MONTREAL – Quarterback Éloa Latendresse-Regimbald of Montreal, captured Team MVP honours to highlight the 40th annual Friends of McGill Football awards gala, Friday, at the University's historic Faculty Club on McTavish Street.
 
Moe Khan, the team's play-by-play-broadcaster on the McGill Streaming Network, served as master of ceremonies at the soiree, where it was announced that Dr. Jean-Philippe Darche, a McGill football graduate who went on to play in both the CFL and NFL, has agreed to serve as honourary president for the Friends of McGill Football. The alumni support group is guided by Vincent Gagné, who serves as president of the organization. Darche, who played for Seattle in a Super Bowl loss to Pittsburgh, owns a pair of Super Bowl rings as a team physician with the Kansas City Chiefs.
 
In wake of a huge graduating group, second-year head coach Alex Surprenant also announced a record-breaking recruiting class, which is currently numbered at 53 with a few more expected to commit, breaking the school's previous high of 41 recruits established in 1991.
 
Latendresse-Regimbald, who led the league in rushing and ran for nine touchdowns in eight games, received the Students' Society Trophy, which has been presented since 1951 to the team's most valuable player (more details in profile posted below).
  
Other major award recipients were:
 
Darius Simmons (Dan Pronyk Memorial Trophy; most outstanding offensive player), Mathis Pilon (Friends of McGill Football Trophy; most outstanding defensive player), Charles-Hugo Chatila (Vaughan McVey Trophy; most outstanding special teams player), Victor Paradis (Fred Dupré Trophy; rookie of the year), Benjamin Spénard-Bergeron (Charlie Baillie Trophy; most outstanding team player), William Langlais (Fred Wigle Memorial Trophy; most sportsmanlike player), Domenico Piazza (Touchdown Club Trophy; most outstanding lineman), Michael Vlahogiannis (Winsor Family Trophy; leadership & overall excellence), Louis-Gabriel Hallé (Vic Obeck Trophy; most improved player), Grégoire Couture (Dr. Willie Lambert Trophy; most dedicated player); Charles Barakett (Dr. Strachan Hartley Memorial Trophy; proficiency in academics, athletics & citizenship), and Ryan McNally (Adriano Tassone Memorial Trophy; most outstanding graduating player).

This was the last official function for the 152nd year of the McGill program, which will have a its largest-ever graduating class with 19 seniors expected to earn their academic degrees this spring. 
 
That group includes: OL Domenico Piazza (Arts), DL Jonathan Montour (Arts), LS Maxime Bastien (Science), REC William Langlais (Education), DB Jake Applebaum (Arts), LB Cédric Déry (Management), REC Gabriel Gaulin (Education), DL Teddy Charlot (Arts), DL Thomas Di Stefano (Management), LB Alex-Antoine Mayer (Management), DL Mathieu Delisle (Master's, Occupational Therapy), DB Ryan McNally (Arts), DL Nassib Hassouna (Medicine), OL Zachary Aboud (Arts), RB Benjamin Bergeron-Spénard (Education), OL Michael Vlahogiannis (Arts), TE Cedric Vaillancourt (Arts), DB Brendon Francois (Education) and LB Grégoire Couture (Management).
 
 
PROFILES FOR 2024-25 McGILL FOOTBALL AWARD RECIPIENTS:

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER (Students' Society Trophy):
Éloa Latendresse-Regimbald, a 6-foot-4, 197-pound quarterback from Montreal, started all eight regular season games and scored a league-leading nine rushing touchdowns, which ranked third in the nation and was one shy of the school record. The 23-year-old physical education junior was named three times as the RSEQ offensive player of the week. He won the RSEQ rushing title with 781 yards for a lofty average of 97.6 per game. One of the team's co-captains, he led the Quebec conference in total offence with 355.2 yards per game and was ranked third in scoring (55 points). ELR was third among passing leaders with 2,061 yards, completing 120 of 224 attempts for a .536 completion percentage and an average of 257.6 yards per game. He threw eight TD passes, eight interceptions and had a quarterback efficiency rating of 137.3 per cent. ELR also was called upon to make two quick kicks, including a 51-yarder, for a solid punting average of 38.5 yards. He became the first quarterback in McGill history to pass for over 400 yards and rush for more than 100 in the same game, accomplishing that feat in a 29-23 victory at Sherbrooke (Sept. 6, 2024). With a career total of 24 rushing TDs in 24 regular season games, he surpassed the team's rushing record of 21 set by Tom Barbeau in 1978; and he is just one major shy of the team's total TD record of 25 set by Barbeau in 27 contests.
 
MOST OUTSTANDING OFFENSIVE PLAYER (Dan Pronyk Memorial Trophy):
Darius Simmons, a six-foot, 192-pound wide receiver from Lachine, Que., merited all-conference status for the third time and became only the second football player in McGill history to earn All-Canadian honours for a third season. He joins previously decorated offensive lineman Samir Chahine, a McGill Sports Hall of Famer, who was picked in 1995, 1996 and 1997. Simmons, who was invited to the 2024 CFL Combine camp in Winnipeg, recently signed as a free-agent with the CFL's Ottawa RedBlacks. A 25-year-old certificate senior, he ranked second among league leaders with 26 receptions for 579 yards and a pair of touchdowns in eight games. Simmons ranked second among league-leaders in both, yards per catch (22.3) and yards per game (72.4). He enrolled at McGill in 2020 from John Abbott College and after a lost season due to the COVID pandemic, he had a splashy debut in 2021, receiving RSEQ offensive rookie-of-the-year honours. In 30 career regular season games, he caught 144 passes for 2,387 yards and eight TDs, registering a longest catch-and-run play of 90 yards.
 
