Tag: football

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Sports

Big dreams for Stingers MVP

(Brianna Thicke)
Taylor, a fifth-year safety with the Concordia Stingers’ football team, was named the team’s most outstanding player and most dedicated player at the team’s banquet on Jan. 20. (Brianna Thicke)

Nathan Taylor may not be the biggest player on the field, but he sets his standards extremely high.

“My goal is to play in the CFL. Anything less than that is pretty much a failure,” he said.

Taylor, a fifth-year safety with the Concordia Stingers’ football team, was named the team’s most outstanding player and most dedicated player at the team’s banquet on Jan. 20. In nine games this season, Taylor racked up a total of 44 tackles, three interceptions and three batted passes.

Taylor called this year a bounce-back year for him after being benched during parts of last season. He had spent most of his career with the Stingers at cornerback and sometimes linebacker, but he excelled this season when put at safety.

“I think I played pretty well and I guess the coaches thought so too,” said Taylor, “I hadn’t played safety since midget, but I felt pretty good about it. I feel I was a more complete player at safety.”

Looking back on his time at Concordia, Taylor credits his work ethic for his success and the current attention he is getting from Canadian Football League teams. He also cited his coaches over the years, notably head coach Gerry McGrath, for helping him grow in maturity during his time with the Stingers.

“Hard work pays off,” he said. “For four, five years now, I’ve just been working hard every offseason trying to get better. Personally I feel like I’ve matured a lot as an athlete and as a player and Concordia is a big part of that.”

Taylor is now fully focused on the upcoming CFL combine, where he will showcase his talents to scouts and general managers with the hopes of being selected in the upcoming draft. His routine currently consists a vigorous workout schedule, which includes running and lifting weights, separately, each done four times a week.

When he was younger, Taylor never envisioned a career as a professional football player; today, it is a part of his everyday life. He even had doubts about his football future during his time at Vanier College, but was able to motivate himself in the gym to improve himself as a player.

“I was going to transfer. I was going to go to John Abbott College or go play junior football,” he said. “I didn’t think I was good enough to play at the CEGEP level. I’ve been working hard since my last year of midget, just to prepare myself to play football at the next level and now I’m preparing myself for the CFL.”

“I always took training seriously because I enjoy it. And I always wanted to be one of the strongest guys on the team. When I realized that the more work I put in the gym, the better I was on the field, that’s when it was ‘the harder you work, the easier it’s going to get’.”

Taylor is anxious to get the pre-draft process going and is looking forward to showcasing his skills to the people who will pave the way to a career in professional football.

“I just want to get the ball rolling. I want to show them that I’m physical and that I can run,” he said. “I get overlooked because I’m a little shorter, I’m not the prototypical 6-foot, 200-pound defensive back. You’ve got to prove it to them that you’re deserving of a roster spot.”

With a work ethic like his, Taylor has a good chance of overcoming this latest obstacle on his path to primetime. The CFL Combine takes place Mar. 22, 23 and 24 in Toronto.

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Opinions

You like football, eh?

Graphic by Phil Waheed
Graphic by Phil Waheed

In the midst of a mind-boggling, hair-pulling, rage-inducing NHL Lockout, only few things have kept us sports fans sane: replayed games on T.V., a lot more beers, and the National Football League.

Oh yes, we love our football up here, especially our Canadian football: we love our bigger fields, bigger end zones, and most of all, our bigger balls.

But there’s nothing quite like the NFL. It’s like a drug you can only get during certain times of the year and while you wait you are lost in an abyss, unsure of where to go or what to do.

And then, the first training camp whistle is blown and off we go on a six month roller coaster ride that leaves us captivated. But, in the blink of an eye, it’s all over.

So, no matter how much we love our Canadian football, there’s always a big spot in our hearts for the NFL.

Now picture a world where an NFL team calls a major Canadian city home … how sweet would that be? Well, here I come, ladies and gents, to stomp all over that dream.

The NFL will not come to Canada. It will not work in Canada. Let that sink in. It sucks, but it’s the cold, hard truth.

