FRC - CIS football players of the week (#4): Behar, Robertson, Bede honoured

OTTAWA (CIS) – Carleton wide receiver Nate Behar, Concordia defensive back Kris Robertson and Laval kicker Boris Bede are the CIS football players of the week for the period ending on Sept. 20, 2014.

Behar, a second-year communications student from London, Ont., was honoured on offence after he helped the Ravens (2-1) to a 33-31 come-from-behind win over cross-town rival Ottawa (2-2) in one of the most exciting Panda Games in history, last Saturday at TD Place at Lansdowne Park. With his team trailing 31-27, the 6-foot sophomore caught a Hail Mary pass from Jesse Mills at the 10-yard line on the last play of the contest and ran it in for the game-winning touchdown. He finished the afternoon with 13 catches for a team-record 276 receiving yards and three majors as the Ravens, in only their second year back on the CIS circuit, lifted the Panda Game trophy for the first time since 1994.

Mount Allison running back Chris Reid, Laval receiver Félix Faubert-Lussier and Alberta quarterback Curtis Dell were also up for the award.

Robertson, a fifth-year sociology major from Pickering, Ont., took home the weekly honour on defence thanks to his two interceptions in a 29-22 home win over Sherbrooke last Friday night, including one he returned 64 yards for a touchdown. The 5-foot-9, 185-pound senior also added 5.5 tackles and broke up two passes in the game. After going winless a year ago, the nationally ninth-ranked Stingers are off to a 3-0 start for the first time since 2006 and are tied atop the RSEQ standings with powerhouse Laval.

StFX linebacker Andrew Smith, Guelph defensive lineman Cam Walker and Saskatchewan safety Mark Ingram were also nominated.

Bede, a fifth-year education student from Toulon, France, was the choice on special teams following his record-setting performance in a dominating 72-15 road win over Bishop’s, on Saturday. The 6-foot-4, 225-pound veteran booted eight field goals in as many attempts, a new CIS mark for a game decided in regulation and one shy of the overall record held since 2006 by Concordia’s Warren Kean, who made five field goals in regulation and four in a shootout session in an overtime win. Bede, whose 32 points in the contest rank second in RSEQ history, also averaged 55.8 yards on five punts against the Gaiters, including a pair inside the 20-yard line.

Kickers Kyle McLean of Mount Allison, Aaron Gazendam of Toronto and Ryan Jones of Manitoba were the other nominees.

Offensive nominees:
AUS: Chris Reid, running back, Mount Allison
RSEQ: Félix Faubert-Lussier, receiver, Laval
OUA: Nate Behar, wide receiver, Carleton (recipient)
CWUAA: Curtis Dell, quarterback, Alberta

Defensive nominees:
AUS: Andrew Smith, linebacker, StFX
RSEQ: Kris Robertson, defensive back, Concordia (recipient)
OUA: Cam Walker, defensive lineman, Guelph
CWUAA: Mark Ingram, safety, Saskatchewan

Special team nominees:
AUS: Kyle McLean, kicker, Mount Allison
RSEQ: Boris Bede, kicker, Laval (recipient)
OUA: Aaron Gazendam, kicker, Toronto
CWUAA: Ryan Jones, kicker, Manitoba

Video of Boris Bede http://youtu.be/kUpEslDUops?t=52s

CIS FOOTBALL WEEK 5 SCHEDULE (all times local)

September 26
18:00 No. 10 Manitoba (2-1) at No. 2 Calgary (3-0) (Shaw TV & CanadaWest.TV)
19:00 Windsor (3-0) at York (0-4) (OUA.TV)

September 27
13:00 McGill (0-3) at No. 1 Laval (3-0) (Radio-Canada TV & ici.radio-canada.ca)
13:00 Carleton (2-1) at Laurier (2-1) (OUA.TV)
13:00 Ottawa (2-2) at Toronto (1-3) (OUA.TV)
13:00 Queen’s (0-4) at No. 4 McMaster (4-0) (Cable 14 & OUA.TV)
13:00 No. 3 Western (3-0) at Waterloo (0-4) (OUA.TV)
14:00 No. 5 Montreal (2-1) at StFX (2-1) (AUStv.ca)
14:00 No. 9 Concordia (3-0) at Saint Mary’s (0-3) (Eastlink TV & AUStv.ca)
14:00 No. 7 Saskatchewan (2-1) at Regina (1-2) (CanadaWest.TV)
14:00 Alberta (1-2) at UBC (0-3) (CanadaWest.TV)
16:00 Acadia (1-2) at Sherbrooke (1-2)
19:00 No. 8 Mount Allison (3-0) at Bishop’s (0-3) (Gaiters TV)

About Football Reporters of Canada

Football Reporters of Canada (FRC) represents journalists and broadcasters in every region of the country covering CIS Football. Since 1958, Football Reporters of Canada has been an organization of media members who have covered the Canadian Football League, serving to select the league’s outstanding players, coach-of-the-year and all-star teams through voting conducted by its members. In 2009, the FRC amalgamated with the University Football Reporters of Canada (UFRC) to give the organization greater scope in its affiliation with amateur and college football. FRC also works with the CFL and CIS to establish guidelines and working conditions for the men and women who report on the game. Selected members of FRC also help to choose builders, players and media members for induction into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.

About the 50th TELUS Vanier Cup

Canadian Interuniversity Sport will celebrate the 50th TELUS Vanier Cup throughout its 2014 football season. For the first time in history, the championship game will be staged in Montreal - at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium - on Saturday, November 29, at 1 p.m. ET, live on Sportsnet and Radio-Canada.
Official TELUS Vanier Cup website (including ticket information) www.vaniercup.com

About Canadian Interuniversity Sport

Canadian Interuniversity Sport is the national governing body of university sport in Canada. Every year, over 11,500 student-athletes and 700 coaches from 56 universities and four regional associations vie for 21 national championships in 12 different sports. CIS also provides high performance international opportunities for Canadian student-athletes at Winter and Summer Universiades, as well as numerous world university championships. For further information, visit www.cis-sic.ca or follow us on:

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