Simon Fraser Red Leafs football

Last updated

Simon Fraser Red Leafs football
Simon-fraser logo from NCAA.svg
First season1965
Last season2022
Athletic directorVacant
Head coachMike Rigell
2nd season, 2–16 (.111)
Stadium Terry Fox Field
Field surfaceArtificial turf
Conference Lone Star
All-time record1863212 (.367)
Bowl record01 (.000)
Conference titles1 (2003)
Current uniform
NCAA SFU Jersey 2019.png
ColorsRed and White
   
MascotMcFogg the Dog
Website athletics.sfu.ca

The SFU Red Leafs football or Simon Fraser Red Leafs football team represented Simon Fraser University since the athletic department's inception in 1965 until 2022. The team played by American rules while they competed in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics from 1965 to 2001 against other American teams. Along with other SFU teams, the football program transferred to Canadian Interuniversity Sport (now U Sports) and thereby switched to playing Canadian football against Canadian University teams in 2002. While playing in the CIS, SFU won its first and only Hardy Trophy conference championship in 2003 while qualifying for the playoffs twice. After playing eight seasons in the Canada West Conference of the CIS, the football team began competing in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference of NCAA Division II in 2010, and have played the American format of football again since. [1] Kristie Elliott became the first Canadian woman to play, and to score, in an NCAA football game, on September 11, 2021, as a kicker for the team. [2] [3] After the GNAC dropped football after the 2021 season, SFU and the other two GNAC members that still sponsored the sport became football-only members of the Lone Star Conference. [4] After the 2022 season, it was announced on April 4, 2023, that football would be dropped from the school after it was previously announced the Lone Star Conference was ending its affiliation with Simon Fraser after the 2023–24 season. [5]

Contents

The team previously used the names "Clansmen" and "Clan;" those names were retired in 2020. [6] The new nickname "Red Leafs" was announced in September 2022. [7]

Rivalry

The team had maintained a cross-town rivalry with the Vancouver-based University of British Columbia Thunderbirds as they are also the only two universities in British Columbia that field football teams. Since 1967, the two teams have competed in the Shrum Bowl, an annual game played at alternating venues with alternating rules. SFU holds a 17–16–1 series lead after winning in three consecutive years from 2008 to 2010 to claim the lead. Due to the two schools playing in two different leagues, the scheduling of these games has often been difficult, with no game being played from 2011 to 2021. [8] The Shrum Bowl was revived and played again on December 2, 2022, where UBC defeated SFU 18-17 under American rules. [9]

Season results

YearCoachOverallConferenceStandingBowl/playoffs Highest#Final°
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA)(1965–2001)
Canada West (CIS)(2002–2009)
2002Chris Beaton2–66thNRNR
2003Chris Beaton5–32ndW Canada West semi-final
W Hardy Trophy
L Uteck Bowl
88
2004Chris Beaton3–56th6NR
2005Chris Beaton0–7–17thNRNR
2006Frank Boehres0–7–17thNRNR
2007 Dave Johnson 0–87thNRNR
2008Dave Johnson5–34thW Canada West semi-final
L Hardy Trophy
78
2009Dave Johnson1–6 (*)7th7NR
CIS:16–47–2
Great Northwest (NCAA Division II)(2010–2021)
2010Dave Johnson1–9 (0–9 NCAA)0–85thNRNR
2011Dave Johnson3–72–64thNRNR
2012Dave Johnson5–64–64thNRNR
2013Dave Johnson3–73–75thNRNR
2014 Jacques Chapdelaine 2–92–75thNRNR
2015 Kelly Bates 0–90–67thNRNR
2016Kelly Bates0–100–85thNRNR
2017Kelly Bates0–100–85thNRNR
2018Thomas Ford1–80–75thNRNR
2019Thomas Ford1–91–53rdNRNR
2021 Mike Rigell1–70–43rdNRNR
Lone Star Conference (NCAA Division II)(2022)
2022 Mike Rigell1–91–810th (Last)NRNR
NCAA:18–9913–80
Total:
      National championship        Conference title        Conference division title or championship game berth
  • #Highest rank during the course of the season (NR=not ranked).
  • °Final rank.
  • Since 2000, the final rankings were released following the playoffs.

[10]

(*) In 2009, two victories were nullified because CWUAA accused SFU for having ineligible players in both games. However, SFU argued that they followed CWUAA's guidelines perfectly and that the player was eligible at the time of the accusation. The Manitoba Bisons also used an ineligible player in a Simon Fraser win, so the game was declared "no contest."

