Each Wednesday for a five-week period from June 5 to July 3, one of the newly minted inductees to the McGill Sports Hall of Fame will be profiled. In our first installment for the Class of 2024, read about football player Randy Chevrier (B.Ed. '01)
Born in Montreal on June 6, 1976, Chevrier was raised in nearby St. Leonard, Que. The 6-foot-2, 270-pound defensive lineman and long-snapper only began playing organized football as an 18-year old at Vanier College in Montreal. He went on to star for five seasons in the university ranks at McGill, graduating in 2001 with a physical education degree. He played on the McGill gridiron from 1996 to 2000 and collected 23 major awards during his collegiate career. He was the first player in school history to receive the J.P. Metras trophy as the most outstanding lineman in Canadian university football (2000) and was one of two CIS players selected to play in the East-West Shrine game, a showcase designed for graduating NCAA seniors. He played 40 regular season games at McGill and recorded 157 tackles and 10 quarterback sacks.
Prior to choosing to pursue a professional football career, Chevrier had a tryout with Bobsleigh Canada. Selected by Jacksonville in the seventh round (241st overall) of the 2001 NFL Draft, Chevrier was also picked fifth overall by Edmonton in the 2001 CFL Draft. He didn't see action with the Jaguars but played 13 NFL games for the Bengals and Cowboys in addition to a stint with the New York Giants and then the Barcelona Dragons in NFL Europe.
He followed that by playing 204 career regular season CFL contests, with stops in Edmonton (23 games), Calgary (178) and Saskatchewan (3). He was a Grey Cup champion with the Stampeders in 2008 and 2013, in addition to one with the Eskimos in 2003. Chevrier saw action as a defensive lineman early in his CFL career before settling into a full-time long-snapper role in 2008. He also saw occasional duty in the Stamps' short-yardage packages and had two career touchdown catches.
In 2014, Chevrier was awarded the Stamps' Herm Harrison Memorial Award and the CFL Player Association's Tom Pate Memorial Award for outstanding sportsmanship and contribution to his team and community. He served as the Stamps club representative to the Canadian Cancer Society and started a number of community-based initiatives. Among them was a weekly hospital visits program, an Anti-Bullying campaign, and a "Tickled Pink" event which annually raises thousands of dollars for the Canadian Cancer Society. He also volunteered with the Alberta Council of Women's Shelters and served as a substitute teacher, a high school and youth football coach, and a minor hockey coach. He was also a rep for the "Every Yard Counts" program with the Alberta Children's Hospital.
After 16 seasons of pro football, Chevrier hung up his cleats upon completing the 2016 season, to become a firefighter. In 2021, at the age of 45, he signed a practice squad deal with the Stampeders during the CFL playoffs. Although he didn't play any games, he indicated that the process of working out and beating out other candidates was a great personal achievement.
Other laureates accompanying Chevrier in the McGill induction class of 2024 include hockey's
Cathy Chartrand (B.Ed '12) of Lac Nominingue, Que., rugby's
Brianna Miller (B.Ed '14) of Pointe Claire, Que., hockey's
Alexandre Picard-Hooper (B.Com '12) of Boucherville, Que., and in the builder category, is
Geraldine Dubrule [BSc (PE) '57], who was raised in Ottawa and currently a resident of Kingston, Ont.
Founded in 1996 and located inside Tomlinson Hall at the Sir Arthur Currie Gymnasium on Pine Avenue West, the pantheon now has 180 honoured members, 31 of them Olympians. This year's induction luncheon is slated for Friday, Oct. 25, as part of McGill Homecoming 2024, and will be held at Le Windsor ballroom on Peel Street. Ticket information will be announced in early September.
SOURCE:
Earl Zukerman
Sports Information Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
514-983-7012
earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca
