Men’s Football
Football Top 10: Reigning Vanier Cup champs top final weekly poll of 2017
Calgary quarterback Adam Sinagra, Laval linebacker Kean Harelimana and Calgary kicker Niko DiFonte are U SPORTS Football Players of the Week, for the period ending November 5, 2017.
After a flat offensive performance in Week 8 of the regular season, Sinagra and the Calgary Dinos more than made up for it Saturday against the Alberta Golden Bears in the Hardy Cup semis. The third-year pivot guided his team to a 39-22 win over the Bears at a chilly McMahon Stadium. Sinagra tossed a season-high 457 yards in the victory, going 33-for-40 with a pair of touchdowns, including an 88-yard bomb in the third quarter to Abdraman Abdel-Rahim, which put the Dinos up 23-16 and proved to be the game's winning score.
Harelimana, a rookie linebacker, was a key factor in the Rouge et Or’s 45-0 shutout win over Sherbrooke in the RSEQ semifinal on Saturday. Kean Harelimana had a team-high 7.5 tackles including six solo efforts. He sent the tone for what would prove to be a string of three touchdowns in under three minutes late in the second quarter when he forced a fumble at the Sherbrooke 15-yard line that led to a Hugo Richard TD that made it 14-0. Harelimana also picked up 1.5 tackles for loss in the contest.
? | @Niko_Difonte9 hits his fourth field goal of the day, this time a 45 yarder, to push the Dinos' lead to 26-16! #GoDinos pic.twitter.com/OJUAgPNfab
— UCalgary Dinos (@UCDinos) November 4, 2017
DiFonte, a second-year Arts student, accounted for 21 of Calgary's 39 points in their semifinal win, going six-for-seven on field goals, including a long of 45, and also went three-for-three on extra points. It was another strong performance from DiFonte, who led the conference in regular season scoring with 92 points.
Offensive nominees:
- CW: Adam Sinagra, quarterback, Calgary (winner)
- OUA: Cedric Joseph, running back, Western
- RSEQ: Hugo Richard, quarterback, Laval
Defensive nominees:
- CW: Ben Hladik, linebacker, UBC
- OUA: Scott Hunter, defensive back, Laurier
- RSEQ: Kean Harelimana, linebacker, Laval (winner)
Special teams nominees:
- CW: Niko DiFonte, kicker, Calgary (winner)
- OUA: Marc Liegghio, kicker, Western
- RSEQ: Khalil Kerr, returner, Montréal
VANIER CUP FACT: The longest interception return touchdown in Vanier Cup history came at the hands of Calgary Dino Dave Heaton in 1988. The Dinos met the St. Mary’s Huskies in the Vanier Cup that year, however Chris Flynn (the Huskies’ Hec Crighton Trophy-winning quarterback) had to miss the game due to a cracked skull sustained during the semi-final. His replacement, Bill Scollard, pulled off a masterful Vanier performance until 8:44 into the fourth quarter, when he threw an interception to Dave Heaton, who returned it for a 75-yard touchdown, which sparked two more scores in the quarter and the eventual defeat of the Huskies by a wide margin of 52 to 23.
Sportsnet and TVA Sports are once again the official broadcasters of the U SPORTS football semifinals and final in 2017... The Uteck Bowl (OUA at AUS, 12:30 p.m. ET / 9:30 am PT) and the Mitchell Bowl (RSEQ at Canada West, 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT) are set for Saturday, Nov. 18, while the ArcelorMittal Dofasco Vanier Cup follows on Saturday, Nov. 25 at 1 p.m. ET / 9 a.m. PT at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton... For all the information on the 53rd Vanier Cup (including tickets) visit vaniercup.com.
- Player bios provided by U SPORTS member conferences