There are moments in a football career that define you \u2014 and then there are moments that honour everything that came before it. For Chris Getzlaf, this one lands a little differently.<\/p>\n
The longtime Saskatchewan Roughriders receiver, Grey Cup champion, and one of the most reliable hands to ever line up in green and white is headed to the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2026, a recognition that, even for a player who accomplished plenty, still carries a special weight.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a complete honour,\u201d Getzlaf said on the SportsCage. \u201cTo be enshrined and to be named alongside athletes across various sports, that\u2019s something pretty special.\u201d<\/p>\n
And for a Regina product who grew up cheering for the Riders before becoming a cornerstone of the franchise, this one hits home in a way few accolades can.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the province you grew up in,\u201d he said. \u201cMy path was through a team I grew up cheering for. When you\u2019re recognized for all sports, not just football, that\u2019s an extra step.\u201d<\/p>\n
Getzlaf\u2019s resume speaks loudly. A Grey Cup champion in 2013. The Most Outstanding Canadian in that same championship game. A CFL West All-Star. More than 6,000 receiving yards. Forty-one touchdowns. Big moments, delivered consistently, when they mattered most. But if you ask him, the Hall of Fame wasn\u2019t ever the goal.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s more the cherry on top. My goals were always about reaching the next level: junior, university, pro. This is something that comes from that progression.\u201d<\/p>\n
That progression wasn\u2019t always smooth. He admits there were stretches, like a difficult period in 2012, where confidence was tested. Drops crept in. Doubt followed. But like so many of the great ones, Getzlaf leaned on work.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s always going to be challenges. The people who accept those and work through them usually come out on top.\u201d<\/p>\n
If there\u2019s one partnership that helped define his career, it was the connection with quarterback Darian Durant. It wasn\u2019t just chemistry; it was preparation. The two came up together, grinding through scout team reps before becoming central figures in the Riders\u2019 offence. That shared experience built something deeper than timing routes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe did a lot of talking away from the field,\u201d Getzlaf said. \u201cIf you can see the same thing at game speed and be on the same page, that\u2019s where success comes from.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ask Getzlaf about his favourite moments, and the answer comes quickly \u2014 even if there are plenty to choose from. Winning the Grey Cup at Mosaic Stadium in 2013 sits at the top. A hometown kid. His team. His city. Redemption after back-to-back Grey Cup losses. It\u2019s the kind of story that doesn\u2019t need embellishment.<\/p>\n
But there\u2019s another play just as meaningful to him. A 60-yard touchdown in Calgary in 2009. Late in the game. A breakout moment.<\/p>\n
\u201cA bit of a coming-out party,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
These days, Getzlaf\u2019s still around the game, giving back, sharing knowledge, and helping the next generation. His recent time working with the Regina Thunder brought him back into the X\u2019s and O\u2019s, something he clearly still enjoys.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was awesome. Talking concepts, helping players understand, that\u2019s what it\u2019s all about.\u201d<\/p>\n
And yes, just in case you were wondering he figures he\u2019s still got one play left in him.<\/p>\n
\u201cProbably one,\u201d he laughed. \u201cThen straight to emergency.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There are moments in a football career that define you \u2014 and then there are moments that honour…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":625723,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[437],"tags":[49,48,521,522,520,234643,82],"class_list":["post-625722","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cfl","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-canadian-football-league","tag-canadianfootballleague","tag-cfl","tag-cflsaskatchewan-roughriderschris-getzlaf","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/625722","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=625722"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/625722\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/625723"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=625722"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=625722"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=625722"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}