The Trippers...

It just doesn't matter! It just doesn't matter! ...

... what thinking is behind people in Toronto jumping for joy that Leafs defencemen Tomas Kaberle and Pavel Kubina have waived their no-trade clauses so they can be dealt away. Southern Ontario folk are not sentimental; they barely give a thought to Maple Leaf Gardens, and it's still sitting there.

... that recycled NHL coaches (morning, Michel Therrien) are getting booted to the curb for younger men who have been in the minors learning to be teach and coach. Only journalists would be shocked to learn you can get ahead by working on your craft instead of schmoozing.

... that there is some major facts-plus-fiction in any contention that Canadian Michael Janyk's World Cup bronze in a predictor of Olympic medals. Downhill skiing is random. Miss a gate, catch an edge, you're out of the medals. Please look up how many World Cup medals Kerrin-Lee Gartner during the 12-month build-up to her gold in Albertville in 1992. (Zero, although she had eight top 10 finishes.)

... that having two players share an award, even in an all-star game, should never happen in sports. It is a total dodge to say two people were exactly as worthy. That said, the NBA All-Star game was perfect for Shaquille O'Neal, since it's played at half-speed.

... if a Vancouver columnist writing about the UBC Thunderbirds basketball team forgets the CIS Final 8 is in Ottawa ("all this talent is threatening to meld into a unit capable of hacking through the horror of Halifax," emphasis mine).

... that Elgin Baylor's lawsuit against L.A. Clippers owner Donald Sterling is about the difference between tolerance and respect.

... that rainy weather did not put a damper on the Daytona 500. The U.S. economy is doing that quite well already.

... that the Kitchener Rangers looked more like a team headed in a positive direction losing to the London Knights in overtime than the Kingston Frontenacs did when they beat London. (A two-game win streak did little to pacify Save The Fronts.)

This post is worth nothing, but this is worth noting:

• Former major-league closer Byung-Hyun Kim is going to miss the World Baseball Classic after his passport went missing. The other 27 players on Team Korea are all suspects.
  
• There should be a rule that forbids sports columnists from using children or family members as a crude writing device. If you go there, you've lost already.
  
• LeBron James is better than Kobe Bryant. So it is written, so it is done.
• OK, so Tim Raines and Andre Dawson aren't going into Cooperstown this summer, the late Tom Cheek and Sun Media's Bob Elliott just missed going into the media wing ... but the newest member of the writers' wing, Nick Peters, is married to a Montrealer. So Canada at least some representation at Hall of Fame induction weekend, really.

CIS Countdown #1: Laval Rouge et Or

Fast facts: Laval motored through last season until the Uteck Bowl, when it was overwhelmed by a great defensive play from Saint Mary's, who outemotioned and outworked a team that hadn't lost a meaningful game in two years. Laval was still lights-out better than most of its opponents all season and will return most of its offensive and defensive lines, while one can only assume fourth-year QB Benoit Groulx, who is trying to match Mathieu Bertrand's feat of winning two Vanier Cups as a starting quarterback, itching to play a full season after a high ankle sprain limited him for much of last season.

Groulx's backfield mate, Pierre-Luc Yao, has moved on, but Guillaume Allard-Caméus and Samuel Fournier, among others, should be able to provide a running game. Defensively, Laval has its entire front four back and shouldn't suffer a huge drop-off from last season, when it had the second-ranked D in the CIS next to Saint Mary's.

The schedule also stacks up favourably, with only one cross-over game, against a very young Acadia team. As well, in the CIS rotation, it's Quebec's turn to host a semi-final game. All-time, Laval is 1-3 when it's had to travel for the natinnl semi-final, but is 3-0 when it's been able to play at PEPS Stadium.

Coach: Glen Constantin (8th season)

Co-ordinators: Justin Éthier, offence; Marc Fortier, defence; Francesco Pepe Esposito, special teams

Enrolment: 28,902

Alumni in the CFL: Eskimos FB Mathieu Bertrand and RB Pierre-Luc Yao, Stampeders DL Miguel Robede, Blue Bombers OL Alexandre Gauthier and Dominic Picard, Alouettes S Pascal Masson, Alouettes LB Mathieu Proulx. Former linebacker Sébastien Sejean, a native of France, is also on the St. Louis Rams development team.

Famous non-football alumni: Former prime ministers Jean Chrétien, Louis St. Laurent, and Brian Mulroney; Conrad Black, former author and businessman; basically every single politician in the history of Québec.

Three-year record: 23-1

2007 unit rankings: 3rd on offence, 2nd on defence

Key losses: RB Pierre-Luc Yao, WR-KR Duane John, LB Éric Maranda, DB Jean Petit-Frère, DL Roody Jean

Returning starters: Groulx's blocking group includes three returnees -- Luc Brodeur-Jourdain (an Alouettes draft choice), Louis-David Gagné and Vincent Turgeon. The front four essentially returns intact with Étienne Légaré, Jean-Philippe Gilbert and ends Marc-Antoine Beaudoin-Cloutier and Jean-Philippe Cormier, plus whoever else rotates in on passing downs.

Defensive halfback Samuel Lajoie and Jonathan Laliberte also bear watching. Defensive

Players to watch: Groulx completed 72% of his attempts in the four games where he was able to play. He was sacked eight times against just 100 attempts, which was actually up from 2006, when he was dropped just six times. It's not surprising that there's been rumblings his backups Cesar-Roberto Sanchez and Bruno Prud'homme, getting some major burn. Chances are, it's just a smokescreen.

The Rouge et Or could also have a rookie starting left tackle, David Bouchard,

For future reference: Laval's 26-member recruiting class should offer a few players who can shore up holes on the roster right away. In addition to Bouchard, the likely suspects include linebacker Samuel Lavaud and 300-lb. defensive tackle Philippe Lemire.

Former Edmonton Wildcats tailback Tristan Jones (son of 1980s CFL fullback Milson Jones, who won a couple Grey Cup rings in his day) initally committed to Laval in the summer. There is talk that he has left Laval's camp.

Schedule (swing games in bold):
Sept. 7 Montréal
Sept. 13 @ Acadia
Sept. 20 @ Concordia (RDS)
Sept. 28 Concordia
Oct. 3 @ McGill (RDS)
Oct. 11 @ Bishop's (RDS)
Oct. 19 Sherbrooke (RDS)
Oct. 25 McGill

The Rouge et Or play home-and-home series with Concordia and McGill.

Final analysis: They still have to play the games of course, but it would be surprising if Laval's not headed west for a national semi-final on Nov. 15 as they go after Vanier Cup No. 5, which would move the program within one of Western's record six.

An Ottawa-Laval Vanier Cup, with Josh Sacobie trying to pick apart an airtight Rouge et Or defence, well, that doesn't sound half-bad at all.

Constantin's crew has a little more to play for after last season's unravelling. Winning three national titles in four years can cause everyone work just little less harder, regardless of if anyone's willing to admit to it. Getting the Vanier back is a motivating factor for the one team in the country for whom No. 2 is not good enough.

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece and Duane Rollins, with special thanks to Laval SID Jérôme Pelletier.)

CIS Countdown #2: Ottawa Gee-Gees

Fast facts: In five years, someone might look back at the 2007 Gee-Gees and wonder how they managed not to be in the Yates Cup. They were unbeaten in the regular season, riding off the Josh Sacobie-led passing game and the No. 1 defence in the land. They ended up on the wrong side of one of the most random seasons in OUA history, giving up two long Michael Faulds-to-David Clayton and losing 23-16 to Western in the OUA semi-fina.

Sacobie has lost two of his best blockers and the Gee-Gees lost their defensive co-ordinator, but there's enough continuity to ride out the transition. Fans of eerie coincidences should be aware of the similarities to the Gee-Gees' last Vanier Cup in 2000. That team also had a fifth-year QB and was looking to ease the sting of a season where they failed to win the conference after running the table in the regular season. Oddly enough, these Gee-Gees also face the same scenario that they did in 2006 -- opening vs. Western, the team who ended their season the previous fall.

Former Hec Crighton Trophy nominee Ivan Birungi has come aboard and the Gee-Gees, who several players take boxing lessons this summer as a motivational technique, look to be locked and loaded.

Coach: Denis Piché (7th season). Piché has restored the Gee-Gees to the same level the program was at in the late '90s, an era that was capped off with a Vanier Cup win over Regina in 2000. The Gee-Gees might struggle for media and fan attention in Hockey Country, but being in a large city with a good grass-roots football community hasn't hurt them when it comes to putting together a good coaching staff and a recruiting base on each side of the provincial border.

Co-ordinators: Chris Coulson, co-offensive; Blaine Scatcherd, co-offensive; Phil Roberts, defensive; Steve Gauvreau, special teams.

Enrolment: 30,882

Alumni in the CFL: Lions WR Adam Nicolson, Eskimos DE Adrian Baird, 'Riders DB Scott Gordon, 'Riders LS Jocelyn Frenette, Blue Bombers DB Richard Holness; DB Delroy Clarke is on the Toronto Argonauts practice roster.

Famous non-football alumni: Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek; The Daily Show correspondent Samantha Bee; celebrity fitness trainer Jeanette Jenkins; the late ABC News anchor Peter Jennings; author Carol Shields; former federal cabinet minister Allan Rock (now uOttawa's president).

Three-year record: 21-3 (one of four teams with 20 regular-season wins since the start of 2005)

2007 unit rankings: 2nd offence, 1st defence

Key losses: C Kevin Kelly, G Naim El-Far, LB Mike Cornell, DBs Alexandre Hoad, Delroy Clarke and Steven Holness; K-P Ara Tchobanian. Tchobanian's booming kickoffs practically served as a 13th defender for the Gee-Gees the past few years.

Returning starters: 10 offence, 10 defence

Players to watch: As noted, Sacobie, Regina QB Teale Orban and McGill's Matt Connell are in a race to see who can become the all-time CIS leader in passing yards; Orban and Sacobie each have a shot at the touchdown-pass record. Sacobie is 2,260 yards and 24 TDs off the marks held, respectively, by ex-McMaster star Ben Chapdelaine and Saint Mary's legend Chris Flynn.

