the knowledge of who we had in the building,” said the bruising running back. “We have great athletes. First off, you need those to be good at football. But the good men that we have in our facility who care about each other, we have guys that know how to win. We have a coaching staff that’s respectable, that can be approached by players, and there can be back and forth talk. Across the board, this has been the best experience I’ve had with the team, and I think we knew that going into this year, that this was going to be a fun one that not a lot of people get to experience.”
As for Philpot’s answer to his message from the past?
“That’s who I am in a little nutshell,” said Philpot at the RBC Convention Centre in Winnipeg. “I’m a very positive, very prideful person. I understand that when I put my best foot forward, great things happen. That’s just all the work that I’ve put in. But also, shout out to my team. Shout out to my training staff. At that time, I wasn’t 100 per cent, now I am, and that’s because of my team and the guys around me.”
“That makes me super proud to hear, but job’s not done. We’ve got one more to go.”