Hilaire appointed 21st head coach in McGill history

MONTREAL — Ronald Hilaire has been appointed head coach of the McGill University football team. The 30-year-old native of Laval, Que., becomes the team’s 21st bench boss.

Hilaire had been acting as an interim co-head coach along with offensive coordinator Patrick Boies after the departure of former head coach Clint Uttley who resigned on Sept. 30, 2014. Hilaire joined the Redmen program in February, 2014, in the capacity of defensive coordinator and defensive line coach. He held a similar post for three years with the Montréal Carabins, where he was also the recruiting coordinator.

“Coach Hilaire has been instrumental in recruiting and running the day-to-day operations of the program since our previous coach stepped down,” said Drew Love, the University’s executive director of Athletics and Recreation. “We are dedicated to building a winning team at McGill and he has won numerous championships over a lengthy career, both as a player and as a coach. More recently, he has overseen recruiting which has gone very well since the season ended. I have full confidence that he is the right person to lead our football program.”

Prior to working with the Carabins, Hilaire was a defensive line coach at Collège du Vieux Montreal in 2010 and 2011. He has coached with Team Quebec since 2012 and also served as a co-defensive coordinator and D-line coach for the Canadian squad, which won a U-18 world championship at Arlington, Texas in each of the last two years.

Hilaire was a fourth-round pick (27th overall) by the Calgary Stampeders in the 2008 Canadian Football League draft. He played four seasons in the NCAA at the University of Buffalo as a defensive lineman, recording 120 total tackles, eight quarterback sacks and a four forced fumbles. He helped the Bulls win the Mid-American Conference championship in 2008 and was co-captain of that team. He graduated in 2008 with a degree in business administration specializing in international business.

Prior to attending Buffalo, he played three seasons at Collège du Vieux Montréal where he won three Bol d’Or league championship rings. A captain his last year there, he earned all-conference honours in 2002 and was named as the league’s defensive player of the year in 2003, when he registered 50 tackles, 11 sacks, one interception and a pair of fumble recoveries.

He represented Canada on the international stage three times — in 2001, 2002 and 2003 — serving as captain twice and meriting all-tournament honours in both of his last two years. Hilaire also played football in high school (Mont St. Louis Kodiaks, 1998), at the bantam level with the Vimont-Auteuil Patriotes (1999) and in midget with the Laval-North Vikings (2000).

“I am very honored and excited to lead a young group of highly-motivated student-athletes,” said Hilaire. “It’s my mission to ensure our players take full advantage of what McGill as to offer on the academic plan and live an unbelievable experience on the gridiron. I am proud to be part of the institution that gave birth to football and I look forward to re-engaging our alumni from every generation and putting forth a product that they can be proud of for years to come. Go Redmen!”

Hilaire is expected to announce his coaching staff shortly.

McGill Football Head Coaches
1.      A.M. Hamilton, 1908
2.      Bill Steedman, 1911
3.      Frank Shaughnessy, 1912-27 & 1932-34
4.      Lorne Montgomery, 1928-29
5.      Flin Flanagan, 1928
6.      T.H. Hall, 1928-29
7.      A.A. Burridge, 1928-29
8.      D. Stuart Forbes, 1930-31
9.      Joe O’Brien, 1935
10.  Doug Kerr, 1936-46
11.  Vic Obeck, 1947-53
12.  Larry Sullivan, 1954-57
13.  Bruce Coulter, 1958-61
14.  Bill Bewley, 1962-64
15.  Tom Mooney, 1965-70
16.  John Roberts, 1971
17.  Charlie Baillie, 1972-2000
18.  Chuck McMann, 2001-2006
19.  Sonny Wolfe, 2007-11
20.  Clint Uttley, 2011-14
21.  Ronald Hilaire, 2015-present