An NFL franchise is not a piece of IKEA furniture that you can simply purchase, bring home and build on your living room floor. An NFL franchise is a treasure, a priceless monument that breeds a standard that other North American professional leagues can only dream of achieving. There’s also the small matter of how incredibly expensive an NFL franchise is, not to mention the high costs of running one—and running it depends mostly on fans filling the seats.

Moe Khan, TSN 690’s top football mind, paints a simple but detailed picture of why the NFL wouldn’t work in a Canadian market.

“The NFL in Canada won’t work,” he said, “because Toronto doesn’t even have an NFL-approved stadium. The fan base is also spread out over all the different teams. To defend Toronto, they do have the population and the financial hub, but they haven’t shown enough to merit serious consideration for a franchise.”

Khan is right—the Buffalo Bills games played in Toronto over the past several seasons have yielded crowds and atmospheres described as listless and lacking energy, despite the rampant popularity of the league across the country. Compare that to the rambunctious crowds found at London’s Wembley Stadium for their NFL games; not to mention the ringing endorsement that New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, one of the league’s most influential owners, gave London, which has never been given in Toronto.

“I think London has shown with the way they’ve handled the Olympics and every other major sporting event that it’s time for you to have your own NFL franchise based in London,” Kraft said to the Boston Herald.

“The NFL dollar is different than the NHL dollar,” said Khan, “To run an NHL franchise is in the millions—to run an NFL franchise is in the billions, and any expansion [or relocation] would cost upwards of 600 million dollars.”

“I would rank Los Angeles, London and Mexico before Toronto as potential NFL destinations,” added Khan.

Personally, I don’t even think London would work. It’s an American game. It’s part of the American culture. When we hear Americans talk about hockey, we tend to scoff and brush them aside. Those silly Americans, showing up at their arena in Anaheim in flip-flops and sun hats. We’re the real hockey fans.

Well, the die-hard Buffalo Bills fan tailgating in the stadium parking lot eight hours before game-time in freezing cold weather is thinking the exact same thing about us and our big fields, big end-zones, and big balls.

Get used to it, Canadian NFL fans. The NFL is staying south of the border; right where it belongs.

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Sports

Stingers’ playoff dreams crushed

Photo by Madelayne Hajek
Photo by Madelayne Hajek

The Concordia Stingers football team was hit hard by the Réseau du Sport Étudiant du Québec and by the Canadian Interuniversity Sport a week ago, after self-disclosing the use of an ineligible player through the first four weeks of the 2012-13 season.

The RSEQ and the CIS are citing CIS eligibility Article 40.10.4.3.1.1, which limits the number of years a student athlete can participate in CIS competition to five years, as the reason for the player’s ineligibility.

Two players, who wish to remain anonymous, confirmed to The Concordian that the player in question is offensive lineman Daryl Rankin.

The Stingers were forced to forfeit their first two wins of the season, a 42-36 victory over Bishop’s University in the season-opener, as well as the 41-20 win over St. Francis Xavier in the third game of the season. The Stingers were left with a 0-6 record, but a thrilling 43-40 victory over cross-town rivals McGill on Saturday, has already eliminated the possibility of a winless season.

It appears the time Rankin spent playing in the Quebec Junior Football League with the Chateauguay Jr. Raiders
after CÉGEP may have knocked a year off of his CIS eligibility.

Katie Sheahan, Concordia’s Director of recreation and athletics, said Rankin approached the coaches himself with concerns over his ability to play on the team.

“[He] spoke with our coach about his athletic background before coming to Concordia, and wanted to check whether or not there was something in his background that would make him ineligible,” said Sheahan. “Because at the time that he started with the school five years ago, he had not understood that all of the years that you play tackle football could be counted toward eligibility. So, at the time when he signed up with Concordia, he inadvertently did not understand that it was required to acknowledge that.”

Sheahan said that every student registers themselves, which is supervised by the athletics department, but admitted that the form players are required to fill out may have not been as clear as possible.

“The form asks the person to disclose information about sporting leagues and any particular activity that might happen in another league,” said Sheahan. “It’s possible that a student might not realize the significance of what they did or did not include.”