LT Kyle Kirkwood, who lost his 2007 season to a knee injury, is back to protect the QB's blind side. Tailbacks Davie Mason and Justin Hammond combined for more than 1,000 yards last season. Sacobie and his heir apparent, Brad Sinopoli, will have mostly the same receiving group. Birungi can create matchup problems for most teams, or at least he did in his Acadia days.

The Gee-Gees were hurt by graduation in the secondary, but Burnaby, B.C., native Chayce Elliott, who previously played safety of NCAA D-2 Western Washington, could help out at the halfback or safety spots once he becomes eligible to play midway through the regular season. Veteran DLs Tyler Dawe, Sébastien Tetrault and Dan Kennedy should help them get pressure on the passer while only bringing four or five rushers, which would do a retooled secondary a friggin' favour. Former Queen's star Ian Hazlett should finally join Joe Barnes at linebacker after missing last season with a knee injury.

For future reference: The Gee-Gees are one of the toughest team in the OUA for a player straight from high school to get a foothold with. One rookie to root for is running back Sean Lajeunnesse, who was Mr. Everything when he helped the St. Mark Lions dominate Ottawa-area competition over the past three years. Luigi DeLillis, who kicked the winning field goal in the final minute for the Ottawa Jr. Riders of the Québec Junior Football League championship game last season, came into training camp expected to compete for a starting position.  

Schedule (swing games in bold):
Sept. 1 @ Western
Sept. 6 York
Sept. 13 @ McMaster
Sept. 20 Waterloo
Sept. 27 @ Windsor
Oct. 4 Laurier
Oct. 11 @ Queen's
Oct. 18 Toronto

The Gee-Gees miss Guelph in the OUA's schedule rotation. They could see each other in the playoffs, though.

Final analysis: It's almost as if the less you hear out of Ottawa, the better. This is easily the Yates Cup favourite; as a dot-orger put it, "The Gee Gees are the real deal, they're back, and they're pissed off."

Teams that have been for a few seasons and have senior standouts on offence can often be taken for granted, but the difference here is the Gee-Gees are not a soft team, especially on defence. That might explain the boxing lessons -- perhaps there was a feeling they were getting a little too technocratic and clincial last season and needed to get back to playing more off emotion, the way their 2006 team that was a couple minutes from a Vanier Cup trip did.

The OUA playoffs aren't a cakewalk. The possiblity a long layoff caused by closing the regular season vs. Toronto and then having a first-round bye won't do any favours for the Gee-Gees' focus, but great teams find a way not to need alibis. An Ottawa-Laval matchup in the Vanier Cup -- hey, some of us wouldn't mind it if those teams were in the same conference again -- seems like a decent bet.

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins.)

CIS Countdown #3: Laurier Golden Hawks

Fast facts: Laurier's run of four straight Yates Cup appearances ended somewhat unexpectedly, with Guelph snatching away the OUA semi-final on the Hawks' home turf, 38-31, after being down 24-0 barely 15 minutes into the game. What was that in the lead-up to last season about how, "something bad is going to happen to (Laurier), it has to?"

Laurier is going to be a much younger team this season. The Hawks have lost three starting receivers, three starting offensive linemen and an impact front-seven defender, Anthony Maggiocomo. It also has a second-year starting QB, Ian Noble, whose only proven target, third-year slotback Josh Bishop, was limited to three games last season. The Golden Hawks do have an OUA-best skein of five straight seasons of finishing at least 6-2 in the regular season, and their coaching compares favourably with any OUA team's, so they'll be right in there in the OUA again.

Coach: Gary Jeffries, sixth season. Anyone who wasn't happy to see the career Golden Hawk -- he played defensive back for the school and was defensive co-ordinator for 17 seasons before taking over the head job officially in 2003 -- guide his team to a perfect season in 2005 doesn't have a soul, you know that, right?

Co-ordinators: Ryan Pyear, offence; Ron VanMoerkerke, defence; Josh Alexander, special teams. Former Guelph coach Tom Arnott has joined the program as an offensive line coach.

Enrolment: 11,869 undergraduate

Alumni in the CFL: Roughriders WR Corey Grant, 'Riders LB Yannick Carter, Blue Bombers DB Ian Logan, Blue Bombers LB Anthony Maggiacomo, Argos WR Andre Talbot, Alouettes DB Joel Wright

Famous non-football alumni: McGill University principal Heather Munroe-Blum, 2002 Olympic hockey gold medallist Cheryl Pounder, hip-hop artist Shad, retired pro wrestler Lance Storm.

Three-year record: 21-3

2007 units ranking: Fourth on offence, fifth on defence

Key losses: LB Anthony Maggiocomo, WRs Andy Baechler, and Dante Luciani, C Andrew Dietrich, OL Kyle Sanderson and Tyler Felber, DBs Jahmeeks Beckford and Brent Hickey, KR Steve Turner

Returning starters: 6 offence, 6 defence; fourth-kicker Chris Mamo returns

Players to watch: On defence, Giancarlo. Luke Pinder is the best 'backer on a group that was second-stingiest in the OUA against the run last season, but was unable to keep Guelph halfback Nick Fitzgibbon from running wild in the playoff game. Cornerback Taurean Allen is among the OUA's best.

Offensively, the quarterback at Laurier might be the most scrutinized player in the OUA. Ian Noble had a good first season as the starter, but every Hawks QB inevitably gets compared to Ryan Pyear, which means the bar is set very high. As well, being completely tongue-in-cheek here, understudy Luke Thompson has a much more professional-looking highlight reel of his high school exploits.

Josh Bishop and Jim Martyniuk are the most experienced pass-catchers in Laurier's camp. Judging from the highlight-reel catch he made against U of T two years ago, it looks like Josh Bishop's hands are so big he could play box lacrosse without a stick.

Laurier has slipped from being second and third in the country in yards-per-pass during their Yates Cup years to 10th and 11th the past two seasons; it's quite something to see that they completed only 11 TD passes last season. That's going to have to improve.

For future reference: Linebacker Mitchell Bosch, who drew interest from no less a NCAA powerhouse than the Oklahoma Sooners, was considered one of the big gets of Laurier's incoming class. Cornerback Courtney Stephen also has his own YouTube channel. Suffice to say, it's appointment viewing.

The newbies also include Chris Rossetti, the quarterback on St. Michael's College's Metro Bowl championship team last fall (no word if he's descended from the other Chris Rossetti).

Schedule (swing games in bold):
Sept. 1 Guelph
Sept. 6 Western
Sept. 13 @ Queen's
Sept. 20 Windsor
Sept. 27 @ Waterloo
Oct. 4 @ Ottawa
Oct. 11 McMaster
Oct. 18 @ York

The Golden Hawks miss U of T in the schedule rotation.

Final analysis: The combination of a young team and a challenging early-season schedule could really stretch the positivity that's fairly abounded around the Laurier program since, oh, about 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2003, when it came from 10 points down on the road to upset Queen's in the playoffs.

The Golden Hawks face three good defences right off the hop, two of whom, Guelph and Queen's, combined to hold Lynch to 2.8 yards per carry in the regular-season games last season. Laurier won both those games, but that was when it had Baechler and Luciani. They were outgained badly in the Guelph game before a blocked punt for a touchdown turned the tide; it's almost like they beat the Gryphons in their first meeting last fall out of habit as much as anything else.

That's not a dig. Laurier is entitled to their innings, as they say in cricket. They probably will be a 5-3 team, but no one will want to see them in the playoffs, though. (The worst-case scenario for the Gaels -- Laurier starts 0-2 and will be ticked-off when they come to Kingston on Sept. 13.)

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins.)

CIS Countdown #4: Saint Mary's Huskies

Fast facts: Talk about a Faustian compact of sorts. The Huskies had a dream season in 2007, shutting down Laval in a 24-2 pasting in the Uteck Bowl. In that game, though, Hec Crighton Trophy-winning quarterback Erik Glavic sustained a serious knee injury, which hurt the Huskies' chances vs. Manitoba in the Vanier Cup. Glavic's status for the start of the season is still uncertain. Left-hander Ted Abraham is a viable option, so SMU not in such a huge a predicament at QB. The graduation of their best lineman, right tackle Isaac Robinson, also leaves a hole to be filled, but Saint Mary's for the most part has a good track record with recruiting and developing offensive linemen.

On the other side of the ball, the Huskies have a new co-ordinator, Danny Laramee, who oversaw the No. 1- and No. 3-ranked defences in the CIS the past two seasons at Ottawa. Cornerback Joel Lipinski, a former all-Canadian in Regina, should help solidify the secondary. Saint Mary's probably will have some new names to learn, since last year's team had a lot of fourth-year players whose status was much-discussed over the summer, but they have enough depth to be a force by November.

Coach: Steve Sumarah, third season. Sumarah, to an extent, followed the same path as Laurier coach Gary Jeffries, although in his case it involves two AUS schools. This is Sumarah's 24th season in the AUS as a player or coach, and judging from afar, he's fairly enconsced in Halifax, which is his hometown.

Co-ordinators: Steve Sumurah, offence; Danny Laramee, defence. Laramee, who was previously at Ottawa, takes over for Mike McLean, the first-year coach at York. There's more on the SMU/Ottawa connection a few paragraphs down.

Enrolment: 8,800

Alumni in the CFL: Eskimos LB Tim St. Pierre, 'Riders OL Steve Morley, Blue Bombers DB Marc Beswick, Als slotback Dave Stala

Famous non-football alumni: CBC Sports commentator Steve Armitage (who was a Huskies quarterback in the 1960s); DaimlerChrysler Canada CEO Steve Landry; Joseph Phillip Kennedy, Chief Justice of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court

Three-year record: 14-9

2007 units ranking: 1st on offence, 9th on defence

Key losses: LB Tim St. Pierre, DB Tyrone Roue, DB Marc Beswick, RB Jacques Lumbala, FB Tyler Schussler, RT Isaac Robinson,

Returnees: Saint Mary's is still early enough in training camp that coaches haven't pinned down who's starting, but we can tell you they have 30 offensive and 28 defensive players — and one kicker — back from last season's team.

