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2023 U Sports football season

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2023 U Sports football season
LeagueU Sports
SportCanadian football
DurationAugust 25, 2023 – October 28, 2023
Playoffs
Hardy Cup championsUBC Thunderbirds
Yates Cup championsWestern Mustangs
Dunsmore Cup championsMontreal Carabins
Loney Bowl championsSt. Francis Xavier X-Men
Mitchell Bowl championsUBC Thunderbirds
Uteck Bowl championsMontreal Carabins
Vanier Cup
DateNovember 25, 2023
VenueRichardson Memorial Stadium
(Kingston, Ontario)
ChampionsMontreal Carabins
Seasons
← 2022
2024 →

The 2023 U Sports football season began on August 25, 2023, with the defending champion Laval Rouge et Or visiting the Sherbrooke Vert et Or. On the following day, ten Ontario University Athletics teams, four Atlantic University Sport teams, and two RSEQ opened their schedules on August 26, 2023.[1][2][3] On the following weekend, the six Canada West teams opened their seasons on September 1, 2023.[4]

The conference championships were played on the weekend of November 11, 2023, and the season concluded on November 25, 2023, with the 58th Vanier Cup championship. The Vanier Cup game was held at Richardson Memorial Stadium in Kingston, Ontario, for the first time in its history.[5] 27 university teams in Canada played U Sports football, the highest level of amateur Canadian football.[6]

On September 23, 2023, Manitoba Bisons kicker Maya Turner became the first woman to play in a U Sports regular season football game. She kicked the game winning field goal in overtime for the Bisons in their game against the Regina Rams.[7]

Schedules

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On January 19, 2023, the OUA released their schedule which featured no major changes from the 2022 season, with 11 teams playing eight regular season games over nine weeks.[1] The regular season will start on August 26, 2023, and end on October 21, 2023. Seven teams will qualify for the playoffs, which begin on October 28, 2023, with the top seed having a first-round bye.[1] The 115th Yates Cup game is scheduled to be played on November 11, 2023.[1]

On April 20, 2023, the AUS schedule was revealed with the first two games scheduled to be played on August 26, 2023.[2] Five AUS teams will play eight games over 10 weeks with each team receiving two bye weeks.[2] In a format change this year, the top four teams will qualify for the AUS playoffs rather than three, with two semi-final games determining the participants for the AUS championship.[8] The Canada West schedule was announced on April 25, 2023, and the RSEQ schedule was revealed on April 27, 2023, with no major scheduling changes from the 2022 U Sports football season.[3][4]

Regular season

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Standings

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Team W   L   PF   PA   Pts Ply
#5 St. FX 8 0   267 90   16
Bishop's 6 2   238 110   12 X
Mount Allison 3 5   100 176   6 X
Saint Mary's 2 6   115 252   4 X
Acadia 1 7   81 203   2
† – Conference Champion
Rankings: U Sports Top 10
Team W   L   PF   PA   Pts Ply
#2 Montréal 7 1   288 93   14
#4 Laval 6 2   226 122   12 X
Concordia 5 3   200 192   8 X
Sherbrooke 1 7   136 280   2 X
McGill 1 7   147 310   2
† – Conference Champion
Rankings: U Sports Top 10
Team W   L   PF   PA   Pts Ply
#1 Western 8 0   350 151   16
#3 Laurier 7 1   282 145   14 X
#9 Windsor 6 2   256 132   12 X
#7 Queen's 5 3   242 122   10 X
Ottawa 4 4   171 187   8 X
Carleton 4 4   226 168   8 X
Waterloo 3 5   188 251   6 X
Guelph 3 5   248 214   6
Toronto 2 6   171 250   4
McMaster 2 6   191 187   4
York 0 8   42 560   0
† – Conference Champion
Rankings: U Sports Top 10
Team W   L   PF   PA   Pts Ply
#10 British Columbia 6 2   271 156   12
#6 Alberta 6 2   247 196   12 X
#8 Saskatchewan 5 3   229 149   10 X
Manitoba 3 5   203 272   6 X
Calgary 3 5   140 204   6
Regina 1 7   155 268   2
† – Conference Champion
Rankings: U Sports Top 10

