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Guelph Gryphons football

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Guelph Gryphons
Guelph Gryphons logo
First season1950
Athletic directorScott McRoberts
Head coachMark Surya
1st year, 6–2  (.750)
Other staffMatt Berry (DC)
Mark Surya (OC)
Donnavan Carter (STC)
Home stadiumAlumni Stadium
Stadium capacity8,000
Stadium surfaceField Turf
LocationGuelph, Ontario
LeagueU Sports
ConferenceOUA (1980–present)
Past associationsOIFC (1957–1966)
CCIFC (1967–1970)
OUAA (1971–1973)
OQIFC (1974–1979)
All-time record– 
Postseason record– 
Titles
Vanier Cups1
1984
Churchill Bowls1
1984
Yates Cups4
1984, 1992, 1996, 2015
Hec Crighton winners0
ColoursRed, Black, and Gold[1]
     
OutfitterAdidas
RivalsWestern Mustangs
Waterloo Warriors
Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
Websitegryphons.ca

The Guelph Gryphons football team represents the University of Guelph in Guelph, Ontario in the sport of Canadian football in the Ontario University Athletics conference of U Sports. The Guelph Gryphons football team has been in continuous operation since 1950.[2] The team has won one Vanier Cup national championship in 1984, which is also their only appearance in the title game. The Gryphons are the only program with a perfect record in Vanier Cup games. The team has also won four Yates Cup conference championships, in 1984, 1992, 1996 and 2015.

History

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The team can trace their roots back to 1950 when the team played in the Intercollegiate Intermediate Football Union.[2] Through numerous league evolutions, the Gryphons were a founding member of the Ontario University Athletics in 1980 and continue to play there to this day.[3] The team won their first Yates Cup championship in 1984 and also won their first and only Vanier Cup championship that year against the Mount Allison Mounties. While the team was competitive in the 1990s and won two more Yates Cup championships in 1992 and 1996, the 1984 Vanier Cup was the program's only appearance in the title game.

The Gryphons on offense against the Concordia Stingers in 2010.

In the early 2000s, the program remained largely in the middle of the standings as the team had been at or within one game of .500 for six of those years and did not have a winning record at any point in the decade. However, led by then-head coach Kyle Walters, the upstart 4-4 Gryphons made a Yates Cup appearance in the 2007 OUA championship game, but lost to the Western Mustangs.

Stu Lang was named head coach for the 2010 season and the program established a dominant run.[4] The team finished with a 7–1 record and a 2nd-place finish for four straight seasons from 2012 to 2015, culminating in the program's fourth Yates Cup win in 2015.

Lang resigned after the successful 2015 season and Kevin MacNeill was named interim head coach for 2016. In the fall of 2017, the football team officially opened the Football Pavilion, a state of the art locker room and complex for the football team, and its coaches, donated by Lang.[5] The team continued to qualify for the playoffs and remain competitive under MacNeill, finishing 5–3 in 2017. However, the team was blown out in a 66-12 OUA semi-final loss to the Western Mustangs. After MacNeill left the program, Todd Galloway was named interim head coach for the 2018 season and led the team all the way to the Yates Cup where they were again soundly defeated by the Mustangs. Ryan Sheahan was named head coach on January 10, 2019 and led the team to a 6–2 record and third-place finish in his first season. The COVID-19 Pandemic cancelled the 2020 season. In the shortened 2021 season, the Gryphons dropped to 3-3, and fell even further during the 2022 season to 1-7 under Sheahan's hand. [6]