Sheahan added that the department is working on upgrading the forms in order to avoid future problems of a similar nature.

“One of the things we’ve been looking at is if there’s a way we can put better prompts in our paperwork that would ask someone to reflect on something, even if they didn’t understand some of the administrative jargon that comes with every administration, so we’re looking at whether or not we can break down the questions we ask to make it more explicit.”

Concordia’s athletic department released this statement to the press last Tuesday regarding the sanction handed down by the RSEQ:

“We recently discovered that an administrative error led to an ineligible student athlete participating in our first five football games this season,” read the statement. “Although we are disappointed for the members of our football team who have worked so hard this season, we are fully supportive of the sanctions that have been applied by the CIS and RSEQ.”

Sheahan also pointed out that the phrase “administrative error” is only a “summary statement,” of sorts. “It is the phrase that we use to summarize, but it is not a question of someone having seen something and neglected to record it — it was something that was not there to be seen.”

John Bower, program director of university programs at the RSEQ, and Michel Bélanger, communications and media relations manager at the CIS, both had high praise for Sheahan and the athletics department for the way they handled the situation.

Bower revealed rumors began flying around one week before Concordia’s announcement. He said the school took full responsibility, self-disclosed the information without any issues, and were co-operative. Bower noted, while this doesn’t lead to a widespread search for ineligible players, the sanctions handed down by the league gets everyone’s attention, and teams make sure to review the statuses of their own players.
There is already evidence of this happening around the province, as the Sherbrooke Vert et Or men’s soccer team was forced to forfeit three regular season wins following the discovery of an ineligible player on their roster, earlier this month.

Bélanger noted that the issue will be put to rest by next year, as a new time-clock rule will come into effect, meaning athletes will have a certain amount of years to complete their five years of eligibility following their graduation from high school, depending on what part of the country, or part of the world, they are coming from.

Sheahan is not worried about the impact this might have on potential recruits, who may perceive this as another black mark on a football program that, as it is, is far from matching up with the elite teams of the province.
“If it was all about wins and losses, it would almost negate what the recruiting process is all about at the inter-university level, because athletics is one portion of that,” she said. “I think we stand for the integrity of the system of rules, and I think it would be wrong to assume that students and parents that are looking for programs across the country, wouldn’t support the fact that they know that there are ethical educators at the heart of their sports program.”

Sheahan said that the department would be implementing a new system which calls for anyone who has done any type of study beyond high school that is not a direct line from high school to university (or high school to CÉGEP and then to university, for Quebec athletes) to have their files reviewed and interviewed to try and catch any errors before it is too late.

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Sports

A whole season down the drain

The Concordia Stingers football team was forced to forfeit their two wins from this season, as a result of having an ineligible player on their roster. The Stingers disclosed the information themselves to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport and Réseau Sport Étudiant du Québec yesterday night.

Two players, who wished to remain anonymous, have confirmed the player in question to be offensive lineman Daryl Rankin.

Rankin, however, is not at fault for the sanction. The RSEQ and the CIS are citing CIS eligibility article 40.10.4.3.1.1, which limits the number of years a student athlete can participate in CIS competition to five years.

Details are still vague as to what specifically made Rankin ineligible, but it appears that the year he spent playing in the Quebec Junior Football League after CEGEP may have knocked off a year of his CIS eligibility. The rule in question was changed in 2007-2008, and stated that:

“Beginning with the 2003-2004 academic year, upon graduating from a Quebec high school, an athlete shall be charged with a year of CIS eligibility for each year of participation beyond three years at any level of tackle football, including but not limited to midget, junior, and CEGEP.”

Therefore, if the one year spent in the QJFL was three years after Rankin had graduated from high school, it would knock off a year of his CIS eligibility, meaning that Ranking really only had four years of eligibility left when he joined the Stingers.

It is possible that Rankin, and the school for that matter, was not aware that the rule carried over. The Concordian is still awaiting confirmation from the CIS as to whether or not this was the case.

