{"id":286156,"date":"2025-11-16T05:26:22","date_gmt":"2025-11-16T05:26:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/286156\/"},"modified":"2025-11-16T05:26:22","modified_gmt":"2025-11-16T05:26:22","slug":"thats-where-i-felt-my-heart-was-saskatchewan-roughriders-qb-trevor-harris-never-wanted-to-leave-montreal-alouettes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/286156\/","title":{"rendered":"‘That’s where I felt my heart was’: Saskatchewan Roughriders’ QB Trevor Harris never wanted to leave Montreal Alouettes"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Photo courtesy: Matt Smith\/SportsCage\/Harvard Media<\/p>\n

Somewhere in an alternate universe, Trevor Harris is preparing for the 112th Grey Cup in a Montreal Alouettes uniform.<\/p>\n

The 39-year-old quarterback has embraced the green and white of the Saskatchewan Roughriders with his whole soul since signing with the organization, but it was never part of the plan. Harris won the starting quarterback job in Montreal in 2022 and had every intention of staying there for years to come<\/a>, before fate intervened.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt killed me. It was really, really tough, because I didn\u2019t really necessarily want to go anywhere,\u201d Harris recalled this week. \u201cThe writing was on the wall in terms of where the organization was at with no owner. We didn\u2019t know what was happening, and I have a family to take care of.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alouettes\u2019 majority owner Sid Spiegel passed away ahead of the 2021 season, having never witnessed his team play a game. His estate controlled the team for two years before electing to pull the plug, severing all funding going into the 2023 offseason.<\/p>\n

While the CFL eventually took stewardship of the franchise on the eve of free agency, general manager Danny Maciocia was unable to offer players any money in the weeks leading up to it. That included his franchise pivot<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were a lot of unknowns. Total transparency, there was a point in time I didn\u2019t even know if there would be a franchise in Montreal with all that took place,\u201d Maciocia explained, noting that other star players like Eugene Lewis and Adarius Pickett also left as a result.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe went back and forth, and I had conversations with (Harris\u2019) agent. Deep down inside, I wasn\u2019t able to offer him anything, and even if I did, I knew that I couldn\u2019t sign off on it. At some point in time, Trevor\u2019s got to do what\u2019s best for Trevor and his family.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Saskatchewan Roughriders offered a rather attractive life raft for Harris, but he left a piece of himself on the sinking ship.<\/p>\n

The CFL veteran arrived in Montreal midway through 2021 via trade from the Edmonton Elks<\/a> after a tumultuous final season with the team. He says that experience, which included rampant organizational chaos, a neck injury, and an unceremonious benching<\/a>, tested him personally, professionally, and spiritually. His love of the game was eroded, but the Alouettes were a salvation.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor Danny Maciocia to trade for me, and for (former head coach) Khari Jones to be the way he was when I was there, it brought joy back to the game. I had a terrible time playing football in 2021 before I got to Montreal, and when I got there, I enjoyed playing football again,\u201d Harris said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were the only team that was even willing to bring me back and offer me any contract. When I went back there, they knew who I was, and then Danny believed in me to hand me the keys to the franchise in terms of being the quarterback there. It\u2019s something that I\u2019ll never forget.\u201d<\/p>\n

Harris started the final three games of the 2021 season for Montreal in place of an injured Vernon Adams Jr., plus the team\u2019s playoff game. After signing a one-year extension, he took over the starting job from VA early the next season, throwing for 4,157 yards, 20 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions. The Waldo, Ohio native led the Alouettes to a playoff victory and came up one touchdown short of leading them to the Grey Cup.<\/p>\n

