Countdown to Kickoff

100

Winnipeg will host the Grey Cup for a fifth time this November. It was first the stage for the championship game in 1991, followed by 1998, 2006 and 2015.

99

The Grey Cup was commissioned in 1909 by Albert Grey, then Canada’s Governor General, who originally hoped to donate the trophy to the country’s senior amateur hockey champions. But with the Allan Cup donated that same year for hockey, the Grey Cup was made available to the Canadian Dominion Football Championship.

98

The Toronto Argonauts have won the most Grey Cup titles – 19 – including last year’s championship. Edmonton is second with 14 while Winnipeg is third with 12.

97

The 1995 Baltimore Stallions are the only American team in CFL history to capture the Grey Cup, with a 37-20 victory over the Calgary Stampeders at Taylor Field in Regina. They also competed in the 1994 championship but fell to the B.C. Lions.

96

Winnipeg has appeared in five straight Grey Cups – 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 – the longest stretch of appearances along with Edmonton (1977-82), Hamilton (1961-65) and Regina (1928-32).

95

The 1989 Grey Cup game featured the most combined points scored in the championship’s history – 83 -- with Saskatchewan edging Hamilton 43-40.

94

Six players appeared in nine Grey Cup games – John Barrow and Tommy Grant (Ham), Dave Cutler and Larry Highbaugh (Edm), Angelo Mosca (Ham-Ott) and Hank Ilesic (Edm-Tor).

93

Montreal kicker Don Sweet holds the Grey Cup record for most points scored in the game with 23, set in the Alouettes win over Edmonton in 1977.

92

The 1961 Grey Cup was the first to be decided in overtime, with quarterback Ken Ploen scoring the winning touchdown for a 21-14 Winnipeg win over Hamilton at CNE Stadium in Toronto.

91

The Winnipeg ‘Pegs became the first team from Western Canada to capture the Grey Cup with an 18-12 win over the Hamilton Tigers in 1935 in front of 6,405 fans at the Hamilton Amateur Athletic Association Grounds.

90

The largest Grey Cup attendance in the championship game’s history came in 1977 at Olympic Stadium in Montreal when 68,318 fans watched the Alouettes maul the Edmonton Eskimos 41-6.

89

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats hold the longest current Grey Cup drought in the CFL. The franchise’s last championship came in 1999 with a 32-21 win over the Calgary Stampeders.

88

The Blue Bombers became the fourth club to have reached five consecutive Grey Cups last year with appearances in 2019, 2021-24. Edmonton made six straight appearances from 1977-82, Hamilton was in five consecutive from 1961-65 as was Regina from 1928-32.

87

The weather at kickoff in the previous four Grey Cups in Winnipeg – 1991: -17C; 1998: +10; 2006: 0C; 2015: -5C

86

Queen’s University holds the record for the most points scored in a Grey Cup with 54, in a 54-0 win over Regina in 1923.

85

Hamilton holds the Grey Cup record as the fastest team to score as Don Sutherin hit a kickoff single 12 seconds into the 1965 game against Winnipeg.

84

Mike Pringle is the all-time leading rusher in Grey Cup history with 391 yards on 76 carries in four games.

83

Montreal legend Anthony Calvillo is the all-time leading passer in Grey Cup history. He threw for 2,470 yards in his eight games with the Alouettes.

82

Baltimore’s Calros Huerta holds the Grey Cup record for the longest field goal with 53, set against Calgary in the 1995 game.

81

Ottawa’s Vic Washington is the Grey Cup record holder for the longest rush, with an 80-yard run against Calgary in 1968.

80

The 1950 Grey Cup is known as ‘The Mud Bowl’ as a late snowfall the day before the game turned the field at Varsity Stadium in Toronto into a mess. Toronto won 13-0.

79

Saskatchewan’s James Johnson holds the Grey Cup record with three interceptions in one game, set in 2007 vs. Winnipeg.

78

Hamilton’s Grover Covington had five quarterback sacks in the 1986 Grey Cup, a championship game record.

77

The 1954 Grey Cup was the first televised on national TV, with Jackie Parker leading Edmonton to a 26-25 victory over Montreal.

76

The 1996 Grey Cup game at Ivor Wynne Stadium in Hamilton was known as ‘The Snow Bowl.’ Toronto and Edmonton served up an snow-globe classic, with Toronto winning 43-36.

75

The Montreal Alouettes edged the Saskatchewan Roughriders 28-27 in the 2009 Grey Cup in bizarre fashion. Alouette kicker Damon Duval missed a 43-yard field goal with five seconds remaining, but the Roughriders were penalized for having too many men on the field. Duval then drilled his second attempt after the penalty.

74

Toronto’s Cassius Vaughn returned a Kamar Jorden fumble 109 yards for a touchdown in the 2017 Grey Cup, a 27-24 win by the Argonauts over Calgary.

73

Montreal’s Red O’Quinn had an astonishing 290 receiving yards in the 1954 Grey Cup on 12 receptions, but the Alouettes fell 26-25 to Edmonton.

72

The reported cost of the Grey Cup when it was first donated by Governor General Earl Grey in 1909 was $48.

71

Shania Twain has twice performed as the Grey Cup halftime act – the first in 2002 in Edmonton and the second in 2017 in Ottawa.

70

The halftime acts at the previous Grey Cups in Winnipeg: 1991 – Luba/Burton Cummings; 1998 – Love Inc.; 2006 - Nelly Furtako featuring Saukrates; 2015 – Fall Out Boy.

69

Winnipeg’s win in the 2019 Grey Cup ended the longest championship drought in franchise history, with the club having previously won its last title before that in 1990.

68

The Grey Cup was not played in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and was not contested from 1916-18 because of World War I. In 1919 the game was not played because of a rules dispute between the Interprovincial Rugby Union and the Canadian Rugby Union.

67

Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson attended the 1965 Grey Cup game while leading a minority government at the time. Prior to the game he told TC reporter Johnny Esaw “I hope one team gets a majority of the points.”

66

The Grey Cup trophy survived a fire in 1947 at the Toronto Argonaut Rowing Club with it being caught on a nail as a shelf collapsed, preventing it from being further damaged.