Oliveira wins two of CFL’s most prestigious awards – University of North Dakota Athletics

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Former North Dakota running back Brady Oliveira was one of six individuals to receive accolades at the Canadian Football League (CFL) Awards presented by Securian Canada on Thursday evening. Oliveira won both the CFL’s George Reed Most Outstanding Player and the league’s Most Outstanding Canadian award.

Oliveira captured his first Most Outstanding Player award, after being a finalist in 2023 and has now earned back-to-back Most Outstanding Canadian awards. He becomes just the fourth member of a CFL team to capture both awards in history, joining Jon Cornish, Russ Jackson and Tony Gabriel.

“Even having my name mentioned with those legends is bizarre to me,” said Oliveira. “It’s a little bizarre but it’s an incredible honor. To win two of the most prestigious awards in this league that I’ve been watching since I was a kid… it’s awesome.”

The winner for each award were selected by the national and local members of the Football Reporters of Canada, and the league’s nine head coaches. In total, 56 ballots were completed.

Oliveira leads the league in rushing yards (1,353) for the second consecutive season and became the first player to accomplish the feat since Andrew Harris from 2017-19. Oliveira has now eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark in each of the past three seasons. The former North Dakota running back also led the CFL in yards from scrimmage (1,829) for the second straight year.

He helped Winnipeg turn around a season in which it didn’t win a game until week five. The Bombers then went on a run that saw them win 11 of their last 14 games in the regular season to capture the West Division title.

The Blue Bombers defeated the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Saturday, Nov. 9, to earn their fifth straight Grey Cup appearance. In the Western Final, Oliveira carried the ball 20 times for 119 yards and a major, while also hauling in a pair of receptions for 22 yards.

Oliveira and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers will take on the Toronto Argonauts for the 111th Grey Cup in Vancouver on Sunday, Nov. 17. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. (CT).  The championship contest will be broadcast live across Canada on TSN, CTV and RDS. CBS Sports Network will exclusively televise the Grey Cup in the U.S. Viewers outside of North America can tune-in for free via the league’s live streaming platform, CFL+.