The Saskatchewan Roughriders needed one final drive Saturday night in Calgary. After watching a two-score fourth-quarter lead disappear, the Green and White got the football in overtime with a chance to finish the job. They did exactly that.
Quarterback Trevor Harris engineered the game-winning possession in Saskatchewan’s 40-37 overtime victory over the Calgary Stampeders. Still, afterward, he made it clear there was more going on than simply drawing up plays in the huddle.
For Harris, the winning drive was built on trust, preparation and players executing details in critical moments. The possession started with one of the biggest catches of the night, a leaping reception by Samuel Emilus.
Harris said the connection wasn’t improvised.
“Sam makes that play,” Harris explained post-game. “I usually put it in a spot where he can get to and the DB can’t. He routinely makes that play.”
With Calgary tightening coverage later in the drive, Harris was forced to extend the play and trust his receivers to react. That led to one of the game’s most important moments.
“They covered up one, two, three, four,” Harris said. “I scramble to the right and scramble rules for Dhel (Duncan-Busby). He’s able to make our scramble rules right. Back down the hill, I put it to the side, and he was able to make the catch.”
Dhel Duncan-Busby’s reception kept the drive alive and showed the chemistry developing inside Saskatchewan’s receiving group. Rather than freelancing, Harris credited the execution of built-in scramble adjustments.
The final major play came when Harris found Kian Schaffer-Baker over the middle. But even that throw had another layer to it.
“Schafe, I put it high just in case, because I thought one of their D-linemen was about to shoot his hand,” Harris said. “I put it a little bit higher so that way we didn’t get tipped because right there, if you get a ball tipped over the middle, it would spell disaster.”
Schaffer-Baker elevated, secured the catch and absorbed contact before being stopped inches short of the goal line. One play later, Tommy Stevens punched the ball across the line for the game-winning touchdown.
“Schafe made a great play and almost dove in the end zone,” Harris said. “Got to about the one-foot line, but Tommy was able to get his touchdown.”
The Riders improved to 2-0 with the win, but Harris wasn’t interested in celebrating the comeback. His focus afterward remained on cleaning up the fourth quarter and becoming the type of team that puts games away before overtime is needed.
Still, when the game demanded one final drive, Saskatchewan’s veteran quarterback trusted the details and his receivers delivered.
The Riders are back in action on Friday night when they host the Toronto Argonauts.
