Windsor AKO Fratmen seek 2012 OFC Championship

After an undefeated season in 2011, the Windsor AKO Fratmen fell to the Hamilton Hurricanes in the OFC Championship. In 2012, the team will look to right last year’s wrongs and develop a new winning streak that propels them to victory in the finals.

In 2011, the Windsor AKO Fratmen compiled an unblemished 8-0 record during the regular season, but fell to the Hamilton Hurricanes in the OFC Finals.

The Fratmen hope to replicate the perfection of last year’s regular season, in 2012, but will seek to couple it with a playoff run that ends in victory. And though the beginning of this year’s campaign will not officially begin until the fall, Head Coach, Mike LaChance, knows that the task has already begun.

“We approach every offseason the same,” says LaChance. “Find talented players that are willing to put the time in to learn and improve, regardless of position. This offseason has been no different.”

To bring in talent for molding, the squad draws heavily from the high school system in the Windsor and Essex County region, and the OVFL’s Essex Ravens.

Though the well of recruits from these institutions is the shallowest in the province in terms of quantity, it is full of elite talent and fundamentally sound competitors.

In 2012, the Fratmen will welcome standouts, Charles Johnson, a 5’10”, 170 lbs cornerback from Herman High School, Evan Pavka, an offensive lineman hailing from St. Joseph’s High School, Stephen Hasslefield, an import from Winnipeg who will look to anchor the team’s offensive line, and Derek Hurlock, a 6’4” defensive end.

Coach LaChance is eager to see the promising slew of recruits in action.

Johnson is a “super athlete with outstanding cover skills and ability to play the ball,” he notes. Pavka is a “big, strong tackle that has the ability to move the pile.” Hasslefield is a “big rangy tackle that can protect the QB and create running lanes.” And Hurlock is a “long, athletic DE that can rush the passer and set the edge.”

The newcomers will be joined by key returnees, Beau Lumley, last year’s OFC rushing leader, Dan Jacobs, the team’s sack leader, Derrick Hurst, the team’s reception leader, Christian Hackney, last year’s OFC TD pass leader, and Joel Archer, a slotback who garnered team MVP honours in 2011.

Off the field, new team GM, Jerry Brun, will look to keep the Fratmen on track.

In 2012, the team can look to the newly founded “Friends of Fratmen Football” support group. Coach LaChance notes that the organization “will help with the overall program regarding fundraising, gameday management, creation of a job bank for players, etc. It is a much needed endeavour and something that will pay dividends in the future.”

Players can also look forward to training under CFLer, Walter Spencer, an AKO Fratmen alum who has opened a training facility (Top Player Athletic Training) in Windsor.

With improved off-field resources and a strengthened core of key players, the Fratmen will look to achieve the same goal they strive for every year – becoming OFC Champions.