Edmonton Elks’ general manager Ed Hervey clearly has an affinity for Canadian quarterback Tre Ford.
“Trey Ford is an electric and dynamic player. I don’t know him personally, I’m looking forward to having a chance to speak with him,” Hervey said at his reintroduction press conference.
“I’m looking forward to talking with him about his experience here and seeing where he sees his future. I want to talk to him about my vision and we’re going to have some opportunities to have some real talk and some serious talk.”
The six-foot-one, 195-pound QB has dressed for 38 games in his three-year CFL career, starting 18 while posting a 9-9 win-loss record. Ford has completed 67 percent of his passes for 3,667 yards with 24 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. The signal-caller with 4.45 speed has rushed 108 times for 977 yards, nine per carry, with three majors.
“He’s a dynamic player. Everyone knows when he’s on the field, we’re all scared to death when he’s running. We want to hone his skills and get him to the point to where you know he can be a dual-threat weapon,” Hervey said.
The University of Waterloo graduate shared starting duties with McLeod Bethel-Thompson in 2024. The Niagara Falls, Ont. native started five games and produced a 4-1 record. Bethel-Thompson went 0-7 to begin the year and finished 3-10. Ford was selected in the first round, eighth overall during the 2022 CFL Draft. His contract expires in February 2025 when free agency begins.
“I believe that the quarterback position is extremely important to the football team. I want to get to know him and if we can find common ground as to what that looks like, I’d love to give him every opportunity to compete to be the starter here,” Hervey said.
“It also it takes two. I understand that he’s going into this, he’s in his final year and stuff. There’s a lot of stuff that has happened around here that you hear whispers, I want him to tell me himself.”
The 26-year-old, who has had NFL interest in the past, completed 71.7 percent of his passes for 1,137 yards with 10 touchdowns against five interceptions while rushing 23 times for 206 yards this past season. Ford added intrigue within the fanbase and provided a new energy for his team when in the lineup.
