CFL.ca Staff
OTTAWA — Quarterback Benoit Groulx, defensive lineman Marc-Antoine Fortin and wide receiver Julian Feoli-Gudino, all of the Vanier Cup champion Laval Rouge et Or, are the Canadian Interuniversity Sport football players of the week for the final week of the 2008 season.
Groulx, a fourth-year education student from Montreal, had a record-setting performance last Saturday at Ivor Wynne Stadium in Hamilton as he led the top-ranked Rouge et Or (12-0) to a 44-21 win over the No. 3 Western Ontario Mustangs (10-2) in the 44th Vanier Cup final. With the victory, Laval finished with an unblemished record for the first time in team history and moved into second place for most Vanier Cup wins with five.
The 5-foot-9, 216-pound pivot, who received the Hec Crighton trophy as CIS player of the year two days before the championship game, was 17-of-27 for 383 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions against the Mustangs. His 92-yard TD pass to Mathieu Bouvette was the longest in Vanier Cup history, while his 82-yard TD strike to Feoli-Gudino ranks as the fourth longest. Groulx’s 383 yards passing are the third best tally in Vanier history, while Laval’s 548 yards of net offence rank fourth all-time.
Western Ontario quarterback Michael Faulds was also up for the award on offence.
Fortin, a second-year law student from Quebec City, received the Bruce Coulter Award as the best defensive player in the Vanier Cup after he racked up five solo tackles, including three for a loss and a sack of four yards. The 6-foot-4, 237-yard sophomore led a Laval defensive unit that set a Vanier Cup record allowing only 30 yards on the ground and tied a Vanier mark with five quarterback sacks.
Western defensive back Matt Carapella was also nominated on defence.
Feoli-Gudino, a second-year industrial relations student from San José, Costa Rica, excelled both on special teams and offence in the CIS final and received the Ted Morris Memorial Trophy as Vanier Cup MVP after he scored a pair of spectacular second-quarter touchdowns. The 6-foot-1, 200-pound speedster, who finished the game with four receptions for 112 yards and 95 yards on three punt returns, increased Laval’s lead to 20-0 nine minutes into the second frame when he scored on a 74-yard punt return, the third longest in Vanier history, and then made it a 27-7 affair with less than three minutes remaining before the break when he caught Groulx’s 82-yard TD pass.
Western return specialist Ryan Tremblay was also up for the special teams award.
