SHERBROOKE – The Bishop’s Gaiters football squad opens the 2013 RSEQ University Football season on Sunday, September 1when they host the eighth-ranked Sherbrooke Vert et Or on Coutler Field. The contest will wrap-up week one in the RSEQ and is slated to kickoff at 2 p.m.
The Gaiters are coming off a tough 2012 season but have since turned a corner. Head Coach Kevin Mackey enters his second year at the helm of the program and is looking to move forward. He has brought in a number of new coaches to help lead the purple and silver as well as taken over defensive coordinator duties.
Bishop’s has a large number of starters returning on offense including quarterback Jordan Heather (Oromocto, N.B.), running back Matt Burke (Timberlea, N.S.) and 2011 all-Canadian receiver Alexander Fox (Montreal). Four veteran offensive linemen will be joined by blue chip recruit Ryan Cornish (Halifax). Brent Bailey returns for his second year as the offensive coordinator. A season ago he led the Gaiters to the third overall ranked offense in the competitive RSEQ.
On the defensive side of the ball the Gaiters are prepared to fill the voids left by four-time all-star Harrison Maloney (Thurso, Que.) and current Edmonton Eskimo Elie Ngoyi (Sherbrooke, Que.). A strong recruiting class will provide them with depth. They will lean on Ryland Smith (Brampton, Ont.) who attended the CFL combine in May to be a leader. Theo Thompson (Chateauguay, Que.) enters his third year and will be an anchor on the defensive line along with fifth year captain Steven McCollum (Brampton, Ont.).
The RSEQ will once again be the country’s premiere conference as three of the six teams are ranked in CIS top-10. Laval is the nation’s top ranked team; Montreal checks in at number five and the Vert et Or are eighth.
The Gaiters will play three home games and five games total in the month of September. Two of those contests are with their cross-town foes in the first three weeks. A year ago the Gaiters and Vert et Or only played once. Sherbrooke topped Bishop’s 40-28 at the Stade de L’Universite.
“Training camp went well,” said head coach Kevin Mackey. “Our guys responded well to the challenges that were presented to us. Sherbrooke is a good team, I understand they had a very good recruiting class and Jeremi is one of the better quarterbacks in the country. I’m sure they are going to be ready to play.”
The Gaiters and Vert et Or will kick off their 2013 campaign on Sunday, September 1 at 2 p.m. on Coulter Field. The link to the live webcast of the game can be found on the Gaiters website at www.gaiters.ca.
Source: Bishop’s Gaiters Sports Information
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