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The Grey Cup's Three Stars: Mike Reilly, Pat Watkins and Jake Harty shine

Edmonton Eskimos quarterback Mike Reilly drinks beer from the Grey Cup after his team defeated the Ottawa Redblacks in the CFL's 103rd Grey Cup championship football game in Winnipeg, Manitoba, November 29, 2015. REUTERS/Mark Blinch (REUTERS)

Here's our final Three Stars post of the year, looking at the 103rd Grey Cup's top performers on offence, defence and special teams.

First star/offensive player of the week: Mike Reilly, quarterback, Edmonton Eskimos: The Eskimos fell behind 13-0 before Reilly and the offence even touched the ball, but once he did, things started to get better. Reilly and the Edmonton offence weren't hot at first, but the defence adjusted to slow down the Redblacks, and the Eskimos started to click. After a first-quarter Patrick Watkins interception, Reilly led a touchdown drive to narrow the deficit to 13-10, and he added another crucial 88-yard touchdown drive before the half that gave them a 17-16 lead. Reilly and the Eskimos then continued the fourth-quarter success they'd seen all year, outscoring Ottawa 8-1 down the stretch for a 26-20 win. The Central Washington alum (with a 3.6 GPA and a mechanical engineering degree, no less) finished with 21 completions on 35 attempts (60 per cent) for 269 yards and two touchdowns, and he also ran 10 times for 66 yards, tied for a game-high. That made him a deserving pick as Grey Cup MVP, and earned him our First Star as well.

(Honourable mentions: William Powell, RB, Ottawa; Adarius Bowman, SB, Edmonton; Henry Burris, QB, Ottawa.)

Second star/defensive player of the week: Patrick Watkins, cornerback, Edmonton Eskimos: Watkins made perhaps the most essential play of the Grey Cup in the first quarter, swooping in to intercept an underthrown pass from Burris with the Eskimos down 13-3 and just over five minutes left in the frame. That led to a Reilly-orchestrated touchdown drive that put Edmonton within three points before the quarter ended, and it also seemed to knock Burris and the Ottawa offence off their game. The Florida State product was good all day, finishing with a team-high six defensive tackles and also adding two special-teams tackles, but it was his interception that really stood out.

(Honourable mentions: Dexter McCoil, LB, Edmonton; Shawn Lemon, DE, Ottawa; Odell Willis, DE, Edmonton.)

Third star/special teams player of the week: Jake Harty, wide receiver/cover teams, Ottawa Redblacks: Harty made a crucial play early in this one, flying downfield on the kickoff following the Redblacks' first touchdown  and forcing a fumble from Eskimos' returner Kendial Lawrence; Ottawa linebacker Antoine Pruneau then recovered it, setting up another Redblacks' touchdown that gave them a 13-0 lead (thanks to a missed convert) inside the first seven minutes of the game. Harty was an unexpected Ottawa draft pick this year; he had a good CIS career with the Calgary Dinos, but was only ranked 19th in the final prospect rankings, and yet was taken 10th overall with the first pick of the second round. That was made even more surprising by the way the Redblacks had already stocked up on receivers in free agency, and by the higher-profile receivers still left on the board (Lemar Durant and Addison Richards, who were ranked 8th and 12th and drafted 18th and 11th overall respectively). We don't yet know how that move will pan out overall, especially as Harty missed a lot of time this year with a hamstring injury he suffered in training camp and was also buried behind a deep Ottawa receiving corps. He didn't post any regular-season stats, but he was certainly vital for the Redblacks Sunday.

(Honourable mentions: Antoine Pruneau, LB/ST, Ottawa; Chris Milo, P/K, Ottawa; Patrick Watkins, CB/ST, Edmonton.)

Bonus star/Canadian player of the week: Antoine Pruneau, linebacker, Ottawa Redblacks: There aren't a ton of Canadian linebackers who regularly start in this league, but Pruneau's one, and one who's proven very good at it. The Montreal Carabins product had the critical fumble recovery early in this one and also four defensive tackles, and was good in coverage as well. On the year, he had 55 tackles and two interceptions. He's becoming an excellent CFL player.

(Honourable mentions: Matt O'Donnell, RG, Edmonton; Jake Harty, WR, Ottawa; Shamawd Chambers, WR, Edmonton.)

Thanks for reading 55-Yard Line this season! Stay tuned for more offseason coverage.