Players to watch: Obviously, Glavic has to be first mentioned, in terms of his talent and his well-being. He's not the only Huskie from the Toronto area who's had to get over a knee injury, though. Tailback Glen Downs, who was a high school star at Burlington Central, has worked his way from injury and could end up in the thick of a fight to become the featured back. Jonathan Shreve is a big back, while Craig Leger, a Nova Scotia native, also had his moments in spot duty last season. Allister Blair, who was the No. 2 back last season, hasn't gone anywhere.

Sumarah has used a tailback platoon before, going back to Luis Perez and Dean Jones on the 1999-2001 teams. Among the receivers, slotbacks Darcy Brown and Ryean Warburton, as well as wideout Fraser O'Neill, each have eligibility remaining (it seems best to hedge a little until more info comes about SMU early next week).

Defence might be SMU's strong suit. Lipinski is one of three transfer defensive backs who could help make up for the loss of Beswick and Roue, a halfback, in the secondary. Jeff Zelinski is also a standout cornerback, while Saleem Borhot nailed down the safety spot and had a 102-yard interception-return touchdown last season . While St. Pierre tended to get the spotlight, middle linebacker Andrew King was also vital in the second level of SMU's defence.

For future reference: Saint Mary's had quite the list of newcomers lined up. Quarterback Jack Creighton, who led his Port Colborne, Ont., high school team to a regional championship, could develop into a dual-threat quarterback in the Glavic mold.

Incidentally, Saint Mary's has plenty of Ottawa connections, which might be noteworthy if they end up in a semi-final bowl game vs. the Gee-Gees. Former uOttawa defensive backs Steven Watts and Rainier August are reportedly transferring in to play for their former co-ordinator, Laramee. Their recruiting class, which granted, could be somewhat in flux, includes tackle J.C. Noel and defenders Carson Dowds and Morille Njau, who played junior football in the Ottawa area.

(Just to take it one step farther, Sumarah was a guest coach during a few Ottawa Renegades training camps.)

Schedule (swing games in bold):
Sept. 5 Acadia
Sept. 13 @ Bishop's
Sept. 19 Mount Allison
Sept. 27 @ Acadia (Eastlink)
Oct. 4 @ St. FX (Eastlink)
Oct. 11 Montreal (Eastlink)
Oct. 18 Mount Allison (Eastlink)
Oct. 24 St. FX

Final analysis: Saint Mary's isn't competing for a conference title, it's competing for a national championship. Their depth should be enough to overcome any losses to graduation and come out of the Atlantic conference again. Keep an eye on how they handle their trip to Bishop's in the second week of their season, since one would think that would go a long way toward helping them gell.

The Huskies, who won Vanier Cups in 2001 and '02, seem on course for a bowl matchup vs. Ottawa, which won in 2000. The two teams have never met in a post-season game, although there's already a little history between them.

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins.)

CIS Countdown #5: Western Mustangs

Fast facts: After a lacklustre regular season, and horrific for Western Mustang standards, UWO became the Cinderella story of the playoffs winning the Yates Cup from the No. 6 playoff seed position. After losing the Mitchell Bowl to the eventual Vanier Cup champion Manitoba Bisons, Western returns after a successful recruiting season looking to repeat the Yates Cup victory however with a more successful regular season campaign.

Coach: Greg Marshall, second season.

Record as Head Coach with Western: 7-5 (4-4 regular season, 3-1 postseason)
Overall record as CIS Head Coach: 60-23-2 (46-16-2 regular season, 14-7 postseason)
The highly renowned Greg Marshall, adored in some circles scorned in others. Marshall has an impressive resume that includes both University as well as Professional Head Coaching in Canada – something very uncommon for Coaches born and schooled North of the border.

Co-ordinators: Offensive co-ordinator Greg Marshall, defensive co-ordinator Paul Gleason

Enrolment: 29,500 undergraduate students, 4600 graduate students at UWO and affiliated colleges.

Alumni in the CFL: Western ties for third among CIS schools with 8 former players currently in the CFL as per Duane’s July list: WR Andy Fantuz, OL Tim Bakker, DB Leron Mitchell, OL Mike Abou-Mechrek, DB Nick Kordic, WR Tyler Scott, G Jude St. John, DT Jeff Keeping

Famous non-football alumni: UWO has an impressive list of alumni, just as many other institutions. To name a few: Actors Alan Thicke and Kelly Rowan, Sports Commentators Scott Russell, Elliot Friedman, Duane Forde, Holly Horton and Jennifer Hedger; Politicians Audrey McLaughlin (NDP Leader), Frank de Jong (Green Party Ontario Founder/Leader), and Sheila Copps (Deputy Prime Minister, Liberal).

Three-year record: 20-11-1

2007 unit rankings: Western ranked 3 rd in the OUA on Offence placing them 5 th in the CIS overall, to give an idea about the Offensive firepower of this conference last season. While they were 5 th in Rushing in the conference they made up for it by claiming 2 nd fin Passing to Ottawa. On Defense Western was the top unit in the OUA and 3 rd across the CIS. They were 3 rd in yards allowed on the ground per game and the top spot for passing yards allowed.

Key losses: RB Randy McCauley, WR Dave Clayton, WR Anthony Adderley, WR Tyler Scott, LB Nick Kordic, DL Tom Dolezel, K/P Derek Schiavone

Returning starters:
OFFENCE
QB Michael Faulds: Entering his fourth year with Western in 2008, Faulds comes off his best season after being hampered by injuries in 2005 and 2006. He led Western to its 27th Yates Cup in team history, being named player of the game going 23 of 41 for 390 yards. He finished the regular season with a career-high 3,250 passing yards and 10 touchdowns. He also ran for 233 yards (2nd on team) and three touchdowns.

LT Richard Zulys: An imposing figure on the offensive line, Zulys is once again a strong contender to earn a spot on the OUA All-Star team after enjoying strong seasons in 2005, 2006 and 2007. He was drafted by the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL in April and has been a five-year starter with the Mustangs.

DB and REC Matt Carapella: Mr. Everything, Matt Carapella was a vital part of Western's Yates Cup run. Injured in the home opener against Queen's in 2007, Western lost four straight with Carapella out of the lineup. Upon his return at Homecoming, Western won seven straight games. In five games, Carapella had 11.5 tackles, 4 interceptions and 1 fumble recovery.

REC Jesse Bellamy: The native of Guelph, ON led the Mustangs in receiving yards and receptions in 2007 with 575 yards on 35 catches, including one touchdown. He will be the only starting receiver to return in 2008 and will likely be the No. 1 target of Michael Faulds.

DEFENCE
DE Vaughn Martin: Martin quickly earned the respect of opposing teams in his 2007 rookie campaign, finishing third on the team in tackles with 33.5 along with two sack and one fumble recovery. Martin (6-foot-4, 295 lbs.) attended Milford Academy in New York State where he was heavily recruited by NCAA schools, and he even committed to Michigan State before its coaching staff was fired. Prior to playing at Western, Martin played for the Marshall-coached Canada team that competed at the Global Junior Championships along with Mustang sophomore linebacker John Surla.

LB John Surla: Named Western's top rookie in 2007, Surla finished second on the team in tackles with 40 and added a forced fumble and an interception. In the dying seconds of the OUA semifinal game at Ottawa, the middle linebacker fell on the ball in the end zone following an Ottawa fumble to score the final six points and secure a 23-16 win. Through the season, he was a special-teams force recording key tackles on kick returns and acting as one of the team's long-snappers.

DB Corey McNair: McNair led the Mustangs in tackles in 2007 finishing with 44.5 along with 1 interception. He represented Western at the 2007 CIS East West Bowl at Laval.

DB Andrew Bain: Finishing 7th on the team in total tackles with 14, Bain also recorded a breakup and pulled in one fumble recovery, stepping up as a leader in the absence of Matt Carapella.

Players to watch: Transfer players are the big story for UWO this coming season. After trying to break it into the CFL two new additions have been added to Western football: Safety John Hood transfers from St. F.X. after a camp with the Edmonton Eskimos, and Darryl Wheeler from Utah State after spending time at training camp with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Both will fill important vacancies and will be important to the success of the Mustangs. As well OT Ahamad Jaradat was NC State bound down south but has returned to play for Western, which is another huge pick-up for this squad.

And of course you can’t mention this Western team without speaking about their jack-of-all-trades player, DB and WR Matt Carapella. When he went down with injury Western lost, when he was healthy they won, plain and simple. He will continue to be an important impact player for the Mustangs.

For future reference: A young crew may take over the OL for the Mustangs however it’s an impressive unit, with Ahamad Jaradat, Mike Van Praet and Matt Norman potentially suiting up. Ben Roberts will be looking to these players for as much help as possible as he is targeted to take over the backfield duties from one of the greatest Western RB’s of all time, Randy McCauley.

Schedule:
Sept. 1 Ottawa, 7 p.m.
Sept. 6 @ Laurier, 7 p.m. (The Score University Rush)
Sept. 13 Waterloo, 1 p.m.
Sept. 20 @ York, 1 p.m.
Sept. 27 @ Queen's, 1 p.m. (The Score University Rush)
Oct. 4 Windsor, 2 p.m. (Homecoming)
Oct. 9 @ U of T, 7 p.m.
Oct. 18 Guelph, 1 p.m.
(Western misses out on playing McMaster)

Prediction: 6-2 or 7-1

Final analysis: Western had surprise success last season, as if Greg Marshall needed anything else beyond his name to help with recruiting. The Mustangs have had a very strong class this year and return one of the top QBs in the nation in Michael Faulds. It is hard to say that Western will be far from the top, the Ottawa game will be a battle (especially after the game they had last season), but after that it appears there are only a couple teams that could give Western too much trouble. UWO may finish with only a loss or 2 on the season coming into the playoffs should the blue chip prospects and transfers they acquired in the offseason pan out the way they are being predicted.

