Some games define a season, while others feel like destiny.
The 2025 West Final at Mosaic Stadium was one of those when numbers from the past seemed to echo through every snap, every yard, and every moment.
With 13:46 left in the second quarter, B.C. kicker Sean Whyte hit the upright from 42 yards out, the same upright Cody Fajardo struck in the 2019 West Final, the last time the Riders hosted the game. Coincidentally, 24 yards minus 13 minutes equals 19. Regardless, in 2019, that bounce cost Saskatchewan a trip to the Grey Cup. This time, fate finally bounced the Riders way.
When Brett Lauther lined up for a 13-yard field goal late in the fourth quarter, it was in front of a restless crowd — the self-proclaimed 13th man — some booing, some pleading for the offence to stay on the field. But Lauther drilled it, pulling the Riders within striking distance.
Quarterback Trevor Harris had no doubts about the decision to send Lauther into the game instead of gambling on third down trying to tie the game.
“I trust Corey Mace, he knows what he’s doing. I’m sure people at home were yelling, ‘What are you doing?’ Now they’re saying, ‘Mace is the man.’”
Moments later, the Saskatchewan defence — the league’s stingiest all season — forced B.C. into another quick exit. The Lions managed only four yards on that series. Four — the same number of Grey Cup championships in franchise history.
In fact, the Riders’ defence forced seven two-and-outs against the Lions, the league’s lowest two-and-out team all year. Fittingly, that number matched the jersey of the Riders' leader under centre: No. 7 Trevor Harris.
And then came the drive that will live in Rider lore.
With 1:03 to go, a number that brought to mind the 103rd Grey Cup — the last CFL title game played in Winnipeg, where the Riders will now return. Saskatchewan took over on its own 34-yard line. That number carried weight, too. George Reed, the late Riders legend, wore No. 34, and Saturday marked exactly 50 years since his final game at Taylor Field.
Harris opened the drive with a 23-yard strike to Samuel Emilus — another number that resonated with Rider faithful, as Ronnie Lancaster, the Little General himself, wore No. 23.
Harris broke down the West Final game-winning drive which covered 76 yards in seven plays — all passes.
“I looked up at the clock and thought, this is the CFL — there’s plenty of time. We meticulously drove the ball down the field, took what they gave us, and eventually it opened up. Then Tommy [Nield] hit that option route inside — touchdown. We move on.”
‘Touchdown’ Tommy Nield, wearing No. 83, hauled in a three–yard game-winning touchdown, a number that tied the moment neatly to another Rider great — Andy Fantuz, who also wore No. 83 and now sits in the CFL replay centre that confirmed the score.
That touchdown came from the three-yard line, sealing the Riders’ third comeback win of the season after trailing at halftime and sending Saskatchewan back to the Grey Cup for the first time since 2013.
Numbers don’t always tell the whole story, but under the lights at Mosaic Stadium, they told a story only Rider Nation could truly understand — one written in green, white, and destiny.