It is also unclear as to whether or not this particular ruling carried over for players that it applied to before the rule was changed.

Concordia’s athletic department released this statement to the press on Tuesday regarding the sanction handed down by the RSEQ:

“We recently discovered that an administrative error led to an ineligible student athlete participating in our first five football games this season,” wrote Katie Sheahan, director of recreation and athletics. “Although we are disappointed for the members of our football team who have worked so hard this season, we are fully supportive of the sanctions that have been applied by the CIS and RSEQ.”

The Stingers will now fall to 0-6 for the year, with the scores from their wins against Bishop’s and St. Francis Xavier being changed to a 1-0 loss, according to the CIS press release. Player’s individual statistics will not be changed.

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Sports

Stingers football team falls to Sherbrooke in the Shrine Bowl

It was a cold and crisp Saturday afternoon when Concordia’s football team hosted the Sherbrooke Vert et Or in the 26th annual Shrine Bowl. Both teams entered the game with a 2-3 record and were looking to get back to .500. The murky afternoon never brightened up for the Stingers as they lost to Sherbrooke in an upsetting 48-6 final score.

The game started with a bang when Stinger Raul Thompson returned the opening kickoff for 59 yards. Concordia capitalized from their starting field position and took an early 3-0 lead. That was as good as it got for the Stingers as the Vert et Or would respond with 18 unanswered points and went into halftime up 28-6.

With only 90 yards on the ground, Sherbrooke’s throwing game tormented Concordia’s defense throughout the entire match. Sherbrooke’s quarterbacks Jérémi Roch and James Goulet combined for 273 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Despite the score, Concordia’s offense also put up impressive stats even though they never scored a touchdown.

“I bet you the offensive statistics are pretty close between the two teams,” said Stingers coach Gerry McGrath after the game. The Stingers ended the afternoon with 235 yards in the air and 104 on the ground.

Concordia’s downfall was the turnovers. With three turnovers in the first quarter alone, the Stingers gave up a total of two interceptions, four fumbles and three turnovers on downs. Sherbrooke was able to capitalize off Concordia’s mistakes and scored 23 points on these turnovers.

“The biggest difference was turnovers,” said Stingers defensive end Eric Noivo. “Unfortunately for us, they got a couple of lucky bounces and we got behind early.”

By the end of the game, the packed crowd continued to cheer and were in their seats until the final whistle. Win or lose, the Shrine Bowl continues to generate donations for the Shriners Hospitals for Children.

“There was a certain excitement around the team leading up to the game,” said Noivo. “It’s fun to play for the kids, especially when you see how much it means to them.”

 

The Stingers’ next game is Saturday, Oct. 13 when they will travel to McGill to play for the Shaughnessy Cup at 1 p.m.

 

Photos by Veronique Thivierge

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Sports

Stingers football lose on homecoming day

Graphic by Jennifer Kwan

It was a bitter homecoming game for the Stingers men’s football team, as they fell 38-0 to powerhouse Université de Montréal on Friday. The loss came three weeks after a 48-10 drubbing at CEPSUM. Concordia’s offense never got into a rhythm, as turnovers and constant pressure on quarterback Reid Quest spelled doom for an offence that looked shell-shocked as the game progressed.

“We got off to a decent start, but like last time, we managed to screw it up,” said Quest, who had a tough game, completing 14 of 26 passes for 168 yards and three interceptions. “As the quarterback I have to be the leader. I can’t keep giving the ball away like that. That’s my fault.”

Quest was replaced by backup Troy McCusker late in the final quarter with the game out of reach. McCusker completed three of five passes for 33 yards.

The Stingers’ first offensive possession was perhaps their best of the day, though it doesn’t say much. They marched down the field, showing some unity, but a sack forced a 45-yard field goal attempt, which fell short and wide of the uprights. It was as close as they would come to any points.

“You can’t really pin this loss on anyone,” said former Stingers quarterback and receiver Liam Mahoney, who provides colour commentary on Stingers broadcasts on TSN 690. “You certainly can’t blame the quarterback. It’s hard to make good reads and get the right timing down when there’s guys in your face on every play.”