(Contributors: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins.)

CIS Countdown #6: Concordia Stingers

Fast facts: The Stingers' 2007 season must have done wonders for the sale of Antacid tablets in the west end of Montreal. Five of their nine games were decided by less than a touchdown, due to a combo of peaks-and-valley offence and solid defence. QB Liam Mahoney, who started the season as a punt returner, ended up being the CIS rookie of the year after being the leading quarterback rusher in the country. The Stingers were able to hang in with Laval from 2004-06, but they've slipped a bit since that season.

Coach: Gerry McGrath

Co-ordinators: McGrath, offence; Warren Craney, defence; Peter Regimbald, special teams

Enrolment: 38,809

Alumni in the CFL: Eskimos DB Sammy Okpro, Stampeders P Burke Dales, Blue Bombers LS Chris Cvetkovic

Famous non-football alumni: authors Nino Ricci and Mordecai Richler; Stuart McLean of Vinyl Cafe fame; musician Régine Chassagne, of Arcade Fire; former Winnipeg mayor Glen Murray; Rosie Douglas, former prime minister of the Dominica.

Three-year record: 17-7

2007 unit rankings: 19th on offence, 10th on defence

Key losses: T Wayne Dauper, QB Robert MacKay, DB Sammy Okpro, SB Nick Scissons

Returning starters: 9 offence, 9 defence; kicker Rene Paredes also returns

Players to watch: The Stingers will probably try to get the most out of Mahoney's unique skills this year, possibly by employing more of an option look, although it's a tough offence to run against some of the QUFL's quick defences. (Back in 1998, a coach named Pat Sheahan employed the option to good effect with Sean Hoas when the Stingers made their only Vanier Cup trip.) Mahoney had almost as many yards rushing (608) as passing last season (681). Cedric Ferdinand, an Ottawa native, emerged from a three-way position battle to become the tailback last season.

One benefit of the CEGEP league is that newcomers aren't really rookies. Inside receiver Tony Testa, a newcomer from the St. Leonard Cougars, could help make up for the graduation of Scissons, although he's been battling a hamstring problem. Receivers Cory Watson and Arain Francois were also left home from last weekend's trip to Saskatchewan for an exhibition game due to injuries.

Here's Testa in action:

Defensively, LBs Nathan Agadzi and Cory Greenwood will have to be the team's impact players. Okpro won't be easily replaced on the back end; the secondary could be a weak spot.

For future reference: Every high school player who can lace up a pair of shoes seems to have his own highlight reel on YouTube, granted. Stingers rookie Christian Walcott, a defensive halfback from Toronto, looks like he could pack a wallop.



The Stingers recruiting class also includes QB Alex Radojcic, who was drafted by the OHL in hockey. Former Ottawa Sooner Jamie Pau has also come aboard.

Schedule (swing games in bold):
Sept. 5 Bishop's
Sept. 12 @ McGill
Sept. 20 Laval (RDS)
Sept. 28 @ Laval
Oct. 4 @ Montréal
Oct. 11 Mount Allison
Oct. 18 @ Bishop's
Oct. 25 Sherbrooke

The Stingers' home-and-homes are with Bishop's and Laval.

Final analysis: The diehards always seem to have a shovelful of dirt to throw on the Stingers, but their coaching, especially on defence and on special teams, is a good insurance policy against sliding too far down in the standings. Concordia is on the downswing from a cycle that peaked in '05-06.

The meaty part of the schedule, the back-to-backs with Laval and a matchup vs. Montréal, will either make or break Concordia. As for the 2008 season, where the 2-5 slots in the QUFL are fairly wide open, they will neither make nor break.

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins.)

CIS Countdown #7: McMaster Marauders

Fast facts: A team with an up and down season last year, after beating Guelph the final week of the season to ensure a playoff spot they nearly took the conference finalists out the following week. A team with Defensive issues last season returns with 15 of 23 dress players on Defence and 13 of 21 on Offence (7 of 12 starters on both sides of the ball), which is a good sign for this younger squad.

Coach: Stefan Ptaszek enters his third season as coach, sporting a record of a regular season record of 11-5 and an overall record of 11-7 with the team. Coach Ptaszek will look to build upon his success in 2008, and going thru a bit of a rebuild will also watch to see his team start coming together.

Co-ordinators: Offensive co-ordinator Stefan Ptaszek (2 seasons at Mac), Defensive Coordinator Greg Knox (2 seasons at Mac), special teams co-ordinator Larry Guarascia (8 seasons at Mac)

Enrolment: 22,940 Undergraduate students, 3130 Graduate students as per the Directory of Canadian Universities.

Alumni in the CFL: McMaster still leads the CIS in terms of former players employed by the CFL with 12 active players, as of Duane’s July list: RB Jesse Lumsden, LB Jason Pottinger, LB Jason Arakagi, OL Fabio Filice, S Tristan Clovis, OL Ryan Donnelly, OL Kyle Koch, OL Matt O’Meara, LB Ryan Mariuz, LB Michael Botterill, DE Jeff Robertshaw and LS Chris Vrantsis.

Famous non-football alumni: A school truly rich with important, influential alumni, Mac has contributed to politics graduating trailblazing Africentric politician and former Lieutenant Governor of Ontario Lincoln Alexander; current Premiere of Ontario Dalton McGuinty; and the Greatest Canadian of All Time, the ‘Father of Medicare’, former Saskatchewan Premiere / founding NDP leader Tommy Douglas. MAC has also produced a number of notable film and television celebrities in the form John Candy, Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Dave Thomas, and Producer Ivan Reitman. Other notable grads of include astronaut Roberta Bondar, numerous Presidents and Chancellor’s of University’s across North America and even Australia, as well as Olympic flag bearer Adam van Koeverden, and legendary CFL quarterback Russ Jackson.

Three-year record: 17-11

2007 unit rankings: Mac was fourth in total offence in the OUA last season, and ranked 9th nationwide. They finished 2nd in the conference in passing and sixth in rushing. The defensive unit was really more of the issue last season as they finished 7th in the OUA and 18th across the CIS. The passing game is where they really took a hit as they finished 8th in the OUA, 1 yard/game ahead of the 9th position and 2 yards/game out of the very last spot.

Key losses: QB Adam Archibald, the second-leading passer in Marauder history (6,313 career yards), WR Rob Serviss (Waterloo, ON). A second team All-Canadian
in 2007 with 34 catches for 562 yards and 4 touchdowns; G Shawn McCormick (Burlington, ON). A four year veteran Offensive Lineman; WR Jordan Charter (Brantford, ON). The team's leading receiver in 2006, who struggled with injury (missed 3 games) in 2007; LB Jason Arakgi; DL Chris Van Zeyl and Kristian Consack

Returning starters:
OFFENCE
REC- Mike Bradwell (Toronto, ON) - CIS leading receiver and first team
All-Canadian in 2007 with 53 catches for 958 yards and 7 touchdowns.
Drafted13th overall in the 2007 CFL draft. Did not participate in the Argo’s
training camp due to injury.

RB- Joey Nemet (Burlington, ON) – McMaster leading rusher in 2007
with 92 carries for 382 yards and 2 TD’s

OT- Justin Glover (Hamilton, ON). At 6’2” and 299 lbs he brings
both size and strength to the McMaster offensive line.

QB- Ryan Fantham (London, ON) Completed 27 of 40 passes for
405 yards and 2 touchdowns in 2007.

DEFENCE
LB- Simon Binder (Almonte, ON) The leader of the McMaster defense.
An OUA Second team all-star in 2006.

LB – Ryan Chmielewski (St. Catharines, ON). The OUA Rookie
of the Year in 2007. Leading tackler in 2007 with 35 solo tackles,
10 assisted tackles and 4 sacks.

DB – Kurt Morrison (Sault Ste. Marie, ON). Third leading tackler
in 2007 with 30 solo tackles, 3 assisted tackles and 2 interceptions.

DE – James Edwards (Hamilton, ON) The former East-West Bowl
Participant returns for his fourth year

Players to watch: Highly recruited WR Kevin D’Hollander back finally started to emerge last season, and while a late insertion into this season's East-West Bowl he led the West receivers. It will be vital to Mac's success to have D’Hollander live up to the high standards set for him before he arrived.

On defence last seasons rookie of the year Ryan Chmielewski will also be a player to key on, the linebacker will play an important role on that Defensive unit.

For future reference: Although QB Ryan Fantham took some snaps last season in place of Archibald when he was out due to injury, there has been a lot of talk about new recruit and OVFL MVP Kyle Quinlan. Don’t discount the possibility that Quinlan either splits duty or starts altogether, as the young freshman did see some time in Mac's scrimmage against Windsor and reports were pretty positive…After three seasons of playing at Ivor Wynne Stadium, McMaster will return to campus with the grand opening of the new $23 million dollar, Ron Joyce stadium.

Schedule:
Sept. 1 @ Queen's, 2 p.m.
Sept. 6 @ Waterloo, 1 p.m.
Sept. 13 Ottawa 7 p.m. (The Score)
Sept. 20 @ Guelph, 1 p.m. (The Score)
Sept. 26 York, 7 p.m.
Oct. 3 - Toronto, 7 p.m.
Oct. 11 @ Laurier, 1 p.m.
Oct. 18 Windsor, 1 p.m.
(McMaster will miss out playing Western this season)

Prediction: 4-4

Final analysis: Mac should land a playoff spot but likely towards the bottom of the pecking order in the OUA playoff structure. The smart betting money would have this team finish with a .500 record. If they surprise they go 5-3, but in all likelihood don’t expect too many miracles just yet. The Marauders are well paced in their schedule with a game against Waterloo splitting up a string of contests against tougher competition within the OUA. Missing out on a stronger Western Mustangs unit this season, thanks to OUA scheduling patterns, certainly plays to this younger teams advantage. The high octane MAC offense is still essentially there, a little watered down and yes dependent on the play of the new starting QB, but there are pieces still in place for some iffensive explosions.

