Every day at Saskatchewan Roughriders training camp brings quarterback Trevor Harris closer to a major milestone. His 40th birthday.
Yeah, yeah, said Harris, chuckling a little when asked about his upcoming birthday, following the CFL team's first full-squad workout Sunday at Saskatoon's Griffiths Stadium. We got a few weeks still, so I don't want to age myself yet.
Harris turns 40 on May 31. When the Roughriders open their regular season June 13 against the visiting B.C. Lions, he is expected to be the league's oldest starting quarterback. Winnipeg Blue Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros is next at 37.
Harris is the oldest player on Saskatchewan's roster, but only by four months because during the offseason the Roughriders signed 39-year-old long snapper Aaron Crawford, who could make the squad as a replacement for recent retiree Jorgen Hus.
Next on Saskatchewan's old guys list are 33-year-olds Mike Rose, a defensive lineman, and fullback Albert Awachie.
In the real world, 40-year-olds are considered as middle age with all the potential turmoil of facing a midlife crisis.
Let's not crush him yet, said Roughriders head coach Corey Mace. Joking! Look, if you tell me there's anything different between the 39-year-old to the 40, I'd want to know because he just looks like Trevor Harris to me, man. How he operates day in, day out, whether we're in season or off season, he's a 100 per cent football man. And it shows.
In football, 40 is pretty old. Football players in their 40s are the exception in a sport where careers start in their mid-20s and last an average of approximately three years, according to the CFL Alumni Association.
Quarterback Tom Brady won two Super Bowls out of his seven NFL championships after he turned 40. In the CFL, quarterback Damon Allen was 41 when he led the Toronto Argonauts to the 2004 Grey Cup. Henry Burris was also 41 when quarterbacking the Ottawa Redblacks to the 2016 Grey Cup, taking over midseason as the starter from then-30-year-old Harris.
That was Harris's second Grey Cup as a non-starter, having been a third-string CFL rookie behind Ricky Ray on the 2012 Argonauts. Since joining the Roughriders in 2023, Harris has been the undisputed starter, proving last season to himself and his detractors that he could lead a CFL championship team. Harris missed only one regular-season game last year after beginning his Riders career with two injury-plagued campaigns and was named the 2025 Grey Cup's outstanding player after completing 23 of 27 passes for 302 yards in a 25-17 victory over the Montreal Alouettes.
