Wednesday, October 24, 2012

The top 15 Football Mounties of the past 15 years

 

This summer I conducted an independent poll, collecting votes from multiple media personalities, current and former coaches, and former players, in order to compile a list of the top 15 Mountie football players who have suited up for the Mounties since the last season they won the AUS (then the AUAA) championship, 1997.
A list of just over 30 players was provided to the voters, who then ranked their top 15 picks. From those picks were calculated the top 15 players, as selected by the voting panel.
Here they are, hope you enjoy the list.

15. Dave Thorne, OL/Long snapper, 2000-04, #65
Thorne played five seasons for the Mounties, and played nearly every position on the offensive line at one point or another. His biggest impact was as a long snapper, going his whole career without a bad snap, and was consistently the first man downfield on punt coverage, impressive for an offensive lineman.
Thorne might be most well-known, however, for literally being the Mounties’ offensive line for the better part of a season. In 2001, with many linemen down to injury, they went to a “pod” offense, which featured three receivers split on the line on either side. Thorne was the one-man line, playing centre, and it was in this offense that the Mounties won their only game of the season that year. A team Lineman of the Year, as well as Special Teams Player of the Year, and a 2003 AUS All-Star, Thorne was drafted by the Edmonton Eskimos in 2004 as a long snapper.
He never played a down in the CFL, but returned in the 2006 season as the offensive line coach, helping the Mounties earn the league’s leading rusher, and a 2-5 record and playoff berth.

14. Callan Exeter, Free Safety, 2007-08, 10, #18/26/10/8

Exeter only played three seasons in a Mountie uniform, but made his impact felt in a big way.
His second season saw him set an AUS record for tackles in a season with 77.5, and was a 1st-team All-Canadian. While you never want your safety to lead the team in tackles, a fair amount of them came in areas close to the line of scrimmage.
Exeter was a hard-hitting defensive back, of which evidence can be found in the 2008 matchup against Sherbrooke. Exeter jumped on a curl pattern in front of him and buried the intended receiver, popping the receiver’s helmet high into the sky in one of the biggest hits in the AUS that season.
Exeter also holds the AUS record for single-game tackles, with 16, and sits 14th on the AUS career list with 134.5, an average of almost 45 a season.

13. Scott Sheffer, Defensive line, 2004-08, #55
A two-time AUS All-Star, Sheffer would be much higher on this list had he not waited until late in the 2006 season to emerge as a force to be reckoned with. His final two seasons, he was the premier defensive lineman in the AUS, and many of his numbers come from the 2007 and 2008 seasons.
Interestingly, Sheffer came into his freshman season as a quarterback, but after an off-season which saw him bulk up significantly, the big man was moved to defensive line. As mentioned, he reached his stride late in his third year, and was an All-Star the next two seasons.
His most impressive season was his final one, where he played both end and tackle, and amassed probably the greatest All-Canadian nomination tape I’ve ever seen by a defensive player. 

Sheffer not only put up impressive numbers, but created opportunities for teammates to do so as well by staying disciplined, either eating up double teams or cutting off the runner’s lanes into his teammates’ waiting arms. Sheffer was a great teammate to his team on and off the field.
At the time of his graduation, Sheffer held the record for most career tackles by an AUS defensive lineman with 124.5. That record has since been broken by another player on this list, but Sheffer will always remain one of the best defensive presences the Mounties have had over time.

12. Matt Gauthier, Defensive line, 1998-99, #4
An important piece of the Mounties’ defensive puzzle for his career, Gauthier was a premiere pass rusher, earning CIS All-Canadian honours in his final season.
Recruited by Marc Loranger as part of the Quebec Pipeline, Gauthier was one of several standouts on a very talented Mounties’ defence, and was Mount Allison’s Male Athlete of the Year in 1999-2000.
With a very good nose for the quarterback, Gauthier set an AUS record, which has since been eclipsed, of sacks in a season with 9.5 in only eight games. That remains a team record.
That number also was the highest total in the country that season, helping him to his All-Canadian selection.
Gauthier also played a very big role in the defence that helped the Mounties to the championship in 1997, as well as first place standing in 1998. He remains a loyal fan and supporter to this day, and is unofficially credited with helping bring a swagger to the Mounties’ defence during his time.