With the hiring of Jason Maas as head coach that offseason, all signs pointed to the start of something special. Quarterback and coach spoke regularly in anticipation of an extension that would never come for reasons outside of both of their control.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always had the utmost respect for Trevor, and I understood completely where he was coming from, because uncertainty in this profession isn\u2019t ever good,\u201d Maas recalled. \u201cWhen you can be provided with some certainty in your life, for your family, I understand that. I wish we had had more time to afford him to make a different decision.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter the decision is made, and he made the decision to move on, there isn\u2019t much to be said from there but \u2018Good luck.\u2019 From there, your relationship just goes a different way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Harris struggled with the decision largely because of the impactful relationships he had built over such a brief period.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was really hard because of how much love and admiration and respect I have for not only Danny Maciocia, but for Jason Maas. That\u2019s where I felt my heart was, and I owe a lot to Montreal,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaciocia will always have a great place in my heart. I love that man. He\u2019s awesome and really grateful for him, because the City of Montreal is where I brought joy back to playing the game of football.\u201d<\/p>\n

Harris\u2019 departure proved to be a pivotal moment for both parties. Left without any other options in the offseason QB carousel, the Alouettes brought in former Saskatchewan starter Cody Fajardo. New owner Pierre-Karl Peladeau restored stability to the organization, and Maas sparked an on-field renaissance, leading the team to a Grey Cup victory in his first season at the helm. Fajardo was named the MVP of that game after firing up the team with a now-iconic pre-game speech.<\/p>\n

Things did not go as well initially for the man who left, as the Riders missed the playoffs after Harris suffered a season-ending tibial plateau fracture. Rather than wallow in bitterness, he was thrilled for his former teammates.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re excited for those guys; they\u2019re a great group. It was fun to watch them,\u201d he said. \u201cWe knew that we were close in \u201921 and \u201922, and we were within striking distance in a close one against Toronto that we lost in the East final that year. It was just a matter of getting over the hump. I feel like they did a great job.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two years later, Harris is ready to get his own glory. The arrival of head coach Corey Mace and offensive coordinator Marc Mueller in Saskatchewan after that brutal 2023 season began a new chapter in Riders history, with their steady-handed pivot playing some of the best football of his 14-year CFL career.<\/p>\n

Awaiting him on Sunday in a game that could make or break his legacy<\/a> are those same Alouettes, this time led by a fiery young QB in Davis Alexander<\/a>, whom he mentored as a rookie in 2022. It\u2019s the type of cosmic alignment that someone as devout as Harris can only explain through divine intervention.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a total God moment, because I couldn\u2019t be more happy with where I\u2019m at, and I know they couldn\u2019t be happier with who they have at the helm there,\u201d he said. \u201cWe never know exactly what is happening in the current moment, but God does.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe way God ordained those moments, I couldn\u2019t be more thankful that I came to Saskatchewan, and I get to be the quarterback here. I know that it worked out well for them. They have won a Grey Cup since, and they have the guy for their future who\u2019s going to play probably long after me.\u201d<\/p>\n

On that point, Maciocia agrees. He has nothing but praise for Harris as a player and human being, but believes everyone ended up where they were meant to be.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat situation led to where we are now. And listen, it worked out for him, and it worked out for us in the end,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ll chalk it up as a positive experience, and I always enjoy seeing him now when we face off against one another.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite his sentimentality about what Maas, Maciocia, and Montreal meant to him, there will be no questioning Harris\u2019 allegiance come kickoff. He\u2019s a Rider through and through \u2014 nothing else matters.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have one goal to accomplish, and I want to get my teammates to raise that Cup over their heads,\u201d he emphasized. \u201cI want us to have more points than the other team, doesn\u2019t matter who it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Saskatchewan Roughriders (13-6) and Montreal Alouettes (12-8) will meet in the 112th Grey Cup at Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg on Sunday, November 16, with kickoff scheduled for 6:00 p.m. EST.<\/p>\n

The weather forecast in Winnipeg calls for a high of two degrees with a mix of sun and cloud. The game will be broadcast on TSN, CTV, and RDS in Canada, CBS Sports Network in the United States, and CFL+ internationally.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Photo courtesy: Matt Smith\/SportsCage\/Harvard Media Somewhere in an alternate universe, Trevor Harris is preparing for the 112th Grey…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":286157,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[437],"tags":[49,48,521,522,520,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-286156","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cfl","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-canadian-football-league","11":"tag-canadianfootballleague","12":"tag-cfl","13":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/286156","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=286156"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/286156\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/286157"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=286156"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=286156"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=286156"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}