U Sports: RSEQ announces major award winners

Hugo Richard named most valuable player

The RSEQ (Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec) today announced its award winners for the 2017 RSEQ University Football season. Hugo Richard of the Université Laval Rouge et Or took top honours as Most Valuable Player.

Playing with confidence all season long, fourth-year quarterback Hugo Richard earned the Jeff Russel Trophy as RSEQ most valuable player for the second time of his career. The numbers don’t lie when it comes to Richard: he threw for 2,187 yards this season (1^st in RSEQ) and rushed for 324 yards (3^rd in RSEQ). After leading the league with seven rushing touchdowns, he brought his career total to 26, ranking him sixth all-time in the Quebec league tied with former Carabins running back Rotrand Sené.

His 11 TD passes gave him 52 over his career – the seventh highest total in league history just four back of Jean-Philippe Shoiry (Sherbrooke) and Phil Côté (Ottawa) and six behind his mentor Mathieu Bertrand. Richard was also only intercepted three times in eight games this season.

Always looking to better himself and eager for a challenge, he participated in two enriching experiences during the offseason. Richard first took part in the Valero East-West Bowl at the PEPS in May before participating in the Montreal Alouettes training camp through the club’s CFL quarterback development program.

Linebacker Kean Harelimana becomes the fourth-straight member of the Rouge et Or to be named RSEQ Rookie of the Year following in the footsteps of Adam Auclair (2016), Mathieu Betts (2015) and Hugo Richard (2014). Having dressed for all eight games during the regular season for Laval with five coming as a starter, Harelimana finished fourth on his team and 34^th in the league with 23.5 tackles, including 18 solos. He also recorded a sack, had two knockdowns and recovered a fumble.

Rookie-of-the-year in this own right in 2016, Adam Auclair continued his ascent by earning Defensive player of the Year honours on the strength of his 41 tackles including 32 solos which placed him sixth in the conference. For the second straight year, the Beauce, QC native was a starter in all eight games for the Rouge et Or. Despite the hulking frame possessed by the former Champlain-Lennoxville Cougar, he remains remarkably quick and known for his tight coverage as his three interceptions and two knockdowns can attest to.

On the heels of winning Rookie of the Year honours in 2015 and the J.P. Metras Trophy a season ago, Mathieu Betts was named Lineman of the Year after dominating the RSEQ with 5.5 sacks also placing him tenth in the country in that department. In three seasons with the Rouge et Or, the former Vieux Montreal Spartiate has sacked opposing quarterbacks 26.5 times, matching a club record he now shares with Vincent Desloges. In addition to making life miserable for quarterbacks, the All-Star defensive end amassed 12.5 tackles including eight solos and six for loss to go with his six knockdowns and two fumble recoveries on the season.

Joel Houle of the McGill Redmen is the RSEQ Leadership and community award winner. He earned Academic All-Canadian honours as well as making the Principal’s Student-athlete Honour Roll with a sessional grade-point average of 3.86 (out of 4). A senior majoring in physical and health education, he was selected to play in the 2017 East-West Bowl, an annual CFL prospects game. The versatile offensive lineman was initially recruited as a quarterback but converted after his freshman year to play in a blocking role at both tight-end and left tackle.

In the community, he serves as team captain and on the Varsity Sports Council. Houle has volunteered as a delegate in the team’s outreach program to visit patients at the Montreal Children’s Hospital, as well as the Shriner’s Hospital for Children and the Montreal General Hospital. He has volunteered for Christmas gift wrapping with Sun Youth, an organization for the underprivileged and also served with “Un Hiver de Mitaines” an organization on Montreal’s South Shore that distributes winter clothes to the needy. During his career at McGill, he has won numerous honours, including the Jean Béliveau Award that recognizes outstanding leadership among student-athletes. He is a two-time recipient of the team’s most sportsmanlike player award (Fred Wigle Trophy), most dedicated player award (Willie Lambert Trophy) and the Adriano Tassone Award for leadership.

Glen Constantin led his team to its 12^th regular season crown in 13 years with a record of 7-1. This marks the seventh time he has earned Coach of the Year honours following previous nods in 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, and 2015. In 2005 and 2010 he also won the Frank Tindall Award as U SPORTS Coach of the Year. Over his 17 seasons with the Rouge et Or, Constantin carries a regular season record of 119 wins and only 20 losses and a playoff mark of 44-10.

Daniel Adesegun of the McGill Redmen is the offensive rookie of the year in RSEQ football. The 19-year-old finance freshman from Calgary, Alta., started all eight games. A speedy 5-foot-9, 183-pound running back, he led the Redmen in rushing with 292 yards on 49 carries and was fourth on the team in receptions with 15 catches for 169 yards. His rushing averaging of 6.0 yards per carry ranked second among league leaders and first among running backs. Adesegun ranked third in carries, fourth in rushing yards and 11th in all-purpose yards with 461. His single-game best rushing performance was against Sherbrooke in Week 7, when he ran for 100 yards on 13 carries.

Cornerback Khadeem Pierre is a unanimous selection to the RSEQ all-star team and the Defensive rookie of the year. He played seven games picking up 17 solo tackles and four assists for 19 total tackles. He hauled in three interceptions which ranks him second in the RSEQ. He also batted one ball and forced a fumble. Defensive co-ordinator Pat Donovan says, “Khadeem has speed and he’s a lockdown corner. He allows us to do more things in coverages and definitely makes us a better team.”

Félix Ménard-Brière was once again a key to the success of the Carabins. By pinning the opposition deep in their zone time and again, he helped Montreal often win the field positioning battle. With an average of 61.2 yards on kick-offs and 45.4 yards on punts, Ménard-Brière proved once again why he is one of the top kickers in the country and was named RSEQ Special Teams Player of the Year.

DUNSMORE CUP

Please note that the Dunnsmore Cup Final will be played tomorrow: Saturday, November 11 at Université Laval. The battle between the Laval Rouge et Or and the Montreal Carabins is scheduled for a 2:00 p.m. kick-off and will be broadcast on TVA Sports.

RSEQ University football individual awards – 2017 Season

Most Valuable Player – Jeff Russel Trophy
(Nominated for U SPORTS’ Hec Crighton Trophy)
CFC100 Hugo Richard – Laval Rouge et Or

Rookie of the Year
(Nominated for U SPORTS’ Peter Gorman Trophy)
CFC100 Kean Harelimana – Laval Rouge et Or

Defensive Player of the Year
(Nominated for U SPORTS’ Presidents’ Trophy)
CFC100 Adam Auclair – Laval Rouge et Or

Lineman of the Year
(Nominated for U SPORTS’ J.P. Metras Trophy)
CFC100 Mathieu Betts – Laval Rouge et Or

Leadership and Social Commitment Award
(Nominated for U SPORTS’ Russ Jackson Trophy)
CFC100 Joel Houle – McGill Redmen

Coach of the Year
(Nominated for U SPORTS’ Frank Tindall Trophy)
Glen Constantin – Laval Rouge et Or

RSEQ Offensive Rookie of the Year
Daniel Adesegun – McGill Redmen

RSEQ Defensive Rookie of the Year
Khadeem Pierre – Concordia Stingers

RSEQ Special Teams Rookie of the Year
CFC100 Félix Ménard-Brière – Montreal Carabins