The starting quarterback of the CFL’s top-seeded team was a popular presence at Canada’s Farm Show on Thursday.
Trevor Harris, who earned Grey Cup MVP honours after helping the Saskatchewan Roughriders defeat the Montreal Alouettes 25-17 on Nov. 16 in Winnipeg, amiably chatted with fans and posed with them for photographs alongside the CFL’s championship trophy during an enjoyable visit to REAL District.
“It was a good opportunity,” Wadena farmer Greg Sowa said. “(Harris) was very personable and easy to chat with.”
Harris was also introduced to Sowa’s wife (Bonnie) and son (Leevi), who are also key players in the operation of Wadena-based Sow-Mor Ag.
Leevi also has a connection to Foam Lake — the hometown of Roughriders President-CEO Craig Reynolds.
Like Reynolds, Leevi is a proud alumnus of the Foam Lake Panthers high school football program.
Anyone who subscribes to the notion that “life on the farm is kinda laid-back” should attempt to process the agenda of a teenaged Leevi Sowa.
Leevi attended Wadena Composite School while representing Foam Lake Composite High School on the gridiron. Wadena was a feeder school for the Panthers, whose fertile farm system also included players from Kelvington.
“We’d practise in the morning so we could farm after school,” the former Foam Lake linebacker recalled.
That would be a hectic routine without factoring in the 30-kilometre drive to Foam Lake.
Following the workout and the drive back to Wadena, Leevi and friends attended a full day of classes.
The final bell of every school day signalled the commencement of work on the family farm. And then there was homework.
With spring seeding drawing closer, Leevi and his parents made the 200-kilometre trip to Regina for the Farm Show.
En route to REAL District on Thursday, Leevi and his parents were informed by a friendly shuttle driver named James that Harris and the Grey Cup would be making a one-hour appearance, beginning at 3 p.m.
“We didn’t really expect it,” Leevi said.
Before the photo session, Harris was interviewed on stage by Cherilyn Jolly-Nagel as “Saskatchewan Roughriders Championship Celebration” appeared on a giant backdrop.
“We had a really connected team,” Harris said when asked about the Roughriders of 2025. “I think that, a lot of times, the closest families pray together and they’re connected together. When you have that tight-knit team, whether it’s through prayer or whatever that may be, I think you’re closer.
“As our team got closer and closer, we were able to do more for one another. The more you care about somebody, the more you’re willing to sacrifice for them. That’s why family is so important.
“So if you can, as a team, become more like family, you can push each other further, you’ll sacrifice more and you’ll ultimately become a better team — a team that can hoist the Grey Cup at the end of the season.”
Jolly-Nagel, a successful farmer and public speaker who grew up near Mossbank, took those words to heart.
“That really resonates with me,” she said in response to Harris. “We have some truly amazing people on our farm — some family members and some chosen family.
“That’s really good advice. We’re going to take that back to our farm team, for sure.”
An entertaining, insightful interview with Harris wrapped up when Jolly-Nagel observed: “You have a lot of fans in the room today — a lot of fans at the Farm Show. Truly, without a doubt, Saskatchewan fans are famous across the country, but I do a lot of travelling around the world and I run into a whole lot of fellow fans wearing green. What did it mean to you and the team to bring back a Grey Cup to Rider Nation and the world’s best fans?”
As much as Harris has already turned his attention to the 2026 Roughriders, he was happy to put the achievements of last season’s team in perspective.
“I didn’t really understand it until it was done and we came back (to Saskatchewan) and we talked to the people around here,” the Roughriders’ No. 7 replied. “It was an absolutely phenomenal reception. It has been phenomenal listening to people. They’re saying, ‘Thank you so much,’ and I’m like, ‘Naah, you guys earned this as well.’ This is our championship together as a community, as a team.
“Rider Nation is just everywhere. It’s amazing. When I used to play in Toronto, we used to talk about, ‘Do you think the Saskatchewan fans are going to be loud at our home games?’ It was just crazy.
“My personal trainer lives in Florida and we (communicate by) Zoom. I sent him down some Rider gear and he runs into people all the time who say, ‘You root for the Riders, too?!’
“You can take the person out of Saskatchewan, but you can’t take Saskatchewan out of the person.”