St. Clair Saints (football)

Last updated

St. Clair Saints
St. Clair Saints Logo.png
Founded1929
Based in Windsor Ontario, Canada
Home fieldSt. Clair College Sports Park
Head coachMike LaChance
Owner(s)Saints Student Athletic Association Inc.
League Canadian Junior Football League
Division Ontario Football Conference
ColoursGreen, Gold, and White
   
Nickname(s)Frat, AKO
League titles4 (1952, 1954, 1999, 2024)
Website saintsathletics.ca

The St. Clair Saints are a Canadian football team based in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The team has played in the Canadian Junior Football League's Ontario Football Conference since the 1940s and won national titles in 1952, 1954, 1999, and 2024. The team was known as the Windsor AKO Fratmen until 2020 when the team was purchased by St. Clair College's Student Athletic Association. [1]

Contents

History

Logo of the Windsor Fratmen. Windsorfrat.jpg
Logo of the Windsor Fratmen.

The team was sponsored by the AKO Fraternity and dates back to 1929, making it the longest-running community organization providing a junior football program in Canada without interruption. The AKO Fraternity is a non-profit, fraternal organization dedicated to supporting and sponsoring youth in amateur sports. [2] [3] The Fratmen played at Fratmen Field at Windsor Stadium from 1953 to 2014. The team later played their home games at Ecole E.J. Lajeunesse and at Alumni Field at the University of Windsor. [4]

Logo of the St. Clair Fratmen. St. Clair Fratmen Logo.png
Logo of the St. Clair Fratmen.

On January 22, 2014, AKO Fraternity announced it had sold the Team to Mike Morencie, a former player, Head Coach and Defensive Coordinator. In May of the same year, St Clair College and the Fratmen announced a partnership which will help college-bound students the opportunity to play in the CJFL. The Fratmen had hoped to call St Clair College their home field pending a planned domed stadium being built on the Windsor Campus.

Morencie sold the team to the St. Clair College Student Athletic Association in February 2020 in a deal whereby Morencie, head coach Mike Lachance and other Fratmen staff retain control of football operations while the Student Athletic Association take on the business side and game-day operations. [5]

Notable players

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References

  1. ↑ "Saints Student Athletic Association Purchase Fratmen Football". St. Clair College. February 21, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Windsor AKO Fratmen exhibit at Hall of Fame". cfl.ca. June 25, 2006.
  3. ↑ "Morencie buys Fratmen team". Windsor Star. January 23, 2014. Retrieved November 15, 2017.
  4. ↑ College, St. Clair. "St. Clair College - News & Events - College Announces Innovative Partnership with AKO Fratmen Football". www.stclaircollege.ca. Retrieved November 15, 2017.
  5. ↑ Caton, Mary (February 22, 2020). "St. Clair Student Athletic Association buys AKO Fratmen football team". The Windsor Star . Retrieved April 18, 2020.
  6. ↑ "Tommy Grant". Windsor / Essex County Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
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