Their defence, and more specifically their secondary, that will dictate the success of this Marauders team. They're not yet Yates Cup contender, however, in OUA playoffs, really anything can happen.

CIS Countdown #8: Montréal Carabins

Fast facts: Montréal was the only team in the 27-team CIS to be in the top third in the country in total defence last season and in the bottom third in total offence. They had four new offensive linemen and a first-year starting QB, Marc-Olivier Brouillette, so it wasn't totally surprising that they struggled to score points.

The defensive line will probably be Les Bleus' best feature this season. Montréal native Jonathan Pierre-Étienne, whose NCAA career at Rutgers was hindered by injuries, has a joined a front four whose mainstays Martin Gagné, Mathieu Brossard and Gregory Alexandre are no strangers to copping individual honours. Their major losses were in the secondary.

This is the third season for Montréal's staff, which is usually where observers expect a team to be past any transitional period.

Coach: Marc Santerre (3rd season)

Co-ordinators: Pat Gregory, offence; Denis Touchette, defence

Enrolment: 41,055 undergraduate; 14,485 graduate

Alumni in the CFL: Roughriders OL Jean-François Morin-Roberge, Stampeders FB Jonathan Lapointe

Famous non-football alumni: Canadian Gov.-Gen. Michaëlle Jean; late prime minister Pierre Trudeau; Denys Arcand, Oscar-winning director.

Three-year record: 16-8

2007 units ranking: 22nd on offence, 8th on defence

Key losses: OL Jean-François Morin-Roberge, FB Jonathan Lapointe, DBs Sébastien Bourassa and Jean-Philip Provencher

Returning starters: 10 offence, 8 defence, plus reliable kicker Pierre-Paul Gelinas

Players to watch: The defence really has to come first. On paper, Alexandre, Brossard, Gagné and Pierre-Étienne should be a stout enough group to take some of the burden off of the back-eight, which has been retooled somewhat. Joash Gesse leads Les Bleus' linebacking group, while Hamid Mamouhdi, who had an all-star season in 2007, will be a busy man in the secondary.

Brouillette is big and fast enough to provide a rushing threat to complement the Carabins' tailback tandem of Hantz Boursiquot (758 rushing-receiving yards in 2007) and Dominic Chamberland-Pinto, who had his moments in a backup role. The Carabins need to find a receiving corps like yesterday. Frank Bruno was their best pass-catcher last season, but he might have an injury issue, according to the dot-orgers.

For future reference: Defensive back Olivier Fréchette-Lemire could get a chance to step in and play right away. On the O-line 330-pound Henrick Pierre-Paul is also coming back from a broken leg that ended his rookie season before it started.

Schedule (swing games in bold):
Sept. 6 @ Laval
Sept. 13 St. FX
Sept. 20 Bishop's
Sept. 27 McGill
Oct. 4 Concordia
Oct. 11 @ Saint Mary's
Oct. 18 @ McGill
Oct. 25 Bishop's (RDS)

The Carabins play home-and-homes with McGill and Bishop's.

Final analysis: It's might seem glib to keep using the 2006 opener vs. Laval as a point of reference with Montréal (but we're not really experts on the QUFL, so it's all we got).

That day, Sept. 10, 2006, might have been where the blue wave crested and began to break. The Carabins had a double-digit lead in the second half at PEPS Stadium, that house of horror for most visiting teams, before Benoît Groulx directed a 17-point comeback that gave the Rouge et Or a 25-21 victory. Montréal, finished that season with a first-round playoff loss at Concordia, and went out in the QUFL semi again last season.

Montréal's taken a few steps back since the start of '06. The defence is good enough that it will keep them in games, or at least keep scores respectable, and the offence is bound to improve. Both they and cross-town rival Concordia seem to be in the biggest state of flux in the conference, but both were playing at a high level not so long ago.

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins. Special thanks to U de M sports information director, Benoit Mongeon.)

CIS Countdown #9: Queen's Golden Gaels

Fast facts: Time will tell whether that 6-2 regular season in 2007 was real-real, or Beijing Olympics-real. The playoff loss to hated Western threw everything about an otherwise rousing season into question for anyone who's invested mentally and physically (or just emotionally) in Queen's football.

As much as that early exit stung, the Gaels are turning some heads across Ontario. According to an All Canada Gridiron poll, Queen's has the best recruiting class in the OUA. Queen's overall talent level is as good, if not better, than at any time during Pat Sheahan's tenure as coach.

Queen's should be a Top 10 team which is in the thick of the OUA, although another team from the distant hinterlands of the 613 area code, Ottawa, is the presumptive favourite. The Gaels' defence, which has had maybe two bad days since the start of 2006, returns its two most disruptive linemen, its best linebacker and two best cover guys in the secondary. On the offensive side, quarterback Dan Brannagan for the second straight year is adjusting to the loss of a CFL-bound receiver, but as OUA observers saw with Justin Dunk at Guelph last season, that can be a spur for a QB to spread the passes around.

Diversity is going to be a theme for Queen's offence; Sheahan has said has much. The Gaels return two fifth-year touchdown threats, school record-setting running back Mike Giffin and wideout Scott Valberg. If balance proves elusive, they're not a bad pair to rely on.

Coach: Pat Sheahan (ninth season, 20th as a CIS head coach). The Gaels have a 39-27 overall record (.591 winning percentage) since rejoining the OUA for football in 2001. That's more than respectable, all things considered.

Co-ordinators: Warren Goldie, offence; Pat Tracey, defence. Queen's has the longest-running coach and co-ordinators combo in the OUA, as all three have been together since 2001. Queen's has a good rep with the CFL, as evidenced by the number of Gaels graduates who find their way into training camps and on to rosters.

Enrolment: 13,500 undergraduate

Alumni in the CFL: 'Riders WR Rob Bagg; Lions D-lineman Matt Kirk; Argos RB Bryan Crawford

Famous non-football alumni: Actor Tom Cavanagh; federal cabinet minister John Baird; CNN reporter Ali Velshi; playwright Judith Thompson; Carleton University basketball coach Dave Smart; humourist Jay Pinkerton; Speaker of the House of Commons Peter Milliken; singer-songwriter Sarah Harmer; three-fifths of The Tragically Hip and all three members of Bedouin Soundclash.

Three-year record: 13-11

2007 units ranking: 9th on offence, 3rd on defence

Key losses: WR Rob Bagg, DT-LS Kevin Scott, LT Cody Kennedy, LB D.J. Mulholland, DB Matt Vickers

Returning starters: 9 offence, 9 defence; kicker Dan Village also returns.

Players to watch: There are four quarterbacks in the OUA who have been their team's starter since 2005. Dan Brannagan has easily had the most curious career arc, compared to Dunk at Guelph and Josh Sacobie of Ottawa and Michael Faulds at Western.

Steady play from a fourth-year starter should be an immutable for a team vying for a spot in the Yates Cup. Brannagan grades out very well in Mr. Pettapiece's quarterback rankings and his 15-to-6 touchdown-interception ratio in 2007 was very good, but there's a perception that Queen's offence is frequently very peaks-and-valleys; they didn't get in the end zone in a loss to Laurier when both teams came in 4-0 last fall.

As was the case last season, Brannagan is adjusting to life without an all-Canadian receiver (Bagg; it was Brad Smith the season before). The likes of Valberg, slotback Devan Sheahan (the coach's son) and tight end Scott Stinson provide a variety of targets for the QB. The nature of Giffin's role is a hot pre-season topic. A Mike Alstott-type with a fullback body and tailback mindset, he's a little betwixt and between about which position is best for him. He also had 205 touches (rushing attempts and receptions) last season, more than five times as much as any other Queen's player.

Queen's defence kept them in most games last season. The high points are middle linebacker Thaine Carter; tackle Dee Sterling and end Osie Ukwuoma along the line; the secondary is back, with Jimmy Allin at halfback and Jay Oduwole on the corner. Allin accounted for six of the unit's 13 takeaways last season, meaning returning kicks isn't his only means of providing field position.

The Gaels had just 22 sacks and interceptions last season, an OUA low. That begs the question of whether they took the notion of bend-but-don't-break defence a little too far in 2007. That caught up to them in the playoff loss to Western.

For future reference: Queen's All Canada Gridiron-approved newcomers could have an impact this fall; Sheahan is, er-ah, optimistic that some rookies will develop quickly. Mike Farine, a 6-foot-2 receiver from Toronto's Northern Secondary whose success as a point guard on a top high school basketball team attests to his athletic ability, could see the field quicker than most. (Queen's newcomers also include his former quarterback at Northern, Elliot Beutel, but he's a ways away with Jansen Shrubb returning as Brannagan's backup.)

Another two-sport newcomer is DB Ian Armour, a former national karate champion. Queen's got one of the two big offensive stars out of Bishop Ryan in Hamilton, receiver Mitchell Callaghan, who could have some potential on defence. (Laurier got Ryan's other big star, running back Ryan Rowe.)

Schedule (swing games in bold):
Sept. 1 McMaster
Sept. 6 @ Guelph (The Score University Rush)
Sept. 13 Laurier
Sept. 20 @ Toronto
Sept. 27 Western (The Score University Rush)
Oct. 4 @ York
Oct. 11 Ottawa
Oct. 18 @ Waterloo

The Gaels will miss Windsor in the schedule rotation. Fun fact: Queen's didn't play Laurier in either 2004 or '06, so you can impress people and win drinks at cocktail parties by pointing out that they haven't scored a touchdown vs. the Golden Hawks since Tom Denison was still on the team. That came on Nov. 1, 2003, the infamous Over The Bar game that OOLF's two Laurier alums never get tired of bringing up.