The running game was a non-factor for the Stingers as they rushed 16 times for 69 yards.

“When you can’t run the ball effectively on first down, it makes life tougher for the passing game, operating at second and long,” explained Mahoney. “This was also one of the best defences in the country.”

On their second possession, Quest’s pass was tipped and intercepted by the Carabins’ Antoine Pruneau. The Carabins made Concordia pay right away, with Alexandre Nadeau-Piuze throwing a 44-yard bomb to Ali Ndao down to the Stingers’ 26-yard line. Two plays later, Nadeau-Piuze capped off the drive with a Quarterback sneak from the one to give Montreal all the points they needed to seal the win.

Montreal added a 15-yard Charles Bauer field goal and a 20-yard touchdown pass to Ali Ndao, who was the game’s leading receiver with five catches for 96 yards.

The Carabins put the game away in the third quarter, scoring an additional 21 points. Tailback Rotrand Sené wore down Concordia’s defence, scoring a pair of touchdowns on the ground. He had back-to-back majors of five and 24 yards. He rushed for 118 yards on 14 carries, contributing to Montréal’s 221-yard total.

Concordia’s home field advantage was taken away, as Montréal’s dominance took Concordia supporters out of the game early. The game held a total attendance of 2,087, with a hefty chunk being U de M supporters. It goes without saying, they were on the rowdier side.

Concordia now sits at 2-3 and their schedule doesn’t get any easier with Sherbrooke, McGill and Laval waiting for them down the road.

 

The Stingers gear up for game time on Saturday, Oct. 6 at 1 p.m. against Sherbrooke.

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Sports

Stingers struggle away from home

After a dominating win over the St. Francis Xavier X-Men last weekend, Concordia’s men’s football team were on the road again to face the Bishop’s Gaiters at Coulter Field.

The Stingers were victorious against the Gaiters in their first meeting of the year and were looking to complete the season sweep. Both sides battled back and forth throughout Saturday afternoon, but the Stingers were unable to make a comeback and left Lennoxville defeated.

Concordia got off to a fast start by recording points on their first two drives. Following a touchback on their initial drive, the Stingers concluded their second drive with a touchdown by Matt Scheurwater. The 61-yard drive was highlighted by a 47-yard completion from quarterback Reid Quest to Shayne Stinson.

By the end of the first quarter Concordia was ahead 18-7 and seemed as if they were going to pull away. On paper, the Stinger’s offense had a big game. They rushed for 131 yards and threw for 263.

The turning point in the game came in the second quarter when the Stingers offense disappeared. Concordia’s offense scored zero points and struggled to get any consistent drives going. They had only three first downs in the second quarter, two of which were because of penalties on Bishop’s. The Stinger’s offence had four consecutive two-and-outs and went into halftime trailing Bishop’s 19-18.

After halftime, the Gaiters never trailed and continued to pound the Stinger’s defense behind running back Matthew Burke. Burke, a fourth year veteran, had a career-best afternoon and finished the game with 239 rushing yards and one touchdown.

Early into the final quarter, the Gaiters extended their lead to 35-18 and forced Concordia to try and come back. The Stinger’s were able to score 12 points in the fourth quarter, but the damage had already been done. Concordia’s inability to play a complete 60 minutes came back to haunt them, as their comeback fell short.

Even though it is only halfway through the regular season, Saturday’s loss to Bishop’s had serious playoff implications. Since the Gaiters outscored Concordia in their two games, if the two teams have the same record by the end of the season, Bishop’s will be ranked ahead of Concordia. Although it is too early to tell, if it does come down to head-to-head matchups, Saturday’s loss will be that much worse.

 

The Stingers look to bounce back against the Montréal Carabins at home on Friday, Sept. 28 at 7 p.m.

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Sports

Stingers get back to winning ways

After being dominated by the Montreal Carabins last week, the Stingers men’s football team hit the road to redemption. Travelling to Antigonish, Nova Scotia, the Stingers took on St. Francis Xavier’s X-Men in their home opener on Saturday.

