The Alberta Golden Bears and Pandas are the sports teams that represent the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Alberta athletics teams have won a total of 101 national championships, including 84 in U Sports sanctioned sports, making it one of the most successful programs in the country.
Brian Fryer is a former football player who starred at wide receiver for the University of Alberta, and played professionally for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) and the Edmonton Eskimos and Ottawa Rough Riders of the Canadian Football League (CFL).
U Sports football is the highest level of amateur play of Canadian football and operates under the auspices of U Sports, Canada's governing body for university sports. Twenty-seven teams from Canadian universities are divided into four athletic conferences, drawing from the four regional associations of U Sports: Canada West Universities Athletic Association, Ontario University Athletics, Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec, and Atlantic University Sport. At the end of every season, the champions of each conference advance to semifinal bowl games; the winners of these meet in the Vanier Cup national championship.
Chris Morris is a Canadian former professional Canadian football offensive lineman who is the president and CEO for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played for 14 seasons and 237 regular season games as a member of the Elks and is a three-time Grey Cup champion. He also served as head coach for the University of Alberta's football team, the Alberta Golden Bears, for 12 years.
The McGill Redbirds football team represents McGill University in Canadian football in U Sports and is based in Montreal, Quebec. The program is one of the oldest in all of Canada, having begun organized competition in 1874. The team won its first collegiate championship in 1902 and also won in 1912, 1913, 1919, 1928, 1938 and 1960 prior to the inauguration of the Vanier Cup in 1965. McGill appeared in the Vanier Cup final in 1969, 1973 and 1987, with the Redmen finally winning the title in the 1987 game. McGill plays out of Percival Molson Memorial Stadium, where the Canadian Football League's Montreal Alouettes also play.
The McMaster Marauders football team represents McMaster University based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The team plays U Sports football in the Ontario University Athletics conference. The Marauders have been playing organized football since 1901 when they played their first exhibition game in the Canadian Intercollegiate Rugby Football Union. The team has appeared in four Vanier Cup games, winning one in 2011.
Tommy Denison is a former quarterback in Canadian Interuniversity Sport and a football coach. He is currently an analyst for the Edmonton Elks of the CFL, a role he has held since 2023. Previous to this he was the offensive coordinator for York University's football team, the York Lions of U Sports. As a player, he is a two-time All-Canadian and two-time winner of the Hec Crighton Trophy in 2002 and 2003. He played professionally for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Calgary Stampeders, and Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL).
Greg Vavra is a Canadian former professional football quarterback who played five seasons in the Canadian Football League (CFL) with the Calgary Stampeders, BC Lions and Edmonton Eskimos. He played CIAU football for the Calgary Dinosaurs and won the Hec Crighton Trophy in 1983.
The University of Ottawa Gee-Gees football team represents the University of Ottawa in the sport of Canadian football. The Gee-Gees compete in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) conference of U Sports. Football at the University of Ottawa began in 1881, it was one of the first established football programs in Canada.
The Calgary Dinos football team represents the University of Calgary in the sport of Canadian football in U Sports. The Dinos program has been in operation since 1964, winning the Vanier Cup national championship five times, the most out of any of the Canada West teams. The Dinos have also won the Hardy Trophy conference championship 18 times, including six consecutive wins from 2008 to 2013. The team appeared in the 2013 and 2016 Vanier Cup, but lost both years to the Laval Rouge et Or.
The UBC Thunderbirds football team represents the University of British Columbia athletics teams in U Sports and is based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Thunderbirds program has won the CWUAA Hardy Trophy conference championship 17 times, which is third all-time among competing teams. On a national level, the team has won the Vanier Cup championship four times, in 1982, 1986, 1997 and, most recently, in 2015. The team has also lost twice in the title game, in 1978 and 1987. The Thunderbirds program has also yielded three Hec Crighton Trophy winners: Jordan Gagner in 1987, Mark Nohra in 1997, and, most recently, Billy Greene in 2011.
The Waterloo Warriors football team represents the University of Waterloo in the sport of Canadian football in U Sports. The Warriors U Sports football program has been in operation since 1957, winning two Yates Cup conference championships in 1997 and 1999. Currently, they are one of six teams to have never appeared in a Vanier Cup game and the longest tenured program in the OUA to have never qualified for the national championship game.
The Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks football team represents Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario in the sport of Canadian football in the Ontario University Athletics conference of U Sports. The Golden Hawks football team has been in continuous operation since 1961 and has been playing U Sports football in every year since 1962. The team has appeared in five Vanier Cup championships, losing in 1966, 1968 and 1972, and winning the national title in 1991 and 2005. The team has also won eight Yates Cup conference championships, most recently in 2016. The Golden Hawks have had one Hec Crighton Trophy winner, Bill Kubas, a former quarterback who won the award in 1994.
The Montreal Carabins football team represents the University of Montreal in Montreal, Quebec in the sport of Canadian football in U Sports. The Carabins program has been in operation since its resurrection in the 2002 football season and has established itself as a provincial and national powerhouse with five RSEQ conference championships and two national championships, in 2014 and 2023.
Jimmy Ralph is a former professional Canadian football wide receiver. He began his professional career with the Toronto Argonauts in 2017 where he won his first Grey Cup as a member of the 105th Grey Cup championship team.
Kurleigh Gittens Jr. is a Guyanese professional Canadian football wide receiver for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played U Sports football for the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks where he was the OUA Most Valuable Player in 2017.
Edward Ilnicki is a former Canadian football running back who played U Sports football and is a Hec Crighton Trophy winner.
Tre Ford is a Canadian professional football quarterback for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was named a Hec Crighton Trophy winner in 2021 as U Sports football's most outstanding player and won the Lois and Doug Mitchell Award as U Sports top male university athlete.
Tyson Philpot is a Canadian professional football wide receiver for the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League (CFL).
Josiah Schakel is a Canadian professional football linebacker for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played U Sports football at Alberta. He has also been a member of the Calgary Stampeders.