Final analysis: Queen's football is in a much better place than it was nine or 10 years ago, when the depth chart was so thin you read a newspaper through it and there were very real suspicions the administration was hoping football would just up and disappear from campus. (Queen's administration of the day was never quite as obvious about their wishes as a certain other G13 school that's a 2½-hour drive away.)

Sheahan, who has two recruiting coaches, has been able to improve the overall talent level. The alumni, athletic department and the surrounding Kingston community are on side. (To some extent, Queen's athletics has the icons of ineptitude, the Kingston Frontenacs, to thank for any media coverage or buzz in the city.) All that's needed now is a stadium with a seating arrangement that better covers up that current students aren't big on going to games.

Nevertheless, to borrow from that well-known YouTube clip which mocks Notre Dame fans, the Gaels are 0-for-the-2000s where championships are concerned. The perception is there that this group of Gaels hasn't had a big breakthrough that their talent should warrant.

If Queen's has the answers, then this year is a clean slate to write them down on.

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins.)

CIS Countdown #10: U of S Huskies

Fast facts:
- Nixon's the one: One of the keys to the Huskies' success or failure this year will be quarterback Laurence Nixon's performance. By all accounts, Nixon had a solid season last year, which was his first as a starter. He took over from Brett Thompson in the third game of the season. However, there are some interesting discrepancies in his stats (Discrepancies in CIS stats? Perish the thought!). According to the CIS website, a Lawrence Nixon completed 89 of 126 passes in four games for 1190 yards. He averaged 9.4 yards per attempt and 297.5 passing yards per game (the third-highest per game average in the league), but threw six interceptions and only five touchdowns. However, there's a Laurence Nixon listed further down the same list as appearing in two games and completing 15 of 24 passes for 267 yards, with no interceptions or touchdowns. Combining those two stats gives you 104 completions on 150 attempts for 1,457 yards, the numbers the Huskies' team preview credits him with, which are probably right. He'd still be in the top ten in Rob's quarterback rankings in either scenario.

- Line 'em up: Nixon will need more protection from his offensive line this year: last season, he was sacked 16 times, which tied him with Acadia's Keith Lockwood for the fifth-most times sacked in CIS competition. What makes that even worse is that all five quarterbacks tied with or above him played a full eight games. If Nixon can continue to mature and his offensive line can do a better job of protecting him, the Huskies' passing game could make them a dominant team.

- How can you run when you know? The offensive line's struggles last season also impacted the Saskatchewan running game, a traditional area of strength for the Huskies. Ben Coakwell and Scott Stevens (no relation that I know of to the former New Jersey Devils defenceman) took the majority of the carries last year, but only recorded 323 and 293 rushing yards respectively, which ranked them 33rd and 35th among CIS running backs on a pure yardage basis. Their yards-per-carry averages were respectable (5.77 and 5.05, respectively), but their lack of touches (56 and 58 carries respectively) show that the Huskies' coaching staff wasn't overly confident in the running game, and a large portion of that was due to the offensive line. As Vic Ferrari of the U of S Dog Blog wrote back in June, "The injuries that weakened [the offensive line], in the last half of the 2007 season, are the biggest reason for our disappointing 5-3 record." There's some hope for the line, as the Huskies have some veterans back from injury and also picked up several promising recruits, but they'll need to put in a better showing on both pass protection and run blocking for the Huskies to be successful.

Coach: Brian Towriss. Towriss has been the Huskies' head coach since 1984. He took over the program when he was only 27, and has led it to substantial success over the years, including Vanier Cup championships in 1990, 1996 and 1998. Towriss has been named the Canada West Coach of the Year seven times, and won the Frank Tindall Trophy as the CIS Coach of the Year in 1994. Before taking over the Huskies, Towriss played for them in the '70's and also served as the Provincial Coach for Football Saskatchewan. He returned to the Huskies as an administrative assistant in 1981, and took over the team only three years later. Over his 24 years in the CIS, Towriss has amassed 119 wins, 72 losses and one tie in regular-season play for a .622 winning percentage, best in Canada West among active coaches. The only other active Canada West coach with a winning percentage above .500 is Manitoba's Brian Dobie.

Co-ordinators: Mike Harrington, offence; Ed Carleton, defence; Darrel Burko, special teams.

Enrolment: 16, 430 undergraduates, 2,190 graduates [according to the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada].

Alumni in the CFL: The Huskies had 10 alumni in the CFL as of July, second only to McMaster's 12 for the most among CIS schools. Those alumni are B.C. guard Kelly Bates, Saskatchewan offensive lineman Gene Makowsky, Winnipeg fullback Brian Guebert, three Hamilton Tiger-Cats (fullback Jeff Piercy, offensive lineman Jordan Rempel and defensive back Dylan Barker), two Toronto receivers (Chad Rempel and Nathan Hoffart), and two Montreal Alouettes (guard Scott Flory and cornerback Paul Woldu).

Famous non-football alumni: Former prime minister John Diefenbaker, Hockey Hall of Fame builder Charles Hay, a former Huskies' goaltender who became famous for his efforts in organizing the 1972 Summit Series, Liberal MP and former Minister of Finance Ralph Goodale, Nobel Prize-winning chemists Gerhard Herzberg (as a professor) and Henry Taube (as an undergraduate and graduate student), CBC sportscaster Don Wittman, former NHL and current international hockey coach Dave King and former Ottawa Senators owner Rod Bryden.

Three-year record: 19-5, fifth-best in CIS competition, with a point differential of 17 points per game.

2007 units ranking: 10th on offence (26.6 points per game, 13.6 per cent above league average), seventh on defence (16.4 points allowed per game, 30.2 per cent better than league average).

Key losses: The Huskies lose 18 players, including six starters. Huskies' blogger Snake Wilson has a full list here. Two key players lost on offence are running backs Ben Coakwell and Scott Stevens, who split most of the carries last year as mentioned above. Cornerback Paul Woldu, safety Dylan Barker and offensive tackle Jordan Rempel will also be significant losses: Woldu's now with the Montreal Alouettes, while Barker and Rempel are with the Toronto Argonauts.

Returning starters: As mentioned above, QB Laurence Nixon's likely the key to this team's success. He'll have a solid core of returning receivers to throw to, including Karl Phillips, Scott McHenry and Cory Jones. Running back Tyler O'Gorman will also be one to watch: he only carried the ball 19 times for 97 yards last season, but he's got more experience than any other back on the team and was the MVP of both the Hardy Cup and the Mitchell Bowl in 2006. On defence, key returning players include halfback Jordy Burrows and defensive end Ivan Brown.

Players to watch:
Keep an eye on defensive back Jon Krahenbil: he recorded four interceptions last season, and three of those came in the same game. He also put up 20 tackles and six pass breakups. Offensive lineman Darren Hinds will likely make the transition to a starting role this season: we'll see if he can help restore that unit to form. Receiver Travis Gorski is also expected to make an impact, giving Nixon a wide variety of targets.

For future reference: Running back Jamal Allen, who's joining the Huskies straight out of high school, might be a viable option on the ground if O'Gorman struggles. Allen put up 1,047 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns in seven games in his B.C. high school league last season. There are also several junior football all-stars joining this year's Huskies, including safety Bryce McCall, cornerback Grant Shaw and defensive end Kyle Kuzek.

Schedule (swing games in bold):
Aug. 29 vs. Calgary
Sept. 6 @ Regina
Sept. 13 @ SFU
Sept. 26 vs. Alberta
Oct. 4 vs. UBC
Oct. 11 @ Manitoba
Oct. 18 vs. SFU
Oct. 24 @ UBC

Final analysis: Saskatchewan should be pretty strong this season. Their schedule also helps, as four of their eight games are against SFU and UBC. Their toughest contests will be the road matchups against Manitoba and Regina. If the offensive line can improve enough to protect Nixon and pave the way for the running game, and the defence can maintain its form of last year without some of its star veterans, it could be a great year for the Huskies.

Prediction: I see a 7-1 season for the Huskies.

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins, U of S Sports Information Director Nicole Betker.)

CIS Countdown #11: Acadia Axemen

Fast facts: Acadia's two-year run as Atlantic conference champions, its first titles in football since the Larry Jusdanis era in the mid-'90s, ended fairly decisively with a a 21-point loss to St. FX in the AUS semi-final last November. The pass-happy Axemen, whose QB Keith Lockwood was one of only two CIS pivots to attempt more than 300 passes in the regular season last season, were still potent offensively, but lacked a little giddy-up in their first season without two-time Hec Crighton nominee Ivan Birungi (now at Ottawa). Most of last season's core group on offence returns, older and -- hopefully for Acadia -- wiser. Defensively, Acadia returns regulars such as CB-KR Najja Coley, but their best defensive back, Elliott Richardson, is rehabbing from an arm injury and might not be 100% game-ready by the opener on Sept. 5.

Coach: Jeff Cummins, fifth season. The Torrance, Calif., native, who played for the Oregon Ducks (before they had Nike CEO Phil Knight's chequebook splashed all over them) and went on to a long carer in the CFL, has brought a different look to Acadia, turning to a home state for players such as Lockwood, but bringing in a pass-oriented spread scheme.

Co-ordinators: Cummins handles the defence; Josh Lambert returns as offensive co-ordinator.

Enrolment: 2,760 undergraduate

Alumni in the CFL: Stampeders OL Godfrey Ellis

Famous non-football alumni: Federal cabinet minister Peter MacKay; TSN personality Brian Heaney (the school's athletic director); St. FX basketball coach Steve Konchalski; LPGA player Lorie Kane

Three-year record: 13-11

2007 unit rankings: 18th on offence, 22nd on defence

Key losses: FB Chris Debenedet, DT Trumaine Thomas and DE Sean Knox were the lone fifth-year Axemen in 2007. There was a conspicuous lack of any mention of leading receiver Douglas Fryer in pre-season reports.