From the initial kickoff, Concordia took control of the game and handed St. FX their first loss, with a final score of 41-20. The Stingers set the tempo on the opening drive by marching down to score the game’s first touchdown. The 76-yard drive was capped off by a pass from Reid Quest to Jesse McPhail. The Stingers never trailed in the game and improved their record to 2-1.

Quest went 26-for-44 in passing attempts and ended the afternoon with 266 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. He spread the ball around as four Concordia receivers had three catches or more.

While the aerial assault was virtually unstoppable, running backs Michael Donnelly and Raul Thompson combined for 125 yards and kept the X-Men defense off balance.

On the other side of the ball, Concordia’s defense was just as solid. During the second half, they allowed only seven points, and none in the final quarter. Behind linebacker Max Caron, who had two sacks on the day, the Stingers recorded four sacks, a fumble recovery and a safety.

The defense was a disruptive force throughout the game and never allowed the X-Men offense to gain traction. As the Stingers offense methodically marched up and down the field drive after drive, St. FX never found the same type of rhythm.

One of Concordia’s most underrated aspects of the game was their special teams, specifically their kicking game. Stingers kicker Keegan Treloar went six-for-six in field goal attempts and three-for-three in extra point attempts. Highlighted by a 42-yard field goal, Treloar’s impressive performance was responsible for 21 points and single handedly outscored the opponents.

Concordia controlled all phases of the game and never gave the X-Men a chance to come back. The Stingers overcame the excitement of an opponent’s home opener and focused on playing a complete team game for 60 minutes. With the satisfaction of such a dominating win, a long bus ride home goes a lot more smoothly.

 

The Stingers will look to duplicate this past weekend’s performance when they travel to Bishop’s University to take on the Gaiters on Saturday, Sept. 22 at 1 p.m.

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Sports

A major defeat for Stingers by Carabins

A 48-10 score says it all. There aren’t many positives to take from such a lopsided loss. The Stingers were dominated on all sides of the ball, be it on the offense, defence or special teams. The Université de Montréal Carabins won the battle at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.

While Concordia was still in the game going into the fourth quarter – only trailing by 10 – the Carabins scored 28 unanswered points in the fourth to put the Stingers away and move on to 2-0, leaving Concordia with a record of 1-1.

Quarterback Reid Quest went 15-for-23 in passing attempts for 186 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He was sacked 10 times, which prevented Concordia’s offence from finding a rhythm. They also fumbled five times, losing two of them.

“We shot ourselves in the foot,” said Quest. “A lot of mental errors stalled our drives. They’re a great team and they capitalized on [that].”

Montreal went to the running game early, as running back Rotrand Sené helped the Carabins take advantage of great field position, leading a 42-yard drive. It was capped with a 3-yard touchdown pass by Alexandre Nadeau-Piuze to Mikhail Davidson.

Nadeau-Piuze fumbled deep in Concordia territory on the next possession, but the Stingers went two-and-out on the ensuing drive. Montreal then blocked Keegan Treloar’s punt, but fumbled the ball at the goal line, giving Concordia a touchback and a new set of downs. The Stingers then threw an interception, once again giving Montreal a chance at Concordia’s 23-yard line.

The Carabins went up two scores after Nadeau-Piuze took it in himself on a nine-yard touchdown run.

Concordia had trouble advancing the ball early, but a facemask penalty helped them advance the ball after Quest was yanked by the helmet on a sack. He then threw his best pass of the day, finding Jamal Henry for a 53-yard touchdown pass, cutting the lead in half.

The Stingers had chances to inch closer, but they kicked only one field goal on four tries, leaving nine points off the board. Two were missed by kicker Keegan Treloar and one was blocked. In the end, nine points turned out to be miniscule when looking at the final deficit.

Montreal ended the first half with a 23-yard chip shot by Charles Bauer bringing the halftime score to 17-7. The two teams traded field goals in the third quarter before Montreal ran away with the game. Concordia’s defence was looking worn down by the time the fourth quarter came along. They forced five fumbles, recovering four which kept the Stingers in the game, but they couldn’t keep it up for all four quarters.

