One of the lasting images from last year’s Eastern Final, at least from a Hamilton perspective, was Bo Levi Mitchell’s grimace as time expired.

The future Hall of Fame quarterback watched from the sidelines as Montreal’s José Maltos Díaz nailed a game winning field goal to eliminate the Tiger-Cats one game short of the Grey Cup. And now, as we continue highlighting one story for each team ahead of the 2026 season, we land on Hamilton and Mitchell’s quest for one more Grey Cup opportunity.

“Bo still wants to play football, and Bo can get the job done,” president of football operations Orlondo Steinauer told CFL.ca in the off-season. “He can lead a football team, and he has everything you would want to lead your team to a championship.”

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Despite light retirement whispers, Mitchell signed a two-year extension in December. Now 36, Mitchell is closer to the end than the beginning and each Grey Cup near-miss feels that much more urgent. He hasn’t competed for the CFL’s top prize since 2018, when he led Calgary to victory in the 106th Grey Cup.

The good news is Mitchell is playing some of the best football of his career after a frustrating stretch that spanned roughly three seasons.........

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