Deja vu for Harris
New Eskimos QB has had experience stepping into the cleats of an iconic predecessor
EDMONTON — Just how does newly signed Edmonton Eskimos quarterback Trevor Harris possibly expect to come in and replace the player who led the Canadian Football League in passing for three years running?
The short answer is: He doesn’t. And for as much as the former Ottawa Redblacks quarterback is aware comparisons to former face of the franchise Mike Reilly will be made throughout the 2019 season, if not beyond, Harris is not nearly as interested in trying to stack up against someone else as he is in fitting in with this new-look Eskimos offence.
“It’s not something that worries me or strikes me the wrong way or that I get nervous about,” said Harris.
“I wouldn’t go into a situation where I didn’t feel I could raise the bar and help a team win ball games.”
In fact, Harris might even feel right at home having already followed in the footsteps of a former Eskimos star quarterback. He arrived in the CFL with the Toronto Argonauts the same season Ricky Ray was traded there from Edmonton, with the torch being passed in a 2015 season in which Harris played 17 games.
“Playing in front of Ricky and fending him off for almost a full season, until then, I kind of had to struggle in Toronto,” said Harris, who came up against another future Hallof-Famer in Henry Burris in Ottawa the following year. “And then, obviously, going back and forth and playing the better part of the games in 2016 and then having Hank win the Grey Cup before being the guy moving forward there.
“So it’s not really new hat to me to be replacing a guy of their calibre. It’s the only thing I know, actually. So it would be kind of a normal scenario for me, I guess.”
This time, the guy he’s replacing is already gone, as Harris will get handed the keys to a high-octane Eskimos offence that is historically known for putting up big passing yards.
“You can think back maybe a year, max, that Edmonton hasn’t had elite-level quarterback play, with Ricky being there for so long, and Jason Maas and then, obviously, the one year without,” Harris said of a 2012 season that ended in a loss to Ray’s Argos in the crossover.
“And they’ve had Mike for the last six years, so Edmonton’s been spoiled with quarterback play and I’m just hoping to come in there and continue the tradition and do what I can do to help raise the bar in this organization.
“But it’s going to be done just one day at a time and I’m just thankful to be one cog in the engine and obviously have a great team and supporting case around me, and I’m just going to do all that I can to love my teammates and lead and get them to believe in what we all need to believe in and pull the rope in the same direction and I think the results follow from there.”
The 6-foot-3, 212-pound Edinboro University product was one of four quarterbacks to surpass the 5,000-yard mark in passing last season, while leading the league with 431 completions, a completion percentage of 70.1 and an interception percentage of just 1.8, all of which contributed to the a CFL-best pass-efficiency rating of 99.6. Harris arrives at his new team as part of a package deal with former Redblacks receiver Greg Ellingson.
“I always talk to Trevor, so we’ve been in touch all off-season kind of seeing what’s going on with each other, making sure we were keeping each other in the loop especially knowing that we were becoming free agents,” Ellingson said.
“We’ve had a good bond together. “Any receiver and quarterback that have a bond together and are entering free agency kind of want to stick around and know what that guy’s doing. You build a relationship over the years.”
Harris as been through free agency once before, signing with Ottawa in 2016 after having risen to the starting ranks with the Argos and stirring up initial interest throughout the league.
“I’m just very grateful that that’s the case because it’s a very limited time frame that you have to play this game that we all love and enjoy so much and to be wanted is a pretty cool deal,” said Harris, whose wife Kalie and their two-year-old son T.J. will live with him here throughout the season. “Not only to be wanted, but to be wanted in situations that are a good fit for me. It’s something I’m very grateful and blessed to have. I’m just very thankful to be a part of Edmonton and I’m just glad that this spot was available because I think it’s a good fit for both sides.
“I’m very excited to be a part of the City of Champions.”