“It’s all a matter of execution,” said safety Nathan Taylor. “We just let it get away from us in the last 15 minutes. When we look back and watch the game tape, we’re going to be very disappointed.”

Montreal won in all phases of the game and owned the line of scrimmage for most of the game. It’s always the most important battle in a football game and the Carabins were the better team and well-deserving of the victory.

 

The Stingers will look to recover this Saturday at 12 p.m. against St. Francis Xavier.

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Sports

Stingers look to reach next level

In the last few seasons, the Concordia Stingers appeared to be treading water. The rebuilding process has had them stand pat with back-to-back 4-5 seasons in 2010 and 2011, following a 3-5 season in 2009. Although, their 4-5 record last year was enough for a playoff spot, they were bounced 33-7 by the Laval Rouge et Or.

Not everything has come together for Concordia. The defence was the strongest unit for the team, as players like Max Caron, Kris Robertson and Nathan Taylor stepped up for the Stingers. Caron led the CIS with 78.5 tackles and led the nation in solo tackles. He added five interceptions, including three returned for touchdowns, to that lead. Last year, he was awarded the Presidents’ Trophy as the outstanding defensive player in the CIS.

Kris Robertson continuously made great plays on defense and was a constant spark returning kicks. He averaged 24.4 yards per return and scored two touchdowns on special teams. Robertson said he feels the veteran Stingers need to lead the way in order for the team to not only make the playoffs again, but to enjoy success in the post-season.

“This year we have all the necessary tools to do big things,” he explained. “It’s on us vets to make sure we get there. We just need to be unified and I believe the sky is the limit.”

Safety Nathan Taylor said that while it’s the offence’s job to score points, it’s the defence’s job to make it easier and set things up.

“We need to make more plays and create more turnovers on defence,” said Taylor. “We need to help the offence get good field position whenever possible.”

The units will have to help each other, with the defence getting quick stops and the offence needing to keep the ball moving.

Quarterback Reid Quest took over mid-season for Terrance Morsink in 2011. He now enters the season as the full-fledged starter, and as usual, things will have to start with the quarterback.

“We need to sustain drives, get first downs and wear down opposing defences,” Quest said. “If we can do that, we’ll be a tough team to beat.”

For Concordia to truly have a chance at success and get past the first round, they’ll need to overcome the tougher teams in the conference. They lost to Laval and Sherbrooke twice, and 36-1 against the Montréal Carabins last season. While it’s a near-impossibility to beat the Rouge et Or, as they’ve proven year after year, the Stingers at least need to overcome the other two teams that finished above them in 2011. After all, getting to the playoffs won’t mean much if they’ll be easily beat in the first round.

The Stingers have not won a playoff game in four years, and they’ll no doubt want to change that this season. Failure to do so only means that they haven’t progressed since last season. At the very least, they’ll have to be more competitive with the tougher teams of the QUFL.

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Sports

Stingers gear up for a killer season

Concordian file photo

Before students step into classes on Sept. 5, the Stingers’ season will have already begun. The first team to play is the football team starting the 2012 season with a home-opener against Bishop’s on Sept. 1 at 1 p.m..

For football fans, this will be the only chance to see the Stingers play at home before the end of the month. Following this game against Bishop’s, the team will play three road games against Université de Montreal on Sept. 7, St. Francis Xavier on Sept. 15 and will face off against Bishop’s once more on Sept. 22. Other important dates include an away game to rivals McGill on Oct. 13 and a home game against Laval – the defending champions – to conclude the regular season on Oct. 27.

Soccer enthusiasts will have to wait one day after the school year’s arrival as the men’s and women’s teams each have an away fixture against U de M to kick off the season on Sept. 6. The men’s team looks to improve on last year’s two losses against the same school. The women’s team seeks revenge after being outscored 1-9 by Montreal over both matches last season. The home opener for both teams will be three days later on the ninth. The double header starts at 1 p.m. for the men’s while the women’s team play at 3 p.m. both against UQTR.

