2007 Canada West Football Awards Announced
Thursday, November 08, 2007

by David Bandla, Canada West Athletics Communications Office

Canada West Athletics is pleased to announce major award winners for the 2007 football season, as selected by coaches of the seven teams.

Taking home two awards this season is Teale Orban, who repeats as Frank Gnup Memorial Trophy winner as Player of the Year. In addition to being a Hec Crighton finalist for CIS Player of the Year, the fourth-year Business Administration student was also selected by coaches as the Russ Jackson Outstanding Student-Athlete nominee for Canada West.

After winning Canada West Player of the Year honours in 2006, Orban went out and put up a CIS-leading 22 touchdown passes, bringing his career total to 66, and completed 177 passes on the year, the second-best single-season total in Canada West history. At 6-2, the Rams finished second in the conference and advanced to this weekend’s Hardy Cup final game against Manitoba with a 19-13 win over Saskatchewan on Nov. 3.

Regina offensive coordinator Bernie Schmidt said of Orban, “He brings a lot of experience at the quarterback position. He’s got an exceptionally strong arm, he’s very smart and he’s a great leader. Teale hasn’t put up the same numbers as he did last year, but considering he lost two all-Canadian receivers (Chris Bauman and Chris Getzlaf) to the CFL and has had two 18-year-old receivers (Brenden Owens and Kolten Solomon) all year long, he’s been every bit as impressive this season.”

Among Orban’s academic accomplishments, he entered the University of Regina through the Faculty of Administration Excellence Program and won the Lorne Aston Scholarship as top male athlete in Regina High School Athletics combined with Academics, while his community involvement has also been notable as an active member at Living Hope Alliance Church, an instructor for two years at Run the Good Race Christian basketball school and he has refereed many basketball games for Regina elementary schools.

“Teale is an incredible role model for student-athletes in our community and all over the country. The fact that he’s able to perform on the field as well as he does, coupled with his strong academics, part-time work, and volunteering is incredible,” commented Rams head coach Frank McCrystal.

For the second year in a row a member of the Calgary Dinos, Matt Walter, has been named Peter Gorman Rookie of the Year. In 2006, quarterback Dalin Tollestrup took CIS Rookie of the Year honours. Walter, a Science student out of Bishop O’Byrne High School in Calgary, played all eight conference games, was second in league rushing to teammate Anthony Woodson with 702 yards on 79 carries and scored seven majors, tied for third in the conference. The 18-year-old Walter had three games in which he rushed for in excess of 100 yards, including a game at Regina on Oct. 6 that saw him rush for a career-high 191 yards and a 48-yard touchdown on 19 carries.

After only two years, head coach Blake Nill’s youth movement is starting to pay dividends, as the Dinos snuck into the playoffs with a 4-4 record before bowing out to Manitoba in the semifinals.

“As a freshman, Matt was an integral part of the 2007 football season. Not only did he provide us with a legitimate one-two punch in the backfield, but when called upon his play often provided the spark we required,” stated Nill.

Taking the John Metras Outstanding Lineman award is Manitoba standout Justin Cooper. The 25-year-old graduate of the Edmonton Huskies Prairie Football Conference program finished second in Canada West with seven sacks and accumulated 34 tackles overall, second among linemen, with 10 of those being for a loss by the opposition.

Cooper, a third-year Environmental Studies student out of Red Deer, AB, has already been noticed by pro scouts, having attended the Calgary Stampeders' training camp in 2004 and 2005. Earlier in 2007 he was named the East-West Bowl Defensive MVP, and in 2006 was a Canada West all-star for the Bisons, which have now gone undefeated through the last two conference seasons. A week ago, in the conference semifinal, Cooper had a game-high 12 tackles and a forced fumble during the 27-5 home win over Calgary.

“Justin Cooper is the leader of the Bison defence on the practice field and game field. He has continually taken his game to a higher level. Justin’s motor never stops moving,” said Bisons head coach Brian Dobie. “He is both an outstanding run stopper and great pass rusher. Justin is one of the most physical players in the nation and one of the most respected player in Canada West and CIS.”

The league’s President’s Award nominee as top defensive player is Regina Rams middle linebacker Mat Nesbitt. In his final season of CIS eligibility Nesbit played havoc on defence, racking up a conference-best 64 tackles to go with two sacks, an interception, two pass break-ups, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. On field goals and punts the 6’3’’, 255-pound LB was the Rams’ long-snapper, making him an important and versatile member of Regina’s up-tempo style.

“Mat is the biggest reason for the improvement in our run defence from last year,” said Rams defensive coordinator Paul Dawson. “He plays the run very well. He’s a really physical player that brings it on every play. He has a demoralizing effect on other teams. He’s really athletic and can run from sideline to sideline.”

Named Coach of the Year is Regina boss Frank McCrystal. After guiding the Rams to an impressive 6-2 mark, the 29-year Rams head coach saw his team down provincial rival Saskatchewan to earn a berth in this week’s conference final in Winnipeg. McCrystal last led Regina to a Canada West title in 2000, a year in which they narrowly lost the Vanier Cup final.

“It’s great to see Frank rewarded for his commitment to this program. His work ethic defines what the team is all about,” said U of R Athletic Director Dick White.

Individual Canada West football major award winners are as follows:

Hec Crighton Player of the Year nominee / Frank Gnup Memorial Trophy winner: Teale Orban, Regina

Peter Gorman Rookie of the Year nominee: Matt Walter, Calgary

John Metras Outstanding Lineman nominee: Justin Cooper, Manitoba

President’s Award Outstanding Defensive Player nominee: Mat Nesbitt, Regina

Russ Jackson Outstanding Student-Athlete nominee: Teale Orban, Regina

Coach of the Year: Frank McCrystal, Regina

All winners automatically become finalists for the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) awards to be handed out during Vanier Cup week in Toronto on Wednesday, Nov. 21.

The list of 2007 Canada West conference all-stars will be released on Friday, and the Hardy Cup final, between Regina and Manitoba, goes Saturday afternoon in Winnipeg.

Manitoba (8-0 CW, 1-0 playoffs) hosts Regina (6-2, 1-0) on Saturday, Nov. 10 at 3:30 p.m. Central Time in the 2007 Canada West Hardy Cup final, to be seen live across Canada on The Score television network.

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