Post-season awards

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Award-winners

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Quebec Ontario Atlantic Canada West National
Hec Crighton Trophy Jonathan Sénécal
(Montreal)
Taylor Elgersma
(Wilfrid Laurier)
Silas Fagnan
(St. Francis Xavier)
Matthew Peterson
(Alberta)
Jonathan Sénécal
(Montreal)
Presidents' Trophy Harold Miessan
(Montreal)
Max Charbonneau
(Ottawa)
Daniel Bell
(Mount Allison)
Nick Wiebe
(Saskatchewan)
Harold Miessan
(Montreal)
J. P. Metras Trophy Christopher Fontenard
(Montreal)
Tyson Hergott
(Waterloo)
Alex Fedchun
(St. Francis Xavier)
Theo Benedet
(British Columbia)
Theo Benedet
(British Columbia)
Peter Gorman Trophy Justin Cloutier
(Laval)
Ethan Gregorcic
(Wilfrid Laurier)
Mikaël Pattin
(Bishop's)
Owen Sieben
(Regina)
Justin Cloutier
(Laval)
Russ Jackson Award N/A Alex Cheng
(McMaster Marauders)
Spencer Richard
(Acadia)
Mark Rauhaus
(Manitoba)
Mark Rauhaus
(Manitoba)
Frank Tindall Trophy Marco Iadeluca
(Montreal)
Michael Faulds
(Wilfrid Laurier)
Gary Waterman
(St. Francis Xavier)
Chris Morris
(Alberta)
Chris Morris
(Alberta)
Gino Fracas Award Émilie Pfeiffer Badoux
(Concordia)
Zach Scotto
(Wilfrid Laurier)
Matt Elliott
(Saint Mary's)
Vaughan Mitchell
(Manitoba)
Vaughan Mitchell
(Manitoba)

[9][10][11][12][13]

All-Canadian Team

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Offence
First Team Second Team
Quarterback Jonathan Sénécal (Montreal) Taylor Elgersma (Laurier)
Running Back Matthew Peterson (Alberta)

Jared Chisari (Queen's)

Malcolm Bussey (St. Francis Xavier)

Amlicar Polk (Ottawa)

Receiver Ethan Jordan (Laurier)

Darius Simmons (McGill)

Savaughn Magnaye-Jones (Western)

A. K. Gassama (Manitoba)

Raidan Thorne (Laurier)

Kaseem Ferdinand (Carleton)

Ben Harrington (St. Francis Xavier)

Hassane Dosso (Montreal)

Centre Daniel Shin (Alberta) Ryan Berta (Queen's)
Guard Giordano Vaccaro (Manitoba)

Alassane Diouf (Montreal)

Matthew Ljuden (Alberta)

Evan Floren (Queen's)

Tackle Theo Benedet (UBC)

Erik Andersen (Western)

Giovanni Manu (UBC)

Nathaniel Dumoulin-Duguay (Laval)

Utility Lucas Robertson (UBC) Niklas Henning (Queen's)
Defence
First Team Second Team
Defensive Tackle Christopher Fontenard (Montreal)

Darien Newell (Queen's)

Muftah Ageli (Windsor)

Kyle Samson (UBC)

Defensive End Jeremiah Ojo (Montreal)

Tyson Hergott (Waterloo)

Kolade Amusan (Windsor)

George Idoko (Saskatchewan)

Linebacker Harold Miessan (Montreal)

Nick Wiebe (Saskatchewan)

Ife Onyemenam (Laurier)

Nicky Farinaccio (Montreal)

Max Charbonneau (Ottawa)

Lourenz Bowers-Kane (Western)

Free Safety Jackson Findlay (Western) Jonathan Giustini (Alberta)
Defensive Halfback Bruno Lagacé (Montreal)

Eric Cumberbatch (Ottawa)

Cristophe Beaulieu (Laval)

Daniel Bell (Mount Allison)

Cornerback Kaylyn St-Cyr (Montreal)

Katley Joseph (Saskatchewan)

Jassin States-McClean (Saint Mary's)

