Former Grey Cup champ Kerry Joseph offers words of wisdom for Trevor Harris and team

It’s an elite club.

Ron Lancaster, Kent Austin, Kerry Joseph, and Darian Durant are the only four quarterbacks to lead the Saskatchewan Roughriders to a Grey Cup victory.

Read more:

• From NFL safety to Grey Cup winning quarterback, Kerry Joseph looks back on football career
• Riders’ Ajou Ajou ready if needed for 112th Grey Cup
• Missouri-based Rider fan plans to drive to Winnipeg for his 29th Grey Cup

And as Trevor Harris aims to become the fifth when the Riders take on the Montreal Alouettes Sunday in Winnipeg, Joseph gives some words of advice.

“You get on a wave and you ride it, you ride it out, you enjoy it, but also you’ve got to be able to compartmentalize what’s important, when you can and you can’t do things,” Joseph said in an interview on the Green Zone on Thursday.

“Because at the end of the day it was about not just showing up at the Grey Cup. It was about winning. You had to make sure that your preparation, your practice time, was taken care of.”

In 2007, Joseph helped the Riders win their first Grey Cup since 1989 as the Kent Austin-coached team defeated the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 23-19.

Their victory capped off a 12-6 season that saw Joseph named the league’s Most Outstanding Player. And Joseph says it’s an experience any player should cherish.

“You don’t know how many you get a chance to win,” Joseph said. “So you embrace that championship when you get it.

“And when you’re the starter, and you get a chance to lead the team into battle, to be able to win that championship, hold up that trophy, it means a lot. That can never be taken away from you. You’ll always be a champion, as long as you live, and beyond.”

But there’s another factor that makes it special for Joseph: the fans, especially in a place that doesn’t have other big-league sports.

“You know the fans are going to show up, so you want to give something back to them,” Joseph explained. “You know, you get all the glory for being on the field, winning games. But the people that put their hard-earned money to come and watch you and support, you want to be able to give them a championship, to be able to celebrate.

“That’s the thing I really enjoyed, the parade after the game, seeing everyone out there in the freezing snow, celebrating a championship.”