Saskatchewan Roughriders' offensive lineman Jermarcus Hardrick could not believe he was the first one to touch the Grey Cup after the Green and White defeated the Montreal Alouettes 25-17 in Winnipeg.
"It didn't even feel real, man. I woke up the next day after the Grey Cup, sitting in a hotel, we're in Winnipeg, so I think something did happen. It didn't even feel real, it felt so great," Hardrick said.
"As soon as I watched the videos, it looked like as soon as I picked the trophy up, all I screamed out was, 'We did it.' That almost brought tears to my eyes. I wanted to do it for us and wanted us to do it. For that emotion to come out and me be the first one to touch it, it felt special."
Hardrick won the third Grey Cup of his career with Saskatchewan, the other two times were with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2019 and 2021. The six-foot-four, 315-pound offensive lineman played 17 games for the Riders during the 2025 regular season and earned the CFL's Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman award.
"I know my wife told me to make sure I celebrate it after we won, make sure I take it all in, make sure I don't talk about it all the time, make sure I'm getting ready for next year," Hardrick recalled.
"It was something my wife and I talked about after we did it, my kids and I were all happy about it. I'm glad we got the team award, but it's over there on the stand. Not really worried about it, trying to go get this next one."
Besides reflecting on the Grey Cup, Hardrick, who was a pending free agent, decided to come back for one more season following Saskatchewan's announcement of his contract extension on December 9. The process of getting Hardrick to come back did not take long.
“I think it was one or two calls, and the next day I knew I was signing the contract," Hardrick explained. "I was talking to Trevor [Harris], I've been talking to Samuel [Emilus], I was talking to guys the whole time, seeing where everyone was. I decided I got my eyes in, waiting on the other guys, and let's do this thing again. Let's go try to earn it."
Aside from football, Hardrick is a big believer in community, and he shares why it is enjoyable to play in Saskatchewan.
"Regina, anywhere in the prairies is the perfect place to do it. There are a lot of Co-Ops, a lot of Safeways, a lot of football fields, and a lot of hockey. It's a small, knit community — everyone's there. I might as well be a part of the community — I love it," Hardrick said.
"I love that you can go anywhere and anyone asks you about the injury report, asks you what you're thinking on this play — it makes me feel like I'm in a football town. I'm in the right place. It feels like Friday Night Lights, man. Walking around the city, everyone is talking about the game or practice or what's going on in the league."
To open the 2026 regular season, the Riders host the B.C. Lions in a West Final rematch on Saturday, June 13 and that is when the team will raise their 2025 Grey Cup banner.
"It's going to be emotional, I hope we lock back in quickly. It's something we talked about, it's something we wanted, so many people work hard to earn that," Hardrick noted.
"I'm going to be grateful and happy to see it, not satisfied, ready to move on and try to put another one up there. It's going to feel good. The work we put in, the way guys showed up before camp, the way guys worked at camp, it was fun being around the media. It didn't feel like work last year. I hope everyone feels the same way when that thing gets dropped. 2025 was special."