11. Chris Begley, Free safety, 1998, #20
While only playing one year after the championship season, Begley was another one of those defensive standouts who was a big part of the 1998 first-place team. An All-Canadian selection that season was very much deserved for maybe the only player the Mounties have had who is a harder hitter than Exeter.
Begley was a punishing player who was extremely intelligent and very quick to react to the play in front of him. He was near the top of the AUS list for interceptions in 1997 and 1998, and also forced a few fumbles.
The 1998 highlight tape in particular shows evidence of his heavy hitting, with at least a couple of plays leaving opponents rolling on the ground as their teammates waved frantically for the trainers.
The BC native is one of the most intelligent and physical players in recent memory, and rightly deserves a spot in this top 15 list.

10. Kelly Hughes, Quarterback, 2006-08, #9/6
I just described Chris Begley as one of the most physical players the Mounties have had. Despite his being a quarterback, Kelly Hughes belongs in that conversation as well.
Arguably the best quarterback to don the garnet and gold, Hughes holds Mountie records for single-season passing yards with 2048 and completions with 153, as well as career records for completions with 380, passing yards with 5145, and passing touchdowns with 36.
But it is as a runner that Hughes might be best remembered; his physically dominant running style was second to none in the AUS at the time, and he led the team in rushing his final two seasons, including finishing second in the conference in rushing yards in 2008.
The only Mounties quarterback to be named AUS MVP – in 2008 – Hughes’s best games were when he was passing and running lots. One game which springs to mind is a game at Acadia in his MVP season where he passed for 244 yards and two touchdowns while running for 152 yards and a score. Two weeks later he repeated that, passing for 272 yards and running for 167.
One of the toughest Mounties ever, Hughes was almost unanimously a top 10 selection.

9. Ryan Downe, DL, 2008-12, #44
The only active Mountie to make the list, Ryan Downe has become one of the top pass rushers in Mountie history over his five-year career.
Downe broke into the AUS in his first year, earning a starting spot late in the season opposite Scott Sheffer. Since then, Downe has gotten better and better, and is currently in the midst of his best season yet. The Fredericton native is the AUS career leader in tackles by a defensive lineman, beating Sheffer’s mark a couple of weeks ago.
With one regular season game remaining in his career, Downe has accumulated 138.5 tackles, 49 tackles for a loss and a team-record 21 sacks. In his fifth year, he has gotten better every game, and the 2010 AUS All-Star should be a shoe-in for another nod this season.
What makes his story even more remarkable is that Downe has gone through off-season surgeries nearly every off-season, but has always made full recoveries, and has made a name as a force in the AUS trenches.

8. Mike Filer, OL, 2008-11, #64

One of two former Mounties in the Canadian Football League, Filer came in the same as Downe and didn’t waste much time making an impact.
By week three of his rookie campaign, Filer had cemented a starting spot at right guard, and started every game there until the late stages of his fourth season, when a knee injury derailed what could have been another All-Canadian season.
In his junior season, Filer led a potent Mounties attack, earning 2nd-team All-Canadian honours. He is a two-time AUS All-Star as well as a two-time team Lineman of the Year, and in 2011-12 was a nominee for Mount Allison Athlete of the Year.
In 2012, Filer was a draft pick of the Calgary Stampeders, and after being released on the final day of training camp was picked up by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, where he is currently playing as a backup lineman.
Filer was a dominant lineman, and one of the strongest players around. His road to the CFL was not necessarily due entirely to natural talent, either, as there aren’t many players who have ever worked as hard as Filer did to get to where they are now. It’s not often an offensive lineman cracks a top ten list for players on any team, but Filer is definitely deserving of this honour.

