REGINA \u2014 Trevor Harris was challenged to come up with the right adjective to describe the Saskatchewan Roughriders\u2019 12-11 CFL victory over the Edmonton Elks on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Strange? Bizarre? Unusual?<\/p>\n
Harris settled on gutsy as the Riders scored nine points in the final 66 seconds of the fourth quarter to register the victory and end a seven-game regular season home losing streak.<\/p>\n
So how weird was the ending? The Elks entered the final three minutes with a seemingly comfortable 11-3 lead. <\/p>\n
Harris, however, managed to lead the Riders on a successful drive. He connected with Mitchell Picton on a five-yard touchdown pass and then followed up with a successful two-point conversion to Kendall Watson to tie the game 11-11 with 1:06 remaining.<\/p>\n
As overtime appeared imminent, the game took one final twist when on the ensuing kickoff Edmonton\u2019s C.J. Sims decided to down the ball in the end zone rather than return it. <\/p>\n
That rouge, which was the fifth single of the game between the two teams, broke the deadlock and gave the Riders a 12-11 lead.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe knows (he made a mistake),\u201d said Elks head coach Chris Jones when asked about Sims\u2019 mistake. \u201cThe moment was big and he\u2019s a good little player. There will probably be more people talking about this than when he had a great game returning the other day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris, who joined the Riders in the off-season as a free agent after playing last season for the Montreal Alouettes, admitted the finish was unique to the CFL.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was one of those only in the CFL moments,” said Harris, who finished 19 of 29 passing for 289 yards with one touchdown and one interception. “Last year in Montreal we lost when they missed a field goal and our returner stepped on the boundary when catching the ball. We lost when they missed a field goal and this one was new to me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t even celebrate after the two-point conversion, I was just thinking about getting to overtime. We finally got some traction and made the plays that we needed to make. It\u2019s a big win, 3-1 is big time for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Riders entered the contest with 13 players on their injured lists, including receivers Jake Weineke, Derel Walker, Brayden Lenius, Juwan Brescacin and Kian Schaffer-Baker. The shortage of receivers gave Picton the opportunity to move into the starting lineup for Friday\u2019s game.<\/p>\n
The 28-year-old, who is in his fourth CFL season, didn\u2019t disappoint as he caught four passes for 76 yards and one touchdown.<\/p>\n
Harris understands Picton\u2019s role on the team and believes in his ability to help the Riders.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like he\u2019s a starting receiver in this league,” said Harris. \u201cUnfortunately for him, he\u2019s so darn good at every position that they feel he can back up everywhere. He\u2019s become so valuable to us in that way.<\/p>\n
“He only got one day of practice this week at that position and I didn\u2019t get too many reps with him at training camp so the fact that he was able to do what he did, that shows what type of professional he is.\u201d<\/p>\n
Friday\u2019s victory improves the Riders to 3-1 while the Elks drop to 0-5. All three of Saskatchewan\u2019s victories came in close games and Harris is confident that the Riders are developing all the necessities required to win consistently.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the mark of teams that are connected and have good character and have good culture,” said Harris. “It\u2019s important to find ways to win games rather than finding ways to lose games. I feel this team is always trying to find ways to win games. <\/p>\n
“However ugly the win tonight might be, it\u2019s two points in the win column and we\u2019ll take it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Friday\u2019s contest closed a stretch of five games in 25 days for the Elks. <\/p>\n
While Jones acknowledged the challenge of the early schedule, he felt the Elks still had the chance to win but mistakes in the fourth quarter opened the door for a Saskatchewan comeback.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a lot of football. We brought in 28 kids who are either first- or second-year guys and at one point it was three games in 12 days with two travels. That\u2019s a hard road,” said Jones. “We worked extremely hard but we just didn\u2019t execute in the fourth quarter.\u201d<\/p>\n
Taylor Cornelius returned as the Elks starting quarterback after Jones went with Jarret Doege in last week\u2019s 26-7 loss to the Ottawa Redblacks. <\/p>\n
Cornelius completed 17 of 29 passes with one interception. He also rushed 11 times for 58 yards and one touchdown.<\/p>\n
In addition to Lauther\u2019s single in the final minute, the Elks got three rouges from punter Jake Julien and one from kicker Dean Faithfull.<\/p>\n
Each team had a touchdown called back in the first half.<\/p>\n
Elks receiver Steven Dunbar scored on a 36-yard reception early in the second quarter but it was nullified by a holding penalty.<\/p>\n
Saskatchewan\u2019s Mario Alford returned a missed field goal 125 yards for a touchdown minutes later, but a holding penalty negated the score.<\/p>\n
The Elks return to action July 13 when they host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats while the Calgary Stampeders will travel to Regina on July 15 to play the Riders.<\/p>\n
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 6, 2023.<\/p>\n