RSEQ Players to Watch
Concordia University Stingers
Name: Vince Alessandrini
University: Concordia
Hometown: Laval, Que.
Previous School/Team: Vanier College
Position: Inside Receiver
Academic program: Human Relations
Year of eligibility: 2
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 198 lbs.
Key stats from 2016:
Alessandrini caught 52 passes for 554 yards and one touchdown in his rookie season.
Awards & honours:
• RSEQ Offensive Rookie of the Year (2016)
• Concordia football team MVP (2016)
PROFILE
Now as Alessandrini heads into his sophomore year, there’s no trepidation. He’s found his football home, enjoyed great success at the university level and is ready to up his game.
Laval Rouge et Or
Name: Hugo Richard
University: Laval
Hometown: Longueuil, QC.
Cégep / High School: Vanier College
Position: Quarterback
Academic program: Mechanical engineering
Year of eligibility: 4
Height: 6’2’’
Weight: 220 lbs
2016 key statistics: average of 261.6 passing yards per game (2nd in RSEQ), 13 touchdown passes (1st in RSEQ), 8 rushing touch downs (1st in RSEQ).
Awards (U SPORTS): 2014 U SPORTS Rookie of the year; 2014 RSEQ Player of the year; 2014 U SPORTS Second team All-Canadian; 2014 RSEQ All-Star team; 2016 winner of the Ted Morris Trophy (Vanier Cup Player of the game).
PROFILE
Hugo Richard made a name for himself during his first year at Laval. He achieved multiple team and conference records. With his titles of Player of the year in Quebec and Rookie of the year in Canada, the former Vanier Cheetahs player captured the attention of the Quebec audience.
Putting high demands on himself, the 6'2'', 220-pound quarterback suffered a tough setback during the Dunsmore Cup final. The team failed in its attempt to win a third consecutive national championship. Regardless, Richard doubled his efforts in training and in the video room in order to win back the trophy named in honour of Georges Vanier.
However, a concussion suffered in the second game of the 2015 season would complicate things. Sidelined for two games, Richard was not able to regain the pace of the previous year. The heartbreaking result was the same: a loss in the RSEQ final.
With a team much younger than the one he joined when he first arrived with the Rouge et Or, the challenge of going all the way in 2016 was event greater. But Richard's statistics were more like those of his rookie year. He finished first in Quebec for number of touchdown passes (13) and number of rushing touchdowns (8) and had a 68.4% pass success rate, more than 280 yards per match and only five interceptions.
As the season progressed, you could feel that something special was going to happen with the team. In the sixth game of the year, Richard was able to accomplish something he had yet to in his varsity career: beat the Carabins on the CEPSUM field. "That game was a turning point for Hugo, I think. He did good things, but he also made big mistakes and learned a lot from that. After that, his game was much more constant,” analyzed Justin Éthier, offensive coordinator for the Rouge et Or.
In November, Richard led his team to its ninth Vanier Cup in history. His 25 completed passes in 32 attempts, two of which were good for a major, allowed him to win the title of Player of the game, and to have his name engraved next to U SPORTS football legends.
This victory on the national stage was probably a relief for Richard, according to Justin Éthier. "He did not show it, but he is human like everyone else. He wanted to win. A weight was probably lifted," says Ethier.
Now that he has his Vanier Cup ring and two years of eligibility left, the mechanical engineering student will definitely want to repeat. Now more mature, the veteran was able to take part in two valuable experiences in between seasons. The Rouge et Or’s number 4 first participated in the East-West Valero Challenge last May before taking part in the Montreal Alouettes’ Spring training camp as part of the CFL’s Canadian Quarterback development program.
McGill Redmen
University: McGill
Hometown: Montreal, Que.
High school / Cegep: College du Vieux-Montreal
Position: Defensive Tackle
Academic program: Health & Social Services Management
Year of eligibility: 2
Height: 6-0
Weight: 285
Key stats from 2016: started all 8 regular season games in rookie season (19 tackles, including 14 solos, 5 tackles for loss, 2.5 QB sacks and one fumble recovery)
Awards & honours (since start of U SPORTS career): Montreal Alouettes bursary for athletic excellence, Quebec conference defensive rookie of the year; Winner of three team awards: MVP; most outstanding defensive player and most outstanding team player.
PROFILE
Andrew Seinet-Spaulding made quite a splash in his freshman campaign with the McGill University Redmen in 2016. The six-foot, 303-pound defensive tackle from Montreal, started all eight games and collected three major trophies at the team’s awards gala.
He was also named as the RSEQ conference defensive rookie of the year after registering 19 total tackles, including 14 solos, five tackles for loss and 2.5 quarterback sacks in addition to being credited with one fumble recovery.
A two-time recipient of a Montreal Alouettes athletic excellence bursary, he took home the team’s Students' Society Trophy as most valuable player, becoming only the third freshman in team history to merit MVP honours, joining Michael Soles (1986) and Karl Forgues (2015). Seinet-Spaulding also collected the Friends of McGill Football Trophy (most outstanding defensive player) and the Charlie Baillie Trophy (most outstanding team player).
“He had quite a rookie season and reported to training camp in even better shape than last year,” says Ronald Hilaire, entering his fourth season as head coach and defensive coordinator at McGill. The 21-year-old health and social services management student is 18 pounds lighter and now tips the scales at a mean and lean 285 pounds.
“He’s stronger and going to be a force to contend with as far as stopping the opponent’s run game. But because he shed that much weight, he’s also much quicker this year and will be a force at rushing the quarterback.”
Montreal Carabins
Name: Jonathan Boissonneault-Glaou
University: Montreal
Hometown: Lyster, Qc
High school / Cegep: Champlain-Lennoxville College
Position: Linebacker
Academic Program: Génie mécanique (Polytechnique)
Year of eligibility: 4
Height: 6-0
Weight: 227
Key stats from 2016: 29 tackles, 8 tackles for losses, 6 sacks, 2 fumbles forced et 1 fumble recovery in 8 games
Awards and honours: RSEQ Defense MVP (2015, 2016), RSEQ Defense All-Star (2015, 2016), U SPORTS Second Team Defense All-Star (2015, 2016)
PROFILE
Powerful player, really quick and intelligent, is always there on the first contact and is able to get tackles at the second level because he never really stops. Might be a high draft pick in next year’s CFL Draft
SHERBROOKE VERT & OR
Name: Alexandre Chevrier
University: Sherbrooke
Hometown: St-Clet, Québec
Cégep/High School: Valleyfield Noir et Or de
Position: Linebacker
Academic program: Multidisciplinary
Year of eligibility: 5
Height: 6’1’’
Weight: 215 lbs
2016 KEY STATISTICS
The Vert & Or's number 7 was fourth on the team last season in number of tackles with a total of 33.5, including 24 solo hits. He also had two tackles for loss of yards, managed an interception and knocked down three passes from the opposing quarterbacks.
PROFILE
Selected 55th (round 7) by the Saskatchewan Rough Riders of the Canadian Football League during last spring’s draft, Alexandre Chevrier will play his fifth and final season in the Vert & Or uniform. His experience, enthusiasm and athletic qualities will make him a tough opponent on the line for the team. He impressed many Canadian professional team recruiters at the regional pre-Combine evaluation last year. Alexandre will bring a lot of maturity and leadership to the group of linebackers of the Vert & Or, which will include both experienced players and young athletes with great potential. Chevrier’s return will compensate for the departure of Alexandre Gagné, who played five great seasons in the Université de Sherbrooke’s Vert & Or uniform.