April 12, 2010
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| McMaster's 2010 East West Bowl representatives Steve Cecchini, Roberto Filice and Joey Nemet. (Image by Charlotte Peer) |
The East West Bowl showcases – for the most part – CIS players who will be eligible for the 2011 Canadian Football League draft.
Nemet rushed for 612 yards in 2009 to finish with the seventh highest total in the league and the second highest on the Marauder squad. The third year kinesiology student averaged 76.5 yards per game and recorded one touchdown for McMaster this season.
Cecchini, a third year life sciences student, mustered 31 tackles (28 solo and six assisted) for McMaster in 2009 to finish second on the team. The OUA second team All-Star also contributed a sack last season.
Filice aided his team with 13 solo tackles, four assisted tackles and two sacks in the seven games he played last season.
Eighty-nine players will participate in the eighth annual East West Bowl presented by Under Armour at TD Watergate Stadium on the University of Western Ontario campus.
Last spring, the West team prevailed 16-7 to improve its all-time record to 6-1 in the series.
Paul Sheahan, head coach of the reigning Vanier Cup champion Queen’s Gaels, will lead the East squad in London, while Calgary’s Blake Nill will be in charge of the West contingent.
“This is a promising group of young athletes who all have aspirations of playing professionally in the years to come,” said Sheahan, who guided the Gaels to a 33-31 come-from-behind win last November in Quebec City for their first national title since 1992. “This is an opportunity for them to showcase their talent and further develop their skills while playing with the best young football players in the country. It should be quite an event.”
“In my opinion the significance of the East West Bowl has evolved over the past few years,” said Nill, who last fall led the Dinos to their first Vanier Cup appearance since 1995 and who previously guided Saint Mary’s to a pair of CIS titles. “It has now become a true showcase of the top CIS football talent, and it is something our student-athletes prepare for from their freshmen year in hopes of someday participating in it.”
The East West Bowl showcases – for the most part - CIS players who will be eligible for the 2011 Canadian Football League draft.
The East side is comprised of student-athletes representing schools from the Atlantic and Quebec conferences, as well as from Queen’s, Ottawa and Toronto. The West squad is made up of players from Canada West and from the remaining OUA universities.
No less that 16 all-Canadians from 2009 will take the field on May 8 – seven on each side - including Laval wide receiver Julian Feoli Gudino, Queen’s offensive tackle Matt O’Donnell, Laval guard Pascal Baillargeon, Montreal defensive tackle Gregory Alexandre, StFX linebacker Henoc Muamba, Acadia defensive back Mike Miller and Laval kicker Christopher Milo for the East, and Calgary running back Matt Walter, Calgary wide receiver Nathan Coehoorn, Wilfrid Laurier wide receiver Dillon Heap, Calgary inside receiver Anthony Parker, Western guard Matt Norman, Alberta defensive end Craig Gerbrandt and Alberta kicker Hugh O’Neill for the West.
Wide receiver Thomas Howes, linebacker Steve Laporte and defensive back Ben D’Andrea will also represent Vanier Cup champion Queen’s.
Quarterbacking the East team will be Robert Mackay of Concordia and Brad Sinopoli of Ottawa, while Regina’s Marc Mueller and Saskatchewan’s Laurence Nixon will run the West offence.
Mackay set a single-season Quebec conference record in 2009 with 2,739 passing yards, led the nation with 328 pass attempts and tied for the CIS lead in both touchdown passes (18) and completions (201).
Sinopoli and Mueller were impressive in their first season as university starters after taking over from Gee-Gees and Rams greats Josh Sacobie and Teale Orban, respectively. Mueller led Canada West with 2,308 yards through the air, while Sinopoli also reached the 2000-yard plateau (2,084).
In his third campaign as the Huskies number one pivot, Nixon completed at least 60 percent of his passes (62.5) for the third straight year while leading Saskatchewan to the Canada West final.
NOTES: Past East West Bowl participants include Hec Crighton trophy winners Benoit Groulx of Laval, Daryl Stephenson of Windsor, Andy Fantuz of Western, Jesse Lumsden of McMaster and Tommy Denison of Queen’s... Other notables include former Sherbrooke Vert & Or Samuel Giguère and Calgary graduate Dan Federkeil, both members of the 2010 Super Bowl finalist Indianapolis Colts, as well as former Mustang Vaughn Martin, who played his first season with the San Diego Chargers after being selected in the fourth round in the 2009 NFL Collegiate Draft.
Source: Charlotte Peer, Athletic Communications with notes from Michel Belanger, CIS.
1 comment:
welcome back on board. you haven't posted for so long! Glad to see that Joey is doing well with football. Best of luck with it. jen.
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