FRC - CIS football players of the week (#2): Exume, Walker, Taylor honoured

OTTAWA (CIS) – York running back Kyle Exume, Regina cornerback Jamir Walker and Saint Mary’s kick returner Jahmeek Taylor are the Canadian Interuniversity Sport football players of the week for the period ending Sept. 8, 2012.

The selection was made by a committee comprised of members of Football Reporters of Canada (FRC).

Exume, a humanities student from Whitby, Ont., was honoured on offence after he rushed for a CIS season-high 180 yards and three touchdowns in a 47-36 home win over Ottawa on Saturday, marking the Lions’ first defeat of the Gee-Gees since 2003. The 5-foot-9, 200-pound senior found the end zone from six yards out 11 seconds into the second quarter to make it 21-14 Ottawa, tied the game at 21 apiece five minutes later thanks to a spectacular 85-yard run, and gave York a 40-28 lead six minutes into the fourth stanza with an eight-yard major. Exume, who added 25 receiving yards on two catches in the win, is in his first campaign with the Lions after starting his university career at Bishop’s.

Acadia receiver Michael Squires, Sherbrooke quarterback Jérémi Roch and Calgary receiver Brett Blaszko were also up for the award.

Walker, a fifth-year arts student from Regina, took home the weekly honour on defence thanks to a pair of fourth-quarter interceptions in a dominating 49-20 home win over UBC on Friday night, including one he returned on 19 yards for a touchdown. The 5-foot-10, 190-pound veteran also registered a pass breakup as well as three solo and three assisted tackles as the Rams’ defence neutralized Hec Crighton Trophy-winning quarterback Billy Greene, who finished the game with only 207 passing yards while being picked off three times. Walker is tied for sixth in Canada West history with 16 career interceptions and already has three in two contests this fall.

Defensive linemen John Wilson of Acadia and Jean-Samuel Blanc of Montreal, as well as Guelph linebacker John Rush were also nominated.

Taylor, a fifth-year arts student from Mississauga, Ont., was the choice on special teams thanks to his 248 return yards in a 21-16 season-opening loss against No. 8-ranked Acadia on Saturday, including a 114-yard touchdown on a missed field goal return that gave the Huskies a 16-11 lead going into the halftime break. The 5-foot-9, 180-pound senior, who also had three receptions for 68 yards on the afternoon, finished the contest with a career-high 316 all-purpose yards. Taylor ranks third in AUS history and is eighth on the CIS all-time list with 1,847 career punt return yards.

Yannick Langelier-Vanasse, a kick returner from McGill, and kickers Dillon Wamsley of Queen’s and Johnny Mark of Calgary were also up for the distinction.

Offensive nominees:
AUS: Michael Squires, receiver, Acadia
RSEQ: Jérémi Roch, quarterback, Sherbrooke
OUA: Kyle Exume, running back, York (recipient)
CWUAA: Brett Blaszko, receiver, Calgary

Defensive nominees:
AUS: John Wilson, defensive line, Acadia
RSEQ: Jean-Samuel Blanc, defensive line, Montreal
OUA: John Rush, linebacker, Guelph
CWUAA: Jamir Walker, cornerback, Regina (recipient)

Special team nominees:
AUS: Jahmeek Taylor, kick returner, Saint Mary’s (recipient)
RSEQ: Yannick Langelier-Vanasse, kick returner, McGill
OUA: Dillon Wamsley, kicker, Queen’s
CWUAA: Johnny Mark, kicker, Calgary

REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE: WEEK 3 (all times local)

September 14
19:00 Mount Allison (0-1) at McGill (0-2), SSNCanada.ca (web)
19:00 No. 10 Regina (1-1) at Alberta (0-2), CanadaWest.tv (web)

September 15
13:00 Concordia (1-1) at StFX (1-0), SSNCanada.ca (web)
13:00 York (1-1) at Laurier (0-2) laurierathletics.com/live (web)
13:00 Waterloo (0-2) at Guelph (1-1), SSNCanada.ca (web)
13:00 No. 5 Western (2-0) at No. 6 Queen’s (2-0), theScore (TV & web)
13:00 No. 1 McMaster (2-0) at Ottawa (0-2), Rogers Ottawa (TV – tape delayed to 8 pm) & SSNCanada.ca (web)
13:00 Sherbrooke (1-1) at Saint Mary’s (0-1), Eastlink (TV & web)
13:00 Bishop’s (0-2) at No. 4 Montreal (2-0), Radio-Canada (TV & web)
13:00 Windsor (1-1) at Toronto (1-1), SSNCanada.ca (web)
13:00 No. 2 Calgary (2-0) at No. 7 Manitoba (2-0), CanadaWest.tv (web)
14:00 No. 9 Saskatchewan (1-1) at UBC (0-2), Shaw (TV) & CanadaWest.tv (web)
19:00 No. 8 Acadia (1-0) at No. 3 Laval (2-0)

-CIS-