MOST OUTSTANDING DEFENSIVE PLAYER (Friends of McGill Trophy):
Mathis Pilon, a 5-foot-11, 190-pound defensive back from Boucherville, Que., led McGill's defence and was ranked fourth among league leaders with 34 total tackles in eight games, for an average of 4.2 tackles per contest.  The 20-year-old management sophomore was credited with 27 solo tackles, to go along with 14 assisted tackles. Pilon had one interception that he returned 42 yards in addition to a fumble recovery returned for a 42-yard touchdown. He was also credited with four pass knockdowns.
 
MOST OUTSTANDING SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER (Vaughan McVey Trophy):
Charles-Hugo Chatila, a 6-foot-2, 200-pound rookie defensive back from St. Augustin de Desmaure, Que., played a key containment role on special teams. The 20-year-old economics freshman had 13.0 total tackles in seven regular season games, including 12 solos and a pair of assisted tackles, including one for a loss of 11 yards.
 
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR (Fred Dupré Memorial Trophy):
Victor Paradis, a six-foot, 190-pound defensive back from Montreal, had an impressive debut campaign and ranked fourth among league leaders in tackles per game (4.6). The 21-year-old geography freshman dressed in seven of the team's eight regular season outings and registered 24 solo tackles, and 17 assisted tackles, including two for loss. He also had four pass knockdowns.
 
MOST OUTSTANDING TEAM PLAYER (Charlie Baillie Trophy):
Benjamin Bergeron-Spénard, a 5-foot-6, 188-pound running back from Brossard, Que., was a jack-of-all-trades, rushing, receiving, returning kicks and making tackles on special teams. In eight games, he rushed 24 times for 124 yards and a solid average of 5.2 per carry. The 25-year-old physical education senior also had five receptions for 62 yards. On special teams, he was credited with one kickoff return for 21 yards, to go along with five solo and four assisted tackles.
 
MOST OUTSTANDING LINEMAN (Touchdown Club Trophy):
Domenico Piazza, a 6-foot-2, 290-pound lineman from Mercier, Que., started all eight games, including seven at left tackle and one at left guard (the win at Concordia). The fifth-year senior is 24 years old and majoring in industrial and labour relations. He was invited to the 2025 CFL Combines Camp and is expected to be selected in the upcoming CFL Draft. Piazza enrolled at McGill in 2020 out of John Abbott College.
 
PROFICIENCY IN ACADEMICS, ATHLETICS & CITIZENSHIP (Dr. Strachan Hartley Memorial Trophy):
Charles Barakett, a 22-year-old bio-engineering junior from Trois-Rivieres, Que., earned Academic All-Canadian honours and made the President's Student-athlete Honour Roll. On the field, the 5-foot-11, 175-pound receiver suited up in seven games and caught nine passes for 158 yards for a solid 17.6 average yards per catch, which ranked sixth in the league. On special teams, he ranked third among league leaders with 25 punt returns, and fourth in yardage (159) for an average of 6.4 yards per punt return.
 
MOST OUTSTANDING GRADUATING PLAYER (Adriano Tassone Memorial Trophy):
Ryan McNally, a 6-foot-1, 200-pound free safety from Laval, Que., ranked fifth among RSEQ conference leaders with 4.4 tackles per game in 2024. The 24-year-old economics senior registered 30.5 total tackles, including 25 solos and 11 assisted in seven regular season contests. He added three knockdowns, one interception and tied for the league lead with a pair of forced fumbles. After the season, he was selected to attend the CFL Invitational Combine, a preliminary evaluation camp at Waterloo, on Feb. 28. McNally was recruited to McGill in 2021 from Vanier College.
 
LEADERSHIP & OVERALL EXCELLENCE (Winsor Family Trophy):
Michael Vlahogiannis, a 6-foot-4, 308-pound offensive lineman from Town of Mt. Royal, Que., started at centre and served as long-snapper in all eight regular season games, as well as the semifinal playoff game. Invited to the 2024 CFL Invitational Combine camp last year after earning all-conference honours, he was a seventh-round pick, 64th overall, by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers but returned to McGill for his sixth year after being accepted into the faculty of medicine.  A 26-year-old veteran, he graduated in 2024 with an Arts degree in industrial and labour relations. Over his five seasons with the Redbirds, he started in 28 career contests. Vlahogiannis served as one of the team's co-captains, made the Principal's Student-athlete Honour Roll and earned Academic All-Canadian status.
 
MOST IMPROVED PLAYER (Vic Obeck Trophy):
Louis-Gabriel Hallé, a 6-foot-2, 263-pound offensive lineman from St. Joseph de Beauce, Que., started at right tackle for all eight regular season games, as well as the playoff semifinal. The 24-year-old physical education senior was also credited with one tackle on a fumble recovery.
 
MOST SPORTSMANLIKE PLAYER (Fred Wigle Memorial Trophy):
William Langlais, a 6-foot-3, 217-pound receiver from Chicoutimi, Que., ranked 10th among league leaders in receptions with 20 catches in eight games. The 26-year-old physical education senior had one touchdown and 276 reception yards, averaging 13.8 yards per catch.  Langlais also was credited with a pair of solo tackles on interception returns.
 
MOST DEDICATED PLAYER (Dr. Willie Lambert Trophy):
Grégoire Couture, a 6-foot-2, 222-pound linebacker from St. Hyacinthe, Que., saw duty in seven regular season contests and was credited with eight total tackles, seven of them solo. The 23-year-old management senior also had a quarterback sack for a loss of seven yards in a game at Concordia.
 
 
SOURCE: 
Earl Zukerman
Sports Information Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
514-983-7012
earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca
@EarlZukerman