Trevor Harris turns in dominant showing in Argos' upset of Esks, gives them hope

The biggest question surrounding the Toronto Argonauts heading into this year wasn't about their incredibly-difficult schedule or their lame-duck season, but rather how the team would do in the absence of star quarterback Ricky Ray. Ray, the East Division's nominee for the CFL's Most Outstanding Player award the last two seasons, was placed on the six-game injured list in mid-June, leaving the Argos' quarterbacking job to Trevor Harris. Harris had an incredible day Saturday against the Edmonton Eskimos in Fort McMurray, AB, though, leading Toronto to a 26-11 victory and posting historic numbers in the process:

That's a really remarkable outing from Harris, and it shows off one of the major advantages he does have; while he hasn't played a lot in the three previous years he's been with the Argonauts, he's been quietly sitting and learning the team's offensive system of head coach Scott Milanovich. While that system's seen a few tweaks recently with Marcus Brady as offensive coordinator, it's still largely the same core of concepts (especially the focus on high completion percentage), and Harris is in his fourth year in that system. That gives him a substantial advantage over your typical inexperienced backup, and he proved that Saturday. Harris' showing is more proof of why it can be worth it for teams to keep backups around and develop them.

This isn't all just about the time Harris has spent with Toronto, though, as there have been many long-term backups unable to make the jump to effective starters. Harris was not only effective, he was dazzling; he demonstrated great touch on the shorter passes, but also showed off mobility and a strong arm, particularly on a 53-yard bomb to Kevin Elliott in the third quarter that set up a shorter touchdown pass to Vidal Hazelton. There wasn't any reason to think Harris would be this good despite his experience in Toronto's system; he didn't get much attention out of college, where he played Division II football for Edinboro University (in Pennsylvania), and while he was okay in previous limited duty for the Argonauts, he wasn't outstanding. He took an incredible leap forward against a tough Edmonton defence Saturday, though, and if he can play anywhere close to that level going forward, the Argos may have some hope even without Ray.

Toronto got significant help from other players too, of course. The Argos were in a tough situation here in general, forced to play a "home game" over 3,000 kilometres away in the Eskimos' backyard of Fort McMurray, but they had a lot of guys step up. Brandon Whitaker, who Toronto only recently signed after Montreal cut him, had an incredible 117 rushing yards on 14 carries (8.4 yards per carry) and added a 57-yard touchdown catch. Chad Owens had seven catches for 99 yards and added 60 yards on five punt returns, Andre Durie had seven catches for 63 yards, and Tori Gurley had three for 32 yards and a touchdown. The Toronto defence also stood tall, holding Edmonton RB Chad Simpson to just 33 rushing yards on eight carries (4.1 yards per carry) and containing quarterback Mike Reilly, who only threw for 170 yards and a touchdown before leaving with an injury. Still, the biggest star on the day was Harris. If he can keep shining this way, this Argos team might find lots of success before Ray's return.