Still in the first week of school, the rugby teams play their home-openers on Friday, Sept. 7. The women’s team plays first at 7 p.m. against Sherbrooke. Two hours later, the men’s team takes on Sherbrooke. If you miss the first home-opener, both Stingers teams are in action the following Wednesday. They will welcome McGill in the same time slots.

Hockey fans will have to wait until October to see their Stingers teams play. The men’s team play rivals McGill at home on Oct. 5. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Ed Meagher Arena. Both teams split the season series last year with two wins apiece. The women’s first game is also at home against McGill, although not on the same day. The game is scheduled for Oct. 13 at 2:30 p.m.

As for the most success, last year’s action was on the court. The Stingers basketball season runs from early November until the end of February. The men’s team’s quest to win a third straight championship begins on Nov. 7 at 8 p.m. on the road against UQAM. Their home-opener will take place on Nov. 15 at 8 p.m. against Laval. The women’s team will also play on those same days against the same opponents. They will play an earlier 6 p.m. game on both occasions. Both the men’s and women’s teams will participate in at least two pre-season tournaments.

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Sports

Looking back on the 2011-2012 Stingers teams

It was a mixture of highs and lows for Concordia’s Stingers teams last year. The most successful was the men’s basketball team which won their league, the playoffs, and had a shot at the national title.

This team is a favourite for the championship almost every season. Playing in a league which includes McGill, UQAM, Laval, and Bishop’s, the Stingers have topped their division for the last two seasons. Head coach John Dore, who is entering his 24th straight season with the team, led them to a 14-2 record last year, finishing four wins ahead of their biggest competitors McGill. The Stingers went on to beat UQAM by 30 points in the playoff finals. However, in the national championship, the team lost both games.

On the women’s side of the court, the Stingers finished second in the league and made it to the finals. The team opened the season on a high note, beating rivals, and eventual champions, McGill 75-66 on the road. Head Coach Keith Pruden, who has been behind the bench since 1995, led the team to a respectful 8-8 record. Although the women’s basketball team finished the season in second place, they boasted the league’s best defense. In the playoffs, the Stingers cruised past Bishop’s in the semi-finals, but fell to McGill in the finals.

On the ice, the men’s hockey team had a year filled with ups and downs. In the 10-team OUA East division, a division featuring both Ontario and Quebec universities, the Stingers missed the playoffs due to the second tie-breaker. The team tied with Queen’s University with 28 points, with both teams sharing the head-to-head record. It came down to goal differential in both their season games. One of the highlights last year was a thrilling 4-2 victory against McGill late in the season keeping their playoff hopes alive.

The women’s hockey team ended the 2011-12 season in last place. They were four points outside the playoffs. With a record of 4-15-1, the Stingers were battling Ottawa for the final playoff spot. A 6-2 home win over Ottawa in the second-to-last game of the season wasn’t enough to keep their playoff dreams alive.

On the football field, it took a victory in the final game of the season to send the team into the playoffs. The Stingers finished the year with four wins and five defeats, good enough for the fourth and final playoff spot. In the playoffs, the team fell to the eventual Quebec champions Laval Rouge et Or.

In the other kind of football, the men’s soccer team finished the season in sixth place with three wins, eight losses, and one draw. The Stingers were only seven points away from the playoffs. Head coach Lloyd Barker and the rest of the squad expect a better season this year.

The women’s soccer team also finished in second-to-last place. The Stingers finished in ninth place with two victories, nine losses, and three draws matching their 2010 record. Though, the women’s team does play in a difficult division which is dominated by U de M, McGill, Sherbrooke, and Laval.

In the short rugby season, the men’s team finished in third place with one win, four losses, and one tie.  A four-team division meant the Stingers automatically made the playoffs. In the semi-finals, they narrowly beat second place Bishop’s before losing to McGill in the finals.

The women’s rugby team had a similar season, which also took them to the finals. The Stingers finished the year in second place out of six teams and qualified for the playoffs. Their semi-final game was a win against McGill at home but the they ultimately lost to an undefeated Laval in the finals.

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