Head coaches

NameYearsNotes
Lorne Davies 1965–1972
Bob De Julius1973–1979
Rod Woodward 1980–1982
Chris Beaton1983–2005
Frank Boehres2006
Dave Johnson 2007–2013
Jacques Chapdelaine 2014
Kelly Bates 2015–2017
Thomas Ford2018–2019
Mike Rigell2020–2022

CIS playoff results

Red Leafs in the CFL

Lemar Durant with SFU in 2012. Lemar Durant, SFU Football, 2012.jpg
Lemar Durant with SFU in 2012.

Since the program first began in 1965, Simon Fraser University has had the most first overall selections with five. [11] [12]

As of the start of the 2024 CFL season, five former SFU players were on CFL teams' rosters:

[13]

Red Leafs in the NFL

Former SFU wide receiver Victor Marshall was invited to the Seattle Seahawks rookie camp in May 2013 and earned a contract on May 13 to take part in Organized Team Activities and training camp as a tight end. [14] On July 30, 2013, the Seahawks released Marshall during training camp. [15]

On April 27, 2018, former SFU DE Nathan Shepherd was selected 72nd overall in the 2018 NFL draft by the New York Jets and made the 53-man roster out of training camp. As of the end of the 2023 NFL season, Shepherd was on the New Orleans Saints' roster.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lone Star Conference</span> American collegiate athletic conference

The Lone Star Conference (LSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Member institutions are located in the South Central states, with schools in Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico, with two members in the Pacific Northwest states of Oregon and Washington competing as affiliates for football only.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon Fraser Red Leafs</span> Athletic teams of Simon Fraser University

The SFU Red Leafs or Simon Fraser Red Leafs teams represent Simon Fraser University (SFU), which is located in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. The Red Leafs are members of NCAA Division II and are the only Canadian university affiliated with the U.S.-based National Collegiate Athletic Association. The teams previously used the nicknames "Clan" and "Clansmen," which were used as a tribute to the Scottish heritage of the university's namesake, Simon Fraser. The names were retired in 2020 due to the negative connotation surrounding those terms. In September 2022, the updated nickname "Red Leafs" was announced.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NCAA Division II</span> Intermediate-level division of competition in college sports

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canada West Universities Athletic Association</span> Association for universities in Western Canada

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shrum Bowl</span> Canadian university football rivalry

The Shrum Bowl was a university rivalry game played between the gridiron football teams of the University of British Columbia (UBC) Thunderbirds and the Simon Fraser University (SFU) Red Leafs. The game was named after Gordon Shrum who was a professor and later a dean at UBC from 1925 to 1961 and served as the first chancellor of SFU from 1964 to 1968. It was a cross-town rivalry with UBC being located in the University Endowment Lands just west of Vancouver, British Columbia, and SFU located approximately 30 kilometres away in Burnaby, British Columbia.

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Jordan Herdman-Reed is a Canadian professional football linebacker for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football with the Simon Fraser Clan. His twin brother Justin Herdman-Reed also plays in the CFL.

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Justin Herdman-Reed is a Canadian professional football linebacker for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football with the Simon Fraser Clan. His twin brother Jordan Herdman-Reed also plays in the CFL.

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References

  1. Simon Fraser University (July 10, 2009). "SFU first Canadian school in NCAA". Simon Fraser University. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
  2. "Kristie Elliott becomes first woman in Canada to play and score in a college football game". The Peak. November 21, 2021.
  3. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/sfu-football-first-canadian-woman-scores-1.6179046
  4. "Three football teams to join LSC as affiliate members" (Press release). Lone Star Conference. November 18, 2021. Retrieved July 10, 2022.
  5. "Simon Fraser, NCAA's Only Canadian Member School, Ends Football Program" Sports Illustrated. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  6. "SFU Athletics name change". SFU Athletics. August 12, 2020.
  7. "SFU Announces New Varsity Team Name". SFU Athletics. September 6, 2022.
  8. Josh Curran (August 30, 2011). "Shrum Bowl called off for 2011 season". The Ubyssey. Archived from the original on March 3, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
  9. "Shrum Bowl rebirth ends in Red Leaf 18-17 loss in front of 2,922 fans". Simon Fraser Red Leafs. December 2, 2022.
  10. "SFU Clan football Year by Year Record". Archived from the original on May 17, 2011. Retrieved December 14, 2012.
  11. "2021 CFL Draft Guide" (PDF). Canadian Football League . Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  12. "SFU CFL Draft". SFU Athletics. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  13. "CFL players". Canadian Football League . Retrieved June 15, 2024.
  14. Seahawks make roster moves
  15. Seahawks make roster moves