Louis Lavaud (Carleton)

Special Teams
First Team Second Team
Kicker Ben Hadley (St. Francis Xavier) Vincent Blanchard (Laval)
Punter Aldo Galvan (Regina) Michael Horvat (McMaster)
Returner Javonni Cunningham (Windsor) Guillaume Cauchon (Laval)
Rush/Cover Charles-Eliot Boulianne (Montreal) Skyler Griffith (UBC)

[13]

Post-season

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The Vanier Cup was played between the champions of the Mitchell Bowl and the Uteck Bowl, the national semi-final games. In 2023, as per the rotating schedule, the Atlantic conference's Loney Bowl championship team, the St. Francis Xavier X-Men, visited the Canada West Hardy Trophy winners, the UBC Thunderbirds for the Mitchell Bowl. The Yates Cup Ontario conference championship team, the Western Mustangs, visited the Québec conference Dunsmore Cup winners, the Montreal Carabins, for the Uteck Bowl.[14] These games were played on November 18, 2023, while the Vanier Cup was played on November 25, 2023.[14]

Conference championships

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Atlantic University Sport

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November 4
Semi-finals
November 11
32nd Loney Bowl
      
1 St. Francis Xavier 36
4 St. Mary's 20
1 St. Francis Xavier 34
2 Bishop's 23
2 Bishop's 34
3 Mount Allison 15

Canada West

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November 4
Semi-finals
November 11
86th Hardy Trophy
      
1 UBC 29
4 Manitoba 21
1 UBC 28
2 Alberta 27
2 Alberta 40
3 Saskatchewan 17

Ontario University Athletics

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October 28
Quarter-finals
November 4
Semi-finals
November 11
115th Yates Cup
         
1 Western 47
4 Queen's 20
4 Queen's 15
5 Ottawa 10
1 Western 29
2 Laurier 14
2 Laurier 69
7 Waterloo 0
2 Laurier 21
3 Windsor 14
3 Windsor 14
6 Carleton 11

Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec

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November 4
Demi-finales
November 11
42e Coupe Dunsmore
      
1 Montréal 54
4 Sherbrooke 3
1 Montréal 12
2 Laval 6
2 Laval 34
3 Concordia 27

National championship

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November 18th
Semi-finals
November 25th
Final
 
      
 
Uteck BowlMontreal, QC
 
 
Montreal29
 
Vanier CupKingston, ON
 
Western3
 
Montreal16
 
Mitchell BowlVancouver, BC
 
UBC9
 
UBC47
 
 
St. Francis Xavier17
 

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "New OUA football season kicks off August 26th". Ontario University Athletics. January 19, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "2023 AUS fall sports schedules released". Atlantic University Sport. April 20, 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Schedule announced for 151st year of McGill football program". McGill Redmen. April 27, 2023.
  4. ^ a b "2023 season kicks off across Canada West on September 1st". Canada West. April 25, 2023.
  5. ^ "Queen's University to host the 2023 and 2024 Vanier Cup". U Sports. Retrieved 2023-04-01.
  6. ^ "U Sports Championship Information". U Sports. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
  7. ^ "Maya Turner kicks OT winner after becoming 1st woman to play regular-season U Sports football game". CBC News. Retrieved 2023-09-24.
  8. ^ "Atlantic University Sport regular season competition set to kick off this weekend". Atlantic University Sport. August 23, 2023.
  9. ^ "Football universitaire : Jonathan Sénécal est choisi joueur par excellence". RSEQ. November 10, 2023.
  10. ^ "Elgersma earns MVP honours to headline quartet of Golden Hawk award winners". Ontario University Athletics. November 8, 2023.
  11. ^ "2023 AUS football major award winners and all-stars announced". Atlantic University Sport. November 3, 2023.
  12. ^ "Alberta's Peterson named CW Player of the Year". Canada West. November 9, 2023.
  13. ^ a b "Montréal's Jonathan Sénécal wins 2023 Hec Crighton Award". U Sports. November 24, 2023.
  14. ^ a b "U Sports Championship Information". U Sports. September 13, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2023.