McGill University Athletics

The 1969 McGill University football team, often referred to as the "Mooney Men" in recognition of their late head coach Tom Mooney, posted an 8-2 overall record with a roster of 37 players, nine of whom earned conference all-star status.

They finished atop the six-team Ontario-Quebec Athletic Association East Division standings with a 6-1 mark in regular season play, outscoring opponents by a stellar 190-50 ratio. In the more than five decades since then, McGill has only posted division-leading finishes three times – in 1973, 1981 and 2002.

McGill opened the 1969 preseason with a 41-0 whitewash over Loyola to capture the inaugural Shaughnessy Cup, a local rivalry game named in honour of former head coach, the legendary Frank Shaughnessy, who had died just months before.

McGill then rolled past the first two league opponents, defeating archrival Queen's 28-6 and long-time nemesis Western 30-11. But the win streak was snapped with a heart-breaking 17-16 setback to Toronto, which proved to be the team's only loss of the regular season. They subsequently cruised past McMaster (49-13), Queen's (21-3) and Waterloo (29-0), heading into the final weekend, for a rematch with Toronto at Percival Molson Stadium on Nov. 8. A McGill loss would have forced a three-way tie atop the OQAA East standings with Queen's and Toronto.

However, McGill was playing at its peak and proceeded to avenge a previous loss to the Varsity Blues, pitching a 17-0 shutout, buttressed by six interceptions. The game was played  before a supportive home crowd of 11,300, to capture the Yates Cup league championship, awarded to the first-place finisher in that era. McGill advanced to the Atlantic Bowl national semifinal game on Nov. 15, and defeated UNB 20-8 in a rainy, muddy contest played at Halifax, to capture the Robert Stanfield Trophy. 

That result qualified McGill for its first-ever appearance in the CIAU's Vanier Cup game,  a nationally televised event more commonly known then as the Canadian College Bowl.  It was the first of three Vanier Cup match-ups for the McGill program, which also reached the pinnacle contest in 1973 and 1987.

McGill fell 24-15 to Manitoba in the national final, which was played in 15-degree Fahrenheit (-9 C) weather conditions on Nov. 21 before 10,000 on a frozen field at Varsity Stadium in Toronto. The Bisons played in broomball shoes, while McGill players had none and experimented with various types of footwear.  The game was closer that the score indicated as Manitoba had 20 first downs and 444 yards of net offence, compared to 19 and 338, generated respectively, by McGill.

Quarterback Dan Smith, an 18-year-old redshirted freshman, made just his second start of the season for McGill, ahead of veteran George Wall.

The team roster, which featured 15 future physicians and two judges, had three All-Canadians, namely defensive back Dr. Chris Rumball, a multiple threat who had four punt return touchdowns to his credit, including one for 105 yards. Also on that honour roll was centre John "Jay" Harris and fullback Dr. David Fleiszer, who became the school's first-ever recipient of the Hec Crighton Trophy as player of the year in Canada.

Rumball, Harris and Fleiszer were among the team's eight OQAA conference all-stars, a group that also included Mike Evans (OG), Robert Taylor (OT), Dr. Bill McKenna (LB), Dr. Robert Berke (LB) and Howie Mednick (DT).

Rounding out the roster was Dr. Ken Aikin, Dr. Robert Bell, Peter Bender, Robert Chantler, Ian Chapman, Gordon Cleland, James Colizza, Angus Curry, Justice David Doherty, Dr. Daniel Dulmage, Gerald Goulet, Bill Holt, Dr. Ron Kelly, Justice Sal Lovecchio, Thomas McIvor, Dr. Clifford Moore (team captain), Dr. Michael Nanne, Stephen Neville, David Norcott, Mark Potvin, Patrick Rahming, Kenneth Ross, Dr. Scott Stewart, Dr. John "Jack" Sutton, Dr. John Wilkinson, Dr. Murray Wilson and Dr. Norman Woods. 

Sadly, four players have since passed away, namely Curry (2014), Neville (2017), Aikin (2018) and Holt (2021).

Tom Mooney's coaching staff included assistant Charlie Baillie (offensive line), who would later be part of the team's coaching staff for Vanier Cup appearances in 1973 and 1987.

Rounding out the 1969 coaching staff was George Alevisatos (defensive line) and Tom Moran (linebackers & secondary). Other support staff included George Jay (equipment manager), Jim Adams (trainer) and Al Duguid (assistant trainer). Regrettably, Mooney, Moran, Jay, Adams and Duguid have all passed away.

A tight-knit unit, the 1969 squad continues to hold annual reunions and celebrated the 50th anniversary of their championship in 2019. They have solidified their moniker as a legacy team at McGill and are arguably the top single fundraising group of all varsity sports teams in school history, having raised about $300,000 in scholarships and funding for the football program.