2024 U Sports football season facts for kids
Quick facts for kids 2024 U Sports football season |
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|---|---|
| League | U Sports |
| Sport | Canadian football |
| Duration | August 23, 2024 – October 26, 2024 |
| Playoffs | |
| Hardy Cup champions | Regina |
| Yates Cup champions | Wilfrid Laurier |
| Dunsmore Cup champions | Laval |
| Loney Bowl champions | Bishop's |
| Mitchell Bowl champions | Laval |
| Uteck Bowl champions | Wilfrid Laurier |
| Vanier Cup | |
| Date | November 23, 2024 |
| Venue | Richardson Memorial Stadium (Kingston, Ontario) |
| Champions | Laval Rouge et Or |
The 2024 U Sports football season was an exciting time for Canadian university football! U Sports football is the highest level of amateur Canadian football, where university teams compete for national glory. The season kicked off on August 23, 2024, with the Montreal Carabins, who were the champions from the previous year, playing against the Sherbrooke Vert et Or. Other teams from the Atlantic University Sport and Ontario University Athletics conferences started their games the very next day. Teams from the Canada West conference began their season a week later, on August 30.
The championship games for each conference were played on November 9, 2024. The entire season wrapped up on November 23, 2024, with the thrilling 59th Vanier Cup championship game. This big final game was held at Richardson Memorial Stadium in Kingston, Ontario, for the second year in a row. In total, 27 university teams from across Canada participated in this exciting football season.
A special moment happened when Maya Turner, a kicker for the Manitoba Bisons, became the first woman ever to be named an all-star in U Sports football! She successfully made 14 out of 18 field goal attempts and all of her extra point conversions, showing incredible skill.
Contents
How the Season Unfolded
The 2024 U Sports football season featured teams from four main conferences across Canada. Each conference had its own schedule for regular season games. The RSEQ conference, for example, had five teams playing eight regular season games over ten weeks. The OUA conference had 11 teams playing over nine weeks. The AUS conference featured five teams playing over ten weeks, and the Canada West conference had six teams playing eight games over nine weeks. All regular season games concluded by October 26, 2024, setting the stage for the playoffs.
Regular Season Games
Team Standings
After many exciting games, here's how the teams ranked in each conference at the end of the regular season:
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Top Players and Coaches
Each year, U Sports recognizes outstanding players and coaches for their amazing performances. These awards celebrate the best athletes and leaders in Canadian university football. Here are the winners of the major awards for the 2024 season:
| Quebec | Ontario | Atlantic | Canada West | National | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hec Crighton Trophy | Arnaud Desjardins (Laval) |
Taylor Elgersma (Wilfrid Laurier) |
Justin Quirion (Bishop's) |
Jackson Tachinski (Manitoba) |
Taylor Elgersma (Wilfrid Laurier) |
| Presidents' Trophy | Mendel Joseph (Concordia) |
Jackson Findlay (Western) |
Alex MacDonald (Bishop's) |
Nate Beauchemin (Calgary) |
Nate Beauchemin (Calgary) |
| J. P. Metras Trophy | Jeremiah Ojo (Montreal) |
Erik Andersen (Western) |
Brandon-James Poulin-Marques (Bishop's) |
Giordano Vaccaro (Manitoba) |
Giordano Vaccaro (Manitoba) |
| Peter Gorman Trophy | Enrique James Leclair (Montreal) |
Jackson Taylor (McMaster) |
Nick Swain (Acadia) |
Deacon Sterna (British Columbia) |
Enrique James Leclair (Montreal) |
| Russ Jackson Award | N/A | Ben Maracle (Ottawa) |
Malik Williams (Saint Mary's) |
Ryker Frank (Saskatchewan) |
Ryker Frank (Saskatchewan) |
| Frank Tindall Trophy | Glen Constantin (Laval) |
Michael Faulds (Wilfrid Laurier) |
Chérif Nicolas (Bishop's) |
Brian Dobie (Manitoba) |
Michael Faulds (Wilfrid Laurier) |
| Gino Fracas Award | Emilie Pfeiffer Badoux (Concordia) |
P. J. Edgeworth (Western) |
Gord Beattie (Saint Mary's) |
Jerry Friesen (Saskatchewan) |
Jerry Friesen (Saskatchewan) |
All-Star Teams
The best players from across the country are chosen to be part of the All-Canadian Teams. These players showed exceptional talent and skill during the season. Here are the First and Second Team selections for offence, defence, and special teams:
| First Team | Second Team | |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterback | Taylor Elgersma (Laurier) | Arnaud Desjardins (Laval) |
| Running Back | Lucas Bertet-Dembele (Montréal)
Braydon Stubbs (Manitoba) |
Jared Chisari (Queen's)