Returning starters: Acadia returns five offensive linemen, quarterback and its two main touchdown threats on offence. The defence might have to break out the HELLO MY NAME IS stickers for the first few weeks. The secondary does have some returnees in Coley, James Michener and Matt Philbrick, who lost his 2007 season to injuries.

Players to watch: Wideout Matt Carter caught a team-high 45 passes last season and his recent blogging efforts helped us out, so obviously all objectivity should be cast aside and you should root for him to make all-Canadian. Acadia's other touchdown threat, running back Cale Inglis, also returns. The Axemen also got a big lift when left tackle Adam Rogers came back from the CFL for his final season.

Michener bears watching, since he's usually exciting in whatever capacity he's used in -- defensive back, quarterback, kicker and punter, he's tried them all.

For future reference: As you can see from the list of recruits on the Acadia Athletics website, the Axemen have a pipeline into Central Ontario, where they believe they found a quarterback of the future in 6-foot-3, 195-lb. Kyle Graves of Barrie, comes advertised as "multi-talented." Another rookie from Barrie who might catch on is DT Wade Conrad.

Jordan Linnen, of Surrey, B.C., might as well have come in with the ATH (athlete) designation, since he could ultimately end up contributing on offence and defence. The newbies on D include rush end Jake Thomas (brother of former Acadia standout Josh Thomas) and linebacker Ed McNally, a relative of former Axemen coach Dan McNally.

Schedule (swing games in bold):
Sept. 5 @ Saint Mary's
Sept. 13 Laval (Eastlink)
Sept. 20 @ St. FX
Sept. 27 Saint Mary's
Oct. 4 Mount Allison
Oct. 11 @ Sherbrooke
Oct. 18 St FX
Oct. 25 @ Mount Allison

Final analysis: Having Sherbrooke on the road and Laval at home will make it tough for Acadia to finish .500 and get home field for the AUS semi-final, let alone compete for first place.

St. FX seems to have supplanted Acadia for the time being for No. 2 in the Atlantic University Sport pecking order, although the Axemen could be back in 2009. The tough schedule and the sketchy defence suggest they could be in tough this fall.

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins.)

CIS Countdown #12: Manitoba Bisons

Fast facts:
- You ain't seen nothing yet: It will be pretty difficult for the Bisons to improve on their 2007 campaign, where they went 8-0 in the regular season and 4-0 in the playoffs, claiming the Vanier Cup with a 28-14 win over St. Mary's. A season that great breeds lofty expectations for future years, and the Bisons may not be able to catch lightning in a bottle again. If they can live up to the pressure and repeat despite the turnover from last year, that would be pretty amazing.
- They've come a long, long way together:That Vanier win was a bit of an unusual experience for Manitoba, though, as they hadn't claimed a national football championship since their back-to-back Vanier victories in 1969 and 1970.
- The West is the best: Last season's Vanier victory also was an unusual one for Canada West. No Western Canadian team had won the Vanier since Saskatchewan's 24-17 triumph over Concordia in the 1998 title game.
- You've got another thing coming: In most sports, back-to-back championships tend to be rather rare. That's not the case with the Vanier Cup, though, as four of the last seven Vaniers were won back-to-back (St. Mary's took the 2001 and 2002 titles, while Laval won in both 2003 and 2004). Manitoba will have a tough time trying to repeat, as they've lost 13 of last year's starters, but there's plenty of precedent to show that back-to-back championships are possible at this level.

Coach: Brian Dobie, who's entering his thirteenth season at the helm of the Bisons. Dobie won the Frank Tindall Trophy as the CIS Coach of the Year for the Bisons' campaign in 2001, where they won the Hardy Trophy as Canada West champions and the Mitchell Bowl (between the OUA champion and Canada West champion), but came up short against St. Mary's in the Vanier Cup. He's been named Canada West's coach of the year five times, and has spent 34 years coaching football at the high school and university levels. His regular-season record with Manitoba is 55-40-1-1, and his playoff record is 9-6. Dobie also played with the Bisons in the early 1970s.

Co-ordinators: Stan Pierre is the Bisons' assistant head coach and defensive co-ordinator. This will be his eighth year of coaching with the Bisons. He also played five seasons with them, beginning in 1989. According to the Bisons' coaching roster (which doesn't seem to have been updated recently, as it still says that Dobie will be entering his twelth year with the team while the more recent previews say he's going into his thirteenth), the Bisons don't have anyone listed as an offensive or special-teams co-ordinator. There's a good chance Vaughan Mitchell will hold the offensive co-ordinator slot, though. Mitchell is a long-time Bisons' coach who held the offensive co-ordinator role from 1999-2002. According to the coaching roster on the Bisons' site, Mitchell now has the title of Protections and Run Game Co-ordinator, as well as running backs coach. According to the Bisons' training camp roster, he's been promoted to full offensive co-ordinator. The training camp roster also says that Dobie will co-ordinate the special teams himself, with help from Lloyd Orris (running backs and special teams coach) and Dimitris Scouras (kickers coach).

Enrolment: 23,640 undergrads, 3,160 grad students [according to the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada].

Alumni in the CFL: According to Duane's July list, Manitoba has seven alumni in the CFL. That's tied with Laval for the fifth-best number among CIS schools. They've also got quite the geographic distribution: every team except Hamilton has a Manitoba alumnus. The alumni are B.C. offensive lineman Lorne Plante, Edmonton defensive lineman Justin Cooper, Calgary safety Wes Lysack, Saskatchewan kicker Jamie Boreham, Winnipeg offensive lineman Matt Sheridan, Toronto safety Chris Hardy and Montreal linebacker Cory Huclack. Another notable Manitoba football alumnus is Israel Idonije, a defensive tackle with the Chicago Bears.

Famous non-football alumni: Media mogul Izzy Asper; former Chief Justice of Canada Brian Dickson; Winnipeg mayor Sam Katz; former Minister of Transport and notable independent MP David Kilgour; communications theorist Marshall McLuhan, who coined the phrase "The medium is the message"; former Manitoba premier and Governor-General Edward Schreyer; Let's Make a Deal host Monty Hall; and President of the Treasury Board Vic Toews.

Three-year record: 20-3, for an astounding .870 winning percentage. During that span, they outscored opponents by an average of 16 points per game.

2007 units ranking: The Bisons' offence ranked 12th in CIS competition last year with an average of 25.8 points scored per game, 9.8 per cent above league average. Their defence was the real key to their success, though: they conceded a measly 13.8 points per game, fourth-best in CIS competition and 41.4 per cent better than the league average.

Key losses: The Bisons lost a total of 13 players from last year's squad, four on offence and nine on defence. Defensive end Justin Cooper, defensive lineman Simon Patrick and cornerback Mike Howard were all Canada West all-stars last season: their presence will be missed on the 2008 Bisons. Cooper's departure in particular is a big loss for the team, as he was named Canada West's outstanding lineman last season. The Bisons also lost two of their starting offensive linemen, so the new trench warriors will need to step up on both sides of the ball.

Returning starters: The Bisons have many of their top offensive players returning, including quarterback John Mackie, receivers Terry Firr, Simon Blaszczak and Randy Simmons, and running back Matt Henry. Henry finished fifth in Canada West with 616 rushing yards (on 104 carries, giving him a 5.9 yards per carry average) and tied for second in Canada West with eight touchdowns. He suffered a severe leg injury in the Vanier Cup game, but should be back in form when the season starts. Makie had a solid year as well, finishing seventh in Rob's QB rankings with 6.9 adjusted yards per pass attempt, 19 per cent above conference average. He completed 150 of 238 passes last year for 2022 yards, but threw eight interceptions along with his nine touchdown passes. He was also named the Vanier Cup offensive MVP.

Players to watch: Keep an eye on linebacker Jim Jeavons, defensive lineman Kenton Onofrychuk and cornerback Ryan Payette: they're the only defensive starters returning from last year. For the Bisons to have success, they'll have to use their experience to weld a group of rookies and former backups into a cohesive defensive unit.

For future reference: Offensive lineman Doug Amouzouvi has impressed in camp. He's 6’5” and 330 pounds, huge by CIS standards, but has just made the transfer from the defensive line to the offensive line. Nevertheless, as Pierre McGuire often says, "You can't teach size!"

Schedule(swing games in bold):

Aug. 30 vs. Regina

Sep. 6 at Calgary

Sep. 13 vs. UBC

Sep. 19 at Alberta

Oct. 3 at SFU

Oct. 11 vs. Saskatchewan

Oct. 18 vs. Calgary

Oct. 24 at Regina

Final analysis:
Defending the Vanier Cup won't be easy for the Bisons: they've lost a lot of their stars, while other Western teams like Saskatchewan, Calgary and Regina have reloaded and will be out to knock off the defending champions. Their schedule doesn't help either, with two tough tilts against both Regina and Calgary. Fortunately, they have home-field advantage against Saskatchewan, which may be a factor. I don't see them going undefeated again, but they'll be a team to contend with and they may make a run in the playoffs.

Prediction: A 7-1 campaign.

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins.)

CIS Countdown #13: Guelph Gryphons

Fast facts: The Gryphons lived up to the pre-season Fresno State/Boise State analogy, upsetting the established order in the OUA, going into Laurier's house in the playoffs and rallying from a 24-point deficit to take out the Golden Hawks, 38-31. With that win, they became the first No. 5 seed ever to host a Yates Cup, which they lost 34-21 to Western. They were 4-4 in the regular season, but the the four losses were by an average of eight points. QB Justin Dunk and RB Nick Fitzgibbon give the Gryphons as good a backfield as any team in the OUA. Defensively, they have to make sure that such a young team doesn't wear down late in the season: They gave up an average of 544 yards on defence over their final four games.

A tough early schedule -- at Laurier and home to Queen's in the first week of September -- will give a good picture of how much the Gryphons have built on last season's success.

