There’s something powerful about playing with nothing to lose.

That was Nick Arbuckle in Sunday’s 111th Grey Cup. Opportunity knocked, Arbuckle answered, and now the Toronto Argonauts’ quarterback is a Grey Cup champion and Most Valuable Player after a 41-24 win over Winnipeg.

“If anybody knew everything that we went through as a family and I went through in my life to get to this moment,” Arbuckle reflected following the biggest start of his career. “I wouldn’t believe it and I don’t think anybody else would either.”

Sometimes mindset and perspective really can be the driving forces behind success.

111th GREY CUP
» Storybook Ending: Nick Arbuckle named Grey Cup MVP
» O’Leary: Argos’ win bonds Arbuckle, Dinwiddie
» Landry: Argos’ defence was a big, Double Blue crashing wave
» 5 stats that defined Toronto’s win over Winnipeg in the 111th Grey Cup
» Steinberg: 4 unsung heroes of the 111th Grey Cup

Arbuckle was named the team’s Grey Cup starter in the most unthinkable of ways after Chad Kelly, last year’s Most Outstanding Player, went down with a lower body injury in the Eastern Final. For many, this type of spotlight and pressure would be daunting and potentially too much to overcome.

But then, many haven’t walked Arbuckle’s path.

We’re talking about a guy who was weeks away from........

© CFL