Ryker Frank (Saskatchewan) |
| Receiver | Olivier Cool (Laval)
Ethan Jordan (Laurier) Seth Robertson (Western) Daniel Wiebe (Saskatchewan) |
Darius Simmons (McGill)
Enrique Jaimes Leclair (Montréal) Kaseem Ferdinand (Carleton) Samuel Davenport (UBC) |
| Centre | Anthony Horth (Sherbrooke) | Alex Berwick (Western) |
| Guard | Giordano Vaccaro (Manitoba)
Alassane Diouf (Montréal) |
Josh Rietveld (Laurier)
Mitchel Schechinger (Guelph) |
| Tackle | Erik Andersen (Western)
Sean Rowe (Manitoba) |
Alexandre Levac (Montréal)
Domenico Piazza (McGill) |
| Utility | Émeric Boutin (Laval) | Sebastian Parasalidis (Laurier) |
| First Team | Second Team | |
|---|---|---|
| Defensive Tackle | Christopher Fontenard (Montréal)
Darien Newell (Queen's) |
Collin Kornelson (Manitoba)
Brandon-James Poulin-Marques (Bishop's) |
| Defensive End | Jeremiah Ojo (Montreal)
Liam Reid (Calgary) |
Kolade Amusan (Windsor)
Ifenna Onyeka (Carleton) |
| Linebacker | Justin Cloutier (Laval)
Justin Pace (Queen's) Seth Hundeby (Saskatchewan) |
Harold Miessan (Montréal)
Anthony Moretuzzo (Guelph) Mitchell Townsend (UBC) |
| Free Safety | Nate Beauchemin (Calgary) | Elijah Cramaix (Montréal) |
| Defensive Halfback | Mendel Joseph (Concordia)
Robert Springer (Windsor) |
Jackson Sombach (Regina)
Mack Bannatyne (Alberta) |
| Cornerback | Jordan Lessard (Laval)
Jerrell Cummings (UBC) |
Richard Abduboffour (Saint Mary's)
Istvan Assibo-Dadzie (Windsor) |
| First Team | Second Team | |
|---|---|---|
| Kicker | Ben Hadley (St. Francis Xavier) | Philippe Boyer (Montréal) |
| Punter | Michael Horvat (McMaster) | Erik Maximuik (Concordia) |
| Returner | Tayshaun Jackson (Laurier) | Alan Xiang (Alberta) |
| Rush/Cover | Ndéki Garant-Doumambila (Laval) | Chase Henning (UBC) |
Playoffs and Championships
The U Sports football season builds up to an exciting playoff series, where teams compete to become national champions. The journey involves conference championships, national semi-final games, and finally, the Vanier Cup!
Conference Championship Games
Teams first battled it out to win their conference titles. These games were played on November 9, 2024, and determined the best team in each region.
Atlantic University Sport Championship
| November 2 Semi-finals |
November 9 33rd Loney Bowl |
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| 1 | Bishop's | 59 | |||||||
| 4 | Acadia | 0 | |||||||
| 1 | Bishop's | 25 | |||||||
| 3 | St. Mary's | 22 | |||||||
| 2 | St. Francis Xavier | 17 | |||||||
| 3 | St. Mary's | 21 | |||||||
Canada West Championship
| November 2 Semi-finals |
November 9 87th Hardy Trophy |
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| 1 | Manitoba | 25 | |||||||
| 4 | Regina | 28 | |||||||
| 3 | Saskatchewan | 14 | |||||||
| 4 | Regina | 19 | |||||||
| 2 | UBC | 33 | |||||||
| 3 | Saskatchewan | 38 | |||||||
Ontario University Athletics Championship
| October 26 Quarter-finals |
November 2 Semi-finals |
November 9 116th Yates Cup |
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| 1 | Laurier | 29 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Queen's | 21 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Windsor | 19 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Queen's | 22 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Laurier | 51 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Western | 31 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Western | 46 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | McMaster | 10 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Western | 30 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Guelph | 19 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Guelph | 26 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | Ottawa | 15 | ||||||||||||
Réseau du Sport Étudiant du Québec Championship
| November 2 Demi-finales |
November 9 43e Coupe Dunsmore |
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| 1 | Laval | 41 | |||||||
| 4 | Concordia | 18 | |||||||
| 1 | Laval | 22 | |||||||
| 2 | Montreal | 17 | |||||||
| 2 | Montreal | 42 | |||||||
| 3 | McGill | 3 | |||||||
National Semi-Finals and Vanier Cup
The winners of the conference championships moved on to the national semi-final games: the Mitchell Bowl and the Uteck Bowl. The champions of these two games then faced each other in the ultimate final – the Vanier Cup!
| November 16th Semi-finals |
November 23rd Final |
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| 21st Uteck Bowl – Lennoxville, QC | ||||||
| Laurier | 48 | |||||
| 59th Vanier Cup – Kingston, ON | ||||||
| Bishop's | 24 | |||||
| Laurier | 17 | |||||
| 22nd Mitchell Bowl – Regina, SK | ||||||
| Laval | 22 | |||||
| Regina | 14 | |||||
| Laval | 17 | |||||
