When Ottawa Redblacks' receiver Eugene Lewis entered the CFL negotiation window, he considered signing with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
“I talked to Sask a little bit during the window. I understood they got a lot of receivers, they got a lot of their guys,” Lewis explained on the Rider Broadcast Network. “I understood if I came to Sask, I would have to understand my role. The [salary] cap, it wasn't going to work.”
Franchise quarterback Trevor Harris was a major reason why Lewis thought about joing the Green and White.
“To see him and his career, what he's doing it's amazing,” Lewis said. “He's one of the guys that I look up to, that I appreciate, being able to play with him, learning from him and helping me have one of the best seasons that I've had.”
That came in 2022 when both Lewis and Harris played for the Montreal Alouettes. Lewis played17 games for the Als while accumulating a single-season career-highs with 91 receptions for 1,303 yards and 10 touchdowns. His efforts during that season led to him being voted as the East Division Most Outstanding Player.
According Harris, he has been trying to recruit Lewis to play on the same team for a while.
“When I left Montreal, I was like: 'Let's make it a package deal, let's go somewhere together.' And he's like: 'Trevor, I don't know if they've got enough cap room for both of us,'” Harris said. “Geno got paid like he deserved and I talked with him every year that I knew I was going to play another year.”
Harris knows Lewis provides dependability and also a wide catch radius as a receiver.
“He's one of those guys, you cast a wide net, he can bail you out in certain situations,” Harris explained. “He was a really fun guy to play with and one of the receivers that could change the game for you as a quarterback in terms of making things easier for you.”
The Riders host the Calgary Stampeders on Friday, July 11 at Mosaic Stadium. Catch the pre-game show with Teagan Witko, Justin Dunk and Wes Cates at 4 p.m. Dave Thomas and Luc Mullinder have the game call at 7 p.m. You can hear extensive coverage on the 620 CKRM Co-operators Rider Broadcast Network.
