Our worthy objective is to insatiably ingest 2025 Grey Cup leftovers until it is time to concentrate on 2026 Grey Cup leftovers.

Prepare to feast on this introductory compilation of morsels, extracted from the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ 25-17 championship-game victory over the Montreal Alouettes on Sunday in Winnipeg.

GETTING IT DONE ON THE ONE

There was not a bigger play than the Roughriders’ fumble recovery after Montreal attempted a quarterback sneak on second-and-two from the three-yard line late in the fourth quarter.

Marcus Sayles pounced on the loose ball after fellow Roughriders cornerback Tevaughn Campbell pushed an Alouette into quarterback Shea Patterson and forced a fumble one yard shy of the goal line.

Saskatchewan was awarded possession on its 30-yard line because the fumble was recovered just inside the end zone.

A 12-yard run by A.J. Ouellette (with a timely push from centre Logan Ferland) and a 20-yard pass from Trevor Harris to Dohnte Meyers produced first downs and exhausted valuable time, along with the Alouettes’ final timeout. Montreal got the ball back with 57 seconds left, but with 87 yards to go and eight points required to tie the game.

On the final play, the Alouettes’ Davis Alexander — operating with a sore left hamstring — unleashed a Hail Mary pass that fell incomplete after travelling 63 yards in the air and being tipped by (who else?) Sayles.

Until Sunday, the Roughriders had not made such a crucial play on their one-yard line in a Grey Cup since 1976.

With 1:32 remaining, Saskatchewan stuffed the Ottawa Rough Riders’ Tom Clements on a third-down quarterback sneak from the one-yard line.

Ahead 20-16 and needing a first down to seal a victory, the Roughriders were forced to punt after back-to-back running plays netted a total of six yards. Ottawa assumed possession with 44 seconds left and needed just 24 to score the go-ahead touchdown. Ottawa won, 23-20. Ow.

Forty-nine years later, the scales were finally balanced.

MORE SHADES OF 1976

Saskatchewan started four American offensive linemen in a Grey Cup for only the second time.

In 1976, Saskatchewan-born centre Gary Brandt was flanked by Sam Holden (left tackle), Mike Dirks (left guard), Ralph Galloway (right guard) and Joe Miller (right tackle).

In the 112th Grey Cup game, Ferland was the only Canadian on a unit that also included Payton Collins (left tackle), Trevon Tate (left guard), Jacob Brammer (right guard) and Jermarcus Hardrick (right tackle).

The 2025 quintet did not allow a sack in the Western Final or the Grey Cup.

Over those two contests, A.J. Ouellette carried the ball 34 times for 196 yards, averaging 5.8 yards per carry.

Harris became the first Roughrider to throw for 300-plus yards in back-to-back post-season games. He amassed 305 aerial yards in the Western Final versus the visiting B.C. Lions before putting up 302 yards on Sunday.

SECOND-HALF SURGE

Saskatchewan made two huge plays to open the third quarter.

Following a 38-yard kickoff return by Mario Alford, Ouellette ran for five yards on first down. He was initially trapped in the backfield for what could have been a loss of two, but he broke three tackles while using brute force and fancy footwork to turn a seemingly doomed play into a gain of five.

Instead of facing a second-and-12 predicament, Saskatchewan was able to move the chains when Harris found Kian Schaffer-Baker for eight yards. Harris proceeded to spot Tommy Nield for a 34-yard near-touchdown. Another Tommy (Stevens) ran for a score on the next play.

Harris to Nield was as close as the Roughriders got to scoring an aerial touchdown. Saskatchewan had thrown 10 TD passes over its previous four Grey Cup victories (three, three, one, three).

23-FOR-27

Harris became the third Riders quarterback to go 23-for-27.

The first was Ron Lancaster, who put up 290 yards in a 40-0 victory over the visitors from Edmonton on Aug. 15, 1976.

The Little General registered the highest single-game completion percentage (85.2) of his storied career, including all contests in which he attempted at least 15 passes.

His grandson, Marc Mueller, called Saskatchewan’s plays on Sunday in his capacity as the Offensive Co-ordinator.

The other 23-for-27 performance was on Sept. 28, 2019, when Cody Fajardo passed for 278 yards in a 41-16 victory over the host Toronto Argonauts.

Harris has completed at least 75 per cent of his passes in 15 of his 36 starts as a Roughrider, post-season included.

Until Sunday, the best completion percentage by a Roughrider in a Grey Cup was 70.8 (Darian Durant, 17-for-24, 2013).

HABAKKUK CREATES HAVOC

Global defensive end Habakkuk Baldonado enjoyed a monstrous day, registering an unofficial total of six quarterback pressures.

He provided a push on all three Roughriders interceptions — by Sayles, Campbell and Rolan Milligan Jr.

Baldonado’s statistics (two defensive tackles) don’t even come close to describing his impact on the game.

SHORT SNORTS

• Campbell and Sayles must enjoy playing at Princess Auto Stadium. On Sept. 6, they combined for three picks (two by Campbell) in a 21-13 victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. They each had an interception on Sunday, to go with a collaboration on the fourth-quarter fumble.

• Campbell’s interception in the Grey Cup came one play after safety C.J. Reavis covered a lot of ground and knocked down a bomb that was intended for Tyler Snead. Alexander launched a picturesque pass that could very well have produced a 71-yard TD if not for Reavis.

• Micah Johnson continues to amaze. The 37-year-old Roughriders defensive tackle forced a punt late in the second quarter when he stopped Stevie Scott III for a one-yard loss on second-and-10. Johnson diagnosed the screen pass, ran down the ball carrier, and blew up the play.

• Johnson, in the game on offence to provide extra muscle up front in short-yardage situations, helped to clear a path for Stevens on his first touchdown. Rookie defensive tackle Ali Saad was one of the most effective blockers on Stevens’ second score.

• Stevens scored the sixth and seventh TDs by a Riders quarterback in Grey Cup competition. The list is rounded out by Austin DeFrate (1932), Walter Olson (1934), Glenn Dobbs (1951), Reggie Slack (1997) and Durant (2009).

• Schaffer-Baker and fullback Morgen Runge augmented the offensive line’s blocking to help Ouellette score his touchdown.

• Saskatchewan posted its best turnover ratio (plus-4) in a Grey Cup. The previous high was plus-3 against Ottawa in 1966.

• The morning after the 112th Grey Cup Game, the Roughriders’ Winnipeg-to-Regina flight left the tarmac at 11:12 a.m.