Head coach Corey Mace and offensive lineman Jermarcus Hardrick of the Saskatchewan Roughriders were announced as finalists for CFL awards on Thursday. Mace, in his second season at the helm of the Riders, is the West Division finalist for Coach of the Year while Hardrick is the West finalist for Most Outstanding Lineman. Hired on November 30, 2023, Mace led Saskatchewan to a first-place finish in the West this season with a 12-6-0 record, qualifying the Riders for their first home playoff game since 2021. In his first season, the Riders went 9-8-1 and placed second in the West. Mace signed a two-year contract extension with the Riders on October 14, 2025, that will see him through the 2028 season. Mace is a three-time Grey Cup champion, winning as a player with the Calgary Stampeders in 2014 and as a coach with the Stampeders in 2018 and the Toronto Argonauts in 2022. “I think most coaches would tell you that we look at that as a team award and an organizational award. So much goes into it, I’m humble just to represent the organization,” he said. “We have tons of fun, but he commands a lot of respect, and he’s quite the coach, I’m very, very happy that I’ve had the opportunity to play football for him and be on his team. He’s very deserving and I think I’d be surprised if he didn’t win it,” Riders’ quarterback Trevor Harris said. In his 11th CFL season, the 35-year-old Hardrick had a stellar 2025 at right tackle for the Riders, being named Wednesday to the West Division All-CFL team. The six-foot-four, 315-pound Hardrick signed with the Riders prior to the 2024 season and played five games before suffering a season-ending quad injury. With Hardrick in the lineup, the Riders have a 16-5 record. “On a personal level, means a lot getting back there. I didn’t do it alone, the guys beside me, the coaches, everyone, but it means a lot in the grand scheme of things, ” he said. Hardrick told CTV News that coming back from a season-ending quad injury last season was a struggle at times and made this year’s nomination that much more special. “I Facetimed my wife last night and we teared up a little bit. Just the times she had to pick me up and put me in the truck. Trying to get my degrees back on my leg, I was having good days, and I had setbacks, and I was like man it’s never going to happen. ” Saskatchewan’s current roster now includes three past winners of the West’s Outstanding Offensive Lineman Award: Hardrick (2023 and 2025) and Logan Ferland (2024). Hardrick is a two-time Grey Cup champion with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (2019 and 2021). Here’s the complete list of the 2025 CFL Awards finalists, which will be announced on November 13, 2025 (Category/West Division/East Division): George Reed Most Outstanding Player: Nathan Rourke, B.C. Lions and Bo Levi Mitchell, Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Most Outstanding Defensive Player: Mathieu Betts, B.C. and Julian Howsare. Most Outstanding Canadian: Nathan Rourke, B.C. and Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund, Montreal Alouettes. Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman: Jemarcus Hardrick, Saskatchewan Roughriders and Brandon Revenberg, Hamilton. Most Outstanding Special Teams Player: Trey Vaval, Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Lirim Hajrullahu, Toronto Argonauts. Most Outstanding Rookie: Trey Vaval, Winnipeg and Devin Veresuk, Hamilton. Coach of the Year: Corey Mace, Saskatchewan and Jason Maas, Montreal.
