Every Grey Cup winning team has a group of difference makers that propels them to CFL immortality, and this Sunday’s combatants are no exception.
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Winnipeg Blue Bombers didn’t get to the Canadian Football League’s marquee matchup by accident. They earned it with great coaching, superb talent and pinpoint execution.
So what is the ‘it factor’ that separates these teams from the rest of the pack?
In Winnipeg, running back Andrew Harris, defensive end Willie Jefferson and new starting quarterback Zach Collaros stir the drink for the Blue Bombers.
Despite serving a two-game suspension after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug, 32-year-old Harris laid down one of his best seasons with a league-leading 1,380 rushing yards, 70 catches for 529 receiving yards, and eight total touchdowns.
Jefferson was an absolute menace in 2019, recording 12 sacks, six forced fumbles and a CFL-high 12 pass knockdowns. The Defensive Player of the Year nominee also helped the Bombers limit opposing rushers to a minuscule 64 yards a game.
What more can you say about Collaros? He’s 3-0 since becoming Winnipeg’s starting QB and has guided the club to back-to-back playoff victories in two of the hardest places to win, McMahon Stadium and Mosaic Stadium.
Hamilton’s core is comprised of linebacker Simoni Lawrence, receiver Brandon Banks and QB Dane Evans.
Lawrence established a career-high 98 defensive tackles in 2019 and added four sacks and three interceptions, but aside from those impressive stats, the Defensive Player of the Year candidate is the undisputed emotional leader of the Tiger-Cats.
Leading the CFL in receptions, receiving yards, receiving and total TDs has vaulted Banks into rarified air and the diminutive speedster is the favourite to win the Most Outstanding Player of the Year award Thursday night.
Evans emerged from the obscurity of being a backup quarterback in the CFL to one of the league’s most amazing stories in 2019, going 11-2 after taking over from injured starter Jeremiah Masoli.
On Sunday, when the Blue Bombers and Tiger-Cats kick off the 107th Grey Cup in Calgary, each team will rely on their key players to make a difference, and the ones that do will most likely be crowned champions.
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