7. Adam Molnar, WR, 2007-11, #12

The Beamsville, ON native sits fifth all-time in the AUS in receptions with 156 and ninth all-time with 2107 receiving yards. He led the AUS in receptions in 2010 and 2011, and was a 2nd-team All-Canadian in 2010.
A transfer from Holy Cross College in the USA, Molnar quickly earned a reputation as a stellar route-runner, and a very dependable receiver with great hands. By his second season as a Mountie that reputation had already spread to the rest of the conference, as he earned his first All-Star selection with 30 receptions for 452 yards.
In his 2010 All-Canadian season, Molnar hauled in 35 passes for 367 yards, which he then exceeded again with 571 yards on an AUS-leading 37 receptions. His best game was in week 7 of the 2011 season at home against St FX, when Molnar caught 10 passes for 202 yards and a touchdown, and passed for a touchdown as well on a trick play.
The son of former CFLer Steve Molnar, Adam quickly made his impression felt at Mount Allison, and will likely always be in the conversation of top receivers at Mount A and in the AUS. He is one of only two Mounties to achieve over 2000 receiving yards and 100 receptions. Many of those receptions were difficult, memorable catches that will grace the highlight reels for years to come.

6. Derick Fury, DB/LB, 1998-99, 2001-03, #22/11
“Fury-ous,” as he was known by his teammates, graduated from Tantramar High School in the summer of 1998 as a very successful high school quarterback, but his transition to the defensive side of the ball in the CIAU was very smooth and effortless.
Like many Mounties on this list, Fury wasted no time earning recognition, as he was named the AUFC Rookie of the Year in 1998, playing defensive halfback as the Mounties finished first in the conference in the regular season. Fury played the next season before taking a year off, returning in 2001 as an outside linebacker, where he continued to excel before being drafted by the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts.
Fury sits 12th in the AUS in all-time tackles with 136, which was the second most in the AUS at the time of his graduation. The two-time AUS All-Star and 2001 All-Canadian played a huge leadership role in his later years, the majority of two of which were played with a full cast on one of his arms.
What Fury may have lacked in speed, he made up for tenfold in terms of physicality. It’s been said that the hometown boys are often among the toughest the Mounties have seen, and in this case it is definitely true.

5. Matt Harding, LB, 2002-05, 2007, #8/9/24
You know the top four of a list is impressive when at No. 5 sits the AUS all-time leader in tackles.
Not many defenders in the AUS were able to read plays like Matt Harding did, and the talented middle linebacker frustrated opposing offences for five years.
During Harding’s career, he helped lead the Mounties’ defence to some surprisingly good performances as a unit, and together with outside linebackers Fury and Darren MacDonald, formed one of the best and most physical linebacking corps the league has ever seen.
A three-time AUS All-Star at middle linebacker, a 2-time All-Canadian and 2-time Mount Allison Male Athlete of the Year, Harding was a quiet leader, but players listened when he spoke on the field.
Harding accumulated 41.5 tackles for a loss in his career, including an AUS record 15.5 in 2003. He sits second in single-game tackles with 15, and of course sits first all-time with 231 tackles in five seasons, including a career high of 57.5 in 2005.

4. Bradley Daye, WR/DB/Returner, 2006-10, #20/88/1

Only recruited by Mount Allison coming out of high school, “Two-Way” Daye is among the best all-around players the AUS has seen in recent history.
His first two seasons, Daye started at both receiver and corner, and also returned kicks and punts. The Halifax native found a full-time home at corner in the 2008 season, and in his fifth and final season he earned 1st-team All-Canadian honours at that position.
The versatile Daye, while playing both ways, did it all for the Mounties, racking up receptions, carries, and even pass attempts on offence, and making plays defensively. Most memorable of these plays was an AUS record for longest interception return, a thrilling 109-yarder at Saint Mary’s in the 2007 season finale.
In that same game, Daye recorded a receiving touchdown, making him the only player in recent memory to score both offensively and defensively in the same game.
The lightning-quick defensive back was virtually unstoppable in his All-Canadian season, making multiple big plays and leading the conference in passes defended with 11.
One half of the infamous “Daye and Ross” combination, it is also worth noting that as a holder on field goals, Daye never had a bad hold in his career.
The versatility of Daye is unrivalled by any Mountie in recent years, and he has since moved on to a professional football career in Europe for the Nimes Centurions.

