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Davis Alexander hopes to overcome an ailment and lead the Montreal Alouettes to the ninth CFL championship in franchise history and second in three years when they meet the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the 112th Grey Cup at 6 p.m. ET on Sunday at Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg. The Alouettes failed to repeat last year after defeating the Winnipeg Blue Bombers for the Grey Cup trophy in 2023.

Alexander has gone 13-0 during his career as Montreal's starting quarterback but was limited to seven regular-season games this year due to a hamstring injury, which flared up in last Saturday's 19-16 victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the West Division Final. However, Alouettes head coach Jason Maas told reporters on Monday that his star QB won't miss the biggest contest of his career.

"He will start and he will play," Maas said. "He has a lot of work to do (on his injury). …He's fully capable of playing with it. He's played with it before."

A 27-year-old product of Portland State who joined the Alouettes in 2022 after not being selected in the NFL Draft the previous year, Alexander threw for 2,024 yards with 10 touchdowns and only three interceptions this season. He threw for 384 yards and a touchdown while also running for a score in Montreal's 42-33 triumph over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the East Division semifinals and finished with 210 passing yards and a TD against Hamilton last week.

If Alexander's hamstring issue limits his ability to pass, the Alouettes have a capable ground game that features Stevie Scott III. The 25-year-old came up with a huge performance in the playoff contest versus Winnipeg, rushing 18 times for 133 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Saskatchewan, which went 12-6 this season en route to its ninth division title, edged the BC Lions 24-21 in the West Division Final to earn its first appearance in the Grey Cup since defeating Hamilton 45-23 in 2013 for its fourth CFL championship. A.J. Ouellette ran for 113 yards, Samuel Emilus had 100 yards receiving and Trevor Harris threw for 305 yards and two TDs, including a decisive 3-yarder to Tommy Nield with 12 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.

Montreal and Saskatchewan split their two meetings this season, with each club posting a double-digit victory on the road. The Roughriders cruised to a 34-6 triumph at Montreal in Week 9, while the Alouettes won 48-31 at Saskatchewan in Week 15.

The teams have met three previous times in the playoffs, with Montreal prevailing on each occasion. After recording a 30-14 win in the 2005 East Division semifinals, the Alouettes edged the Roughriders 28-27 in the 2009 Grey Cup and registered a 21-18 victory for the championship the following year.

Saskatchewan is a 3.5-point favorite against Montreal at FanDuel Sportsbook, while the total for points scored is set at 48.5.

SportsLine football expert Emory Hunt went 43-38 on his CFL picks during the regular season and has revealed his selection for the 2025 Grey Cup, including an against-the-spread prediction and lean on the total.

Hunt is the founder and CEO of Football Gameplan, which has been supplying analysis of all levels of football since 2007. He is a former running back for the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns and knows the game from a player's perspective. Hunt's dedication to analysis of all levels of professional football helped him crush the CFL, XFL and USFL in 2023, posting a combined ATS record of 98-73 in his SportsLine articles.

Montreal Alouettes vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders (Sunday, 6 p.m. ET)

Pick: Montreal +3.5
Lean: Over 48.5

This is a great matchup between two teams that are evenly matched. Up front in the trenches, it's a strength-vs.-strength battle between Saskatchewan's offensive line and Montreal's defensive front seven. With Davis Alexander under center, he gives the Alouettes a chance to really attack the Roughriders with their passing game. This contest will come down to the wire, and in an evenly matched battle, I'd go with the underdog Alouettes because of the extra oomph with which they'll be playing.