Coach: Kyle Walters (3rd season). By almost all accounts, the energetic Walters has led the Gryphons out of OUA obscurity. A former standout safety, first with the Gryphons and then in the CFL with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, he became a coach in 2004, serving a two-year apprenticeship as defensive co-ordinator before taking the top job.

Co-ordinators: Kyle Walters, offence; Bill Brown, defence. Walters has now officially done it all as a player and coach. He was a running back in high school, switched to safety in university (where he was a captain in his final season, 1996, the last time the U of G won the Yates Cup) and shone on special teams during his pro career. He's now gone from defensive co-ordinator to head coach, to a head coach who also has the offensive co-ordinator's portfolio.

Greg Layson, the hardest-working university beat reporter in Ontario, wrote a piece earlier this week that described how Walters wants to run a more open attack, perhaps something like the spread option that's all the rage in the NCAA. Employing more motion and more misdirection would better use Dunk and Fitzgibbon's unique skill sets. 

Guelph used to be perceived as the typical OUA team, using a straight-ahead power attack with combine-sized linemen (hey, you can't tee-up Guelph without an agricultural reference). It's probably a good idea to go on YouTube and for highlights of the 2004 Utah Utes, who were a BCS-buster using a spread option attack. At the CIS level, Dunk is a lot like the college incarnation of Alex Smith — a tall quarterback who is fast and experienced enough to run plays that involve some intricate ball-handling  (oh, grow up)

Enrolment: 17,332

Alumni in the CFL: Argos LB Mike O'Shea, Roughriders WRs David McKoy and Michael Palmer

Famous non-football alumni: Two of Canada's most influential sportswomen, Hockey Night in Canada commentator Cassie Campbell and trailblazing jockey Emma-Jayne Wilson; actress Laura Bertram of Ready Or Not fame; Major-Gen. T.J. Grant, former commander of the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan; author Jane Urquhart

Three-year record: 9-14-1

2007 unit rankings: 6th on offence, 12th on defence

Key losses: DL Chris Hladich, LB Chris Decker, DB Ricky Gorton, DB Pete Degouw, WR Lorne Foster. Hladich, who could be very disruptive in the interior of the defensive line, is probably the toughest one to replace. Scott Puillandre, who had good potential as a linebacker, has left the team to join the Canadian Forces.

Returning starters: The entire offensive line returns, along with nine starters on defence. Steady-eddie kicker Rob Maver is also back.

Players to watch: Fourth-year starter Dunk, the most profilic passer in school history, improved his pass distribution last season, improving his TD-to-interception ration from 14-to-15 to 17-to-10, even as he was throwing to three rookie receivers, Jedd Gardner, David Harrison and Zach Stacey. Stacey could prove the best of the bunch.

Fitzgibbon (1,370 yards from scrimmage, 13 TDs in 2007) gives the Gryphons a classic halfback who can drop the shoulder on a defender and give the offence an extra receiver in the passing game. Defensively, Sebastian Howard had an OUA-best six interceptions as a freshman last season, while DL Grant McDonald and LB Taggart Russell anchor the front seven; Russell becomes a focal point now that Decker's gone.

For future reference: The Gryphons focused on the back eight in recruiting -- the hometown Mercury reported in July that 17 of the 32 rookies Walters has received commitments from were either linebackers or D-backs. QB Jake Reinhart, a Guelph native, could have impact down the line. CB Jordan Duncan is being reunited with Howard, his junior teammate from the Niagara Spears.

Schedule (swing games in bold):
Sept. 1 @ Laurier
Sept. 6 Queen's
Sept. 13 @ Windsor
Sept. 20 McMaster
Sept. 27 U of T
Oct. 4 @ Waterloo
Oct. 11 vs. York
Oct. 18 @ Western

The Gryphons miss Ottawa in the OUA's schedule rotation.

Final analysis: OUA observers will find out about Guelph very quickly. They return to the scene of the crime for the opener at Laurier, where they pulled off a comeback win in the playoffs. Then there's a short turnaround (well, it's short for everyone) for a home game vs. Queen's, who shut down the Gryphons in a Week 2 matchup last season, keeping Fitzgibbon to 27 yards on the ground and outplaying the Gryphons offensive line.

It's not out of the realm of possibility that the Gryphons could get out of the gate 0-2 and still rally for a 5-3 finish. Guelph is past the days of moral victories, but it's not yet at Ottawa's level.

The Gryphons are one of five teams who have an argument that they should be in the Yates Cup on Nov. 9. Red and gold are the colours of fall, but Guelph's season will come down to how well their defence holds up after the leaves turn.

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins.)

CIS Countdown #14: UBC Thunderbirds

Fast facts:
Kicked out by the Karma Police: The Thunderbirds had to relocate a large portion of their training camp to Abbotsford's Columbia Bible College thanks to a Radiohead concert in their stadium.
Interchangable parts: UBC will have to hope that their offence can thrive with different pieces. As Howard Tsumura of the Vancouver Province writes, they lost their featured running back, four of their five top receivers and most of their offensive line from last year. However, that offence only averaged 21 points a game (16th-best in CIS competition and 11 per cent below the league average) last season, so perhaps change is for the best.
Hoping for a rebound: Last year, the Thunderbirds went 3-5 and missed the playoffs. It was the first year since 2004 that they failed to make the post-season.

Coach: Ted Goveia. Goveia is entering his third season as the coach of the Thunderbirds. He also carries the title of general manager, and is the first UBC head coach to do so: it's unclear if that distinction actually means much, as most university football head coaches are performing a general manager's role as well. Goveia played for the Mount Allison Mounties, and then worked there as a coach from 1994-1997 after his playing career. He was the offensive co-ordinator from 1996 to 1997, and was the youngest co-ordinator in the CIS at that time. He then worked as the head coach and offensive co-ordinator of the junior football Burlington Braves for three seasons, and led them to three straight Ontario Football Conference championship games from 1998-2000. After that, he spent three years as assistant head coach and special teams co-ordinator at McMaster under Greg Marshall (the former Ticats and current Western coach, not the Blue Bombers' defensive co-ordinator), and then switched to UBC. He was the offensive co-ordinator at UBC for two years before taking the head coaching role.

Co-ordinators: Dino Geremia is entering his third year as UBC's defensive co-ordinator. Before that, he was involved with the cross-town SFU Clan for 18 years, first as a defensive tackle, then as a defensive line coach and finally as the special teams co-ordinator (while still retaining his duties with the line).Kevin MacNeill, formerly of the Laurier Golden Hawks, will handle the Thunderbirds' special teams duties this year as well as coaching the linebackers and overseeing the team's recruiting.

No offensive co-ordinator is listed on the UBC coaching roster, so it looks like Goveia will perform that role as well. He'll have assistance on the offensive side of the ball from former SFU head coach Chris Beaton, who's now the UBC running backs coach, former UBC star Bob Beveridge, who's now coaching the offensive line, and former BC Lion Peter Ohler, the quarterbacks coach.

Enrolment: 36,370 undergraduates, 7,820 graduates [2007 numbers from the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada; they don't include UBC Okanagan in those, which has another 4,000 or so students).

Alumni in the CFL: UBC has five alumni who were on CFL rosters as of July, tied with SFU, Ottawa and Regina for fifth-best. They are BC Lions linebacker Javy Glatt, Edmonton running back Chris Ciezki, Winnipeg punter Duncan O'Mahony, Hamilton safety Sandy Beveridge and Montreal linebacker Shea Emry.

Famous non-football alumni: Colorado Rockies pitcher Jeff Francis, environmentalist David Suzuki, investigative journalist Stevie Cameron, former prime ministers Joe Clark, Kim Campbell and John Turner, famed paraplegic athlete Rick Hansen, author and historian Pierre Berton.

Three-year record: 11-13, with a +2 average point differential per game: that shows that they tend to win by a fair bit or lose close games.

2007 unit rankings: The UBC offence and defence both ranked 16th last year. The offence averaged 20.9 points per game, 11 per cent below the league average, while the defence conceded 24.8 points per game, 5.6 per cent above the league average.

Key losses: The Thunderbirds' main turnover is on the offensive side of the ball this year, as they only return three starters from last season. Running back Ciezki, who's now with the Eskimos, may be the biggest loss, but the team also loses four of their top five receivers, including Derek Townsend, who led the team in all-purpose yards last season.

Returning starters: Fifth-year slotback Braden Smith is the primary receiver with previous CIS experience: look for him to lead the crop of rookies. On the defensive side, the team returns nine starters from last year, including defensive end Scott McCuaig, who tied the Canada West record and led all players in CIS competition with 11 sacks last year. Also on defence is former quarterback Doug Goldsby, who returns to safety, the position he played with UBC in his rookie year. Goldsby separated his shoulder last year, which is probably why he's no longer playing quarterback.

Players to watch: The defensive line will be a strength for the Thunderbirds: in addition to McCuaig, they have other talented veterans returning in defensive end Graham Best and tackles Sean Ortiz and Mike Hayes. It will be interesting to see how second-year quarterback Marc McVeigh does as well: he had to come in under the gun midway through last year's campaign after Goldsby's injury, and he should get better with experience.

For future reference: Keep an eye on new receivers Chris Schaalo and Blaine Krueger: both put up nearly 1,000 yards in junior football last year, catching 15 and 16 TD passes respectively. Tsumura calls them "the two most prolific pass catchers in Canadian junior football last season," and that seems like an apt description.

Schedule (swing games in bold):

Today, Aug.23, @ SFU
Sept. 6 Alberta
Sept. 13 @ Manitoba
Sept. 19 Regina
Sept. 27 @ Calgary
Oct. 4 @ Saskatchewan
Oct. 9 Simon Fraser
Oct. 24 Saskatchewan

Final analysis: UBC's defense will probably improve from last year with all the returning starters, but things might be more difficult for the offense. A lot will come down to McVeigh's performance at the helm. In the end, this team might not be as strong as last year's edition.

Prediction: 2-6

(Contributors to this preview: Rob Pettapiece, Duane Rollins.)