Recent season results

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Season Games Won Lost OL Pct % PF PA Standing Playoffs
2000 8 3 5 0 0.375 165 210 5th in OUA Did not qualify
2001 8 3 5 0 0.375 164 237 7th in OUA Lost to Ottawa Gee-Gees in OUA quarter-finals 38-15
2002 8 2 6 0 0.250 102 237 8th in OUA Lost to McMaster Marauders in OUA quarter-finals 71-11
2003 8 2 6 0 0.250 161 285 9th in OUA Did not qualify
2004 8 4 4 0 0.500 169 238 5th in OUA Lost to Ottawa Gee-Gees in OUA quarter-finals 33-9
2005 8 3 5 1 0.375 208 242 6th in OUA Lost to Ottawa Gee-Gees in OUA quarter-finals 35-21
2006 8 2 6 - 0.250 206 217 8th in OUA Did not qualify
2007 8 4 4 - 0.500 278 124 5th in OUA Defeated McMaster Marauders in OUA quarter-finals 25-21
Defeated Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks in OUA semi-finals 38-31
Lost to Western Mustangs in Yates Cup 34-21
2008 8 4 4 - 0.500 255 173 4th in OUA Lost to Ottawa Gee-Gees in OUA quarter-finals 42-37
2009 8 3 5 - 0.375 310 253 6th in OUA Lost to Western Mustangs in OUA quarter-finals 37-18
2010 8 4 4 - 0.500 159 192 5th in OUA Lost to Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks in OUA quarter-finals 42-10
2011 8 2 6 - 0.250 209 197 8th in OUA Did not qualify
2012 8 7 1 - 0.875 251 209 2nd in OUA Defeated Queen's Golden Gaels in OUA semi-finals 42-39
Lost to McMaster Marauders in Yates Cup 30-13
2013 8 7 1 - 0.875 252 139 2nd in OUA Lost to Queen's Golden Gaels in OUA semi-finals 34-17
2014 8 7 1 - 0.875 343 174 2nd in OUA Defeated Western Mustangs in OUA semi-finals 51-26
Lost to McMaster Marauders in Yates Cup 20-15
2015 8 7 1 - 0.875 404 222 2nd in OUA Defeated Carleton Ravens in OUA semi-finals 33-21
Defeated Western Mustangs in Yates Cup 23-17
Lost to Montreal Carabins in Mitchell Bowl 25-10
2016 8 3 5 - 0.375 244 227 6th in OUA Lost to McMaster Marauders in OUA quarter-finals 17-11
2017 8 5 3 - 0.625 293 196 5th in OUA Defeated Ottawa Gee-Gees in OUA quarter-finals 30-8
Lost to Western Mustangs in OUA semi-finals 66-12
2018 8 5 3 - 0.625 236 175 3rd in OUA Defeated Waterloo Warriors in OUA quarter-finals 45-34
Defeated Ottawa Gee-Gees in OUA semi-finals 27-22
Lost to Western Mustangs in Yates Cup 63-14
2019 8 6 2 - 0.750 242 142 3rd in OUA Defeated Carleton Ravens in OUA quarter-finals 22-17
Lost to McMaster Marauders in OUA semi-finals 19-9
2020 Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
2021 6 3 3 - 0.500 140 86 3rd in OUA West Defeated Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks in OUA quarter-finals 31-18
Lost to Western Mustangs in OUA semi-finals 33–12
2022 8 1 7 - 0.125 158 319 9th in OUA Did not qualify
2023 8 3 5 - 0.375 248 214 8th in OUA Did not qualify
2024 8 6 2 - 0.750 276 200 3rd in OUA Defeated Ottawa Gee-Gees in OUA quarter-finals 26-15
Lost to Western Mustangs in semi-finals 30-19

[7][8]

National Postseason Results

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Vanier Cup Era (1965-current)
Year Game Opponent Result
1984 Churchill Bowl

Vanier Cup

Calgary

Mount Allison

W 12-7

W 22-13

1992 Churchill Bowl Queen's L 16-23
1996 Churchill Bowl Saskatchewan L 9-33
2015 Mitchell Bowl Montreal L 10-25

Guelph is 1-3 in national semi-final games and 1-0 in the Vanier Cup.

Head coaches

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Name Years Notes
Bill Mitchell 1950–1953
Jay Fry 1954–1955
Tom Mooney 1956–1960
Don Hayes 1961–1962
Bill Graham 1963–1965
Bill Mitchell 1966–1969
Dick Brown 1970–1978
Tom Dimitroff Sr. 1979–1983
John Musselman 1984–1986
Dan McNally 1987–2000
Tom Arnott 2001–2005
Kyle Walters 2006–2009
Stu Lang 2010–2015
Kevin MacNeill 2016–2017
Todd Galloway 2018
Ryan Sheahan 2019–2023
Mark Surya 2024–present

National award winners

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Guelph Gryphons in the CFL

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As of the end of the 2024 CFL season, 11 former Gryphons players are on CFL teams' rosters:

[9]

References

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  1. ^ "Guelph Gryphon Brand Guidelines". Guelph Gryphons. August 15, 2019. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Football - History" (PDF). Guelph Gryphons. April 15, 2019. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  3. ^ Watkins, Robert. "A History of Canadian University Football". cisfootball.org. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  4. ^ "Stu Lang - 2011-12 Football Coaching Staff". Guelph Gryphons. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  5. ^ "The Pavilion at Alumni Stadium Officially Opens". Guelph Gryphons. October 2, 2017.
  6. ^ "Ryan Sheahan Named Head Coach of Gryphon Football". Guelph Gryphons. January 10, 2019.
  7. ^ "Bob Adams CIS Sportspage". Chebucto Community Net. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  8. ^ "U Sports football standings". U Sports. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  9. ^ "CFL players". Canadian Football League. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
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