3. Sebastien Roy, LB, 1999-02, #45
One of the most intense and feared defenders in AUS history, Seb Roy is the highest-ranking defensive player on the list, and was virtually a unanimous vote for the No. 3 spot.
Roy broke onto the scene in 1999, and was the CIAU Rookie of the Year. He would also be named an All-Canadian twice in his career, as well as a three-time conference All-Star.
The only Mountie defender in recent memory to score two defensive touchdowns in one season, Roy had amazingly good speed for a heavy-duty linebacker of his size, once being clocked in his 40-yard dash at 4.5 seconds.
Currently fourth on the all-time tackles list with 173, Roy was drafted into the CFL by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, where he played his rookie season before having stops in Montreal and Calgary over the next two seasons before retiring from football.
A fearless leader, Roy was known for his toughness as well as anything. In 2001, after suffering what was thought to be a season-ending knee injury, Roy was back on the playing field in only a couple of weeks, playing through severe pain the rest of the season.
Roy was an excellent defender; smart, athletic, and physical, and forced teams to gameplan around him to try and minimize his impact, which was something not many teams were able to do during his four years.

2. Gary Ross, WR/Returner, 2006-10, #80

The most electrifying player since No. 1 on the list graduated, Ross showed up to Mount Allison as a relative unknown, having been out of football for several years before suiting up in the Garnet and Gold.
By the time he graduated, however, he was a household name in the Maritimes and elsewhere, earning multiple accolades and records.
As a receiver, Ross lit it up in his five years, holding virtually every team receiving record, and holding AUS records in single-season receptions (60), and career receptions (206) and receiving yards (3106). He is the only AUS player and one of only six players in the CIS to have 3000+ receiving yards, and is one of only three CIS players to eclipse the 200-reception plateau in their career.
As a returner, Ross was equally good, setting AUS records in single season kick return yards (607 in 2007), and career punt return yards (1981) – which was only just recently eclipsed – and kickoff return yards (1537).
Ross also sits fourth in single-season receiving yards with 818, and holds down first, fourth, and seventh place in single-season all-purpose yards, the highest being 1936 achieved in 2007. That season, he became the first player in CIS history to have 600+ yards in each receiving, punt returns and kickoff returns.
A five-time AUS All-Star, and five-time All-Canadian as a returner and/or receiver, Ross is the most exciting player the AUS has seen recently, and his legend will live on as a great player and leader on the field, but also as a role model off the field to his teammates and people of Sackville.
Ross was an human highlight reel over five years, with several spectacular catches, exhilarating catch-and-runs, and hair-raising returns. Should there ever be a list of the top Gary Ross plays, it would be a very long list to choose from.

1.       Eric Lapointe, RB, 1998, #5
It is fitting that Lapointe holds down No. 1 on this list, as soon he will be inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame for his Mountie career. While only playing one season during the time span that this list covers, that season alone is impressive enough to put him on the list.
Lapointe is easily among the best players Canadian University Football has ever seen, accumulating 4,666 rushing yards in what was essentially three and a half seasons, as his third year was cut short due to injuries.
In 1998, Lapointe rushed for 1515 yards in eight games, while sitting out most of the second halves of the season due to his value to the team. At the time, his sophomore season total of 1619 yards was easily a CIAU record, and to this day his 1996 and 1998 season totals still rank first and second in the AUS record books.
Lapointe also sits 1-2 in the AUS for most rushing yards in a single game, at 311 and 308 yards. The game in which he ran for 311 yards was one of the greatest individual performances in AUS playoff history, coming in the Jewett Cup at #1-ranked St FX and their CIAU #1-ranked defence. Lapointe lit them up, including the greatest run I’ve ever seen, a 91-yard romp which saw him elude and evade over half of the St FX defenders.
The CIAU Rookie of the Year in 1995, Lapointe was also the Hec Crighton Trophy winner as the top player in the country in 1996 and 1998, the only Mountie to win the award. A three-time All-Canadian, Lapointe rushed for over 1000 yards in each of his All-Canadian seasons.
After graduation, Lapointe earned himself a name in the CFL, leading all CFL rookies in rushing in 1999 with the Grey Cup champion Hamilton Tiger-Cats, the first of two Grey Cups in Lapointe’s career. In 2005, Lapointe started at running back in the Grey Cup game for the Montreal Alouettes when they lost in an overtime thriller to the Edmonton Eskimos.
Lapointe is not only the greatest Mountie of the past 15 years, but likely of all-time, as not many players have been able to make and maintain the legendary reputation that Lapointe has.



The 1998 team featured a few people on this list (Gauthier, Begley, Fury, Lapointe), the highlight tape from that season is posted below.