Simon Fraser University (SFU) has officially killed its football program.
The school issued a press release on Wednesday announcing a “new strategy” for its athletic and recreation department. The six-page document, which can be found here, includes a wide variety of buzzwords, senseless acronyms, and a graphic that depicts an arrow pointing toward the word “vision.” It’s really groundbreaking stuff.
Cutting through the nonsense, one thing is clear: football isn’t coming back to SFU.
The institution announced the sudden cancellation of the program in April 2023, citing the lack of a long-term home. Simon Fraser’s football team moved to the Lone Star Conference in 2022, though the school learned in February 2023 that its membership wouldn’t be renewed following the completion of the season later that year.
Then-athletic director Theresa Hanson told 3DownNation that SFU didn’t make a formal application to join U Sports before axing the team, indicating that doing so would have been “incredibly complex” as the school’s other teams compete in the NCAA. She parted ways with the school four months later in what the school termed a “mutual agreement.”
Following considerable pushback from alumni and the football community, Simon Fraser hired Bob Copeland, the senior vice-president of McLaren Global Sport Solutions, as a special advisor to assess the feasibility of the school’s football program. His findings, which were released in September 2023, determined that the only route for the Red Leafs to return to the gridiron would be through membership in U Sports.
Wednesday’s press release indicated that SFU is facing an “uncertain financial climate,” though it denied this was a factor in its decision to eliminate football. However, cost was cited as a reason not to pursue membership in U Sports.
It should be noted that Amar Doman, a local lumber magnate and owner of the B.C. Lions, partnered with the SFU Football Alumni Society (SFUFAS) to raise over $700,000 for the program in 2023. The collection of the funds was contingent upon the program being formally reinstated and it appears the school, despite its apparent financial problems, didn’t care to bring back the football program and collect the associated funds.
Doman reaffirmed his commitment to SFU football at the Grey Cup in 2024 when he collected the CFL’s Commissioner’s Award, which is awarded annually to someone “who has demonstrated dedication and made a significant contribution to Canadian Football.”
“We recognize the program’s historic place in the province’s sporting history and are deeply proud of the football student-athletes who played with SFU over the years,” said SFU provost and academic vice-president Dilson Rassier in a statement.
Alumni of SFU’s football program include Canadian Football Hall of Fame inductees Lui Passaglia, Dan Ferrone, Glen Suitor, Dave Cutler, and Doug Brown as well as current CFL players Michael Couture, Jordan Herdman-Reed, Justin Herdman-Reed, Rysen John, and Ante Milanovic-Litre.
Simon Fraser was founded in 1965 and is based in Burnaby, B.C., though it also has campuses in Surrey and Vancouver. It has around 35,000 students, 300 of whom are athletes competing in the school’s 18 remaining varsity programs.
