Sherbrooke 38, Concordia 14: Stingers’ Football Suffer Loss in Critical Game

The Concordia Stingers Lose in a Dire Shriners Bowl Game

SportsConor Tomalty — Published October 2, 2022 3 minutes

“It was horrible right from the get-go,” said Stingers quarterback Olivier Roy post-game. His demeanour was clearly of disappointment, as he added, “[We] couldn’t run the ball, couldn’t pass the ball. We can’t win games with that type of effort.” 

Although Sherbrooke lost to top-ranked Université de Montréal Carabins a week prior, their narrow defeat showed their ability to battle against the best squads in the Réseau de Sports des étudiants du Québec. 

Sherbrooke kept this swagger at the start of Saturday’s match. The offence marched down the field and scored within the first three minutes of play, when running back Lucas Dalin punched in a rushing touchdown. The Vert et Or took the lead 7-0.   

The Stingers' offence struggled throughout the majority of the half. They were unable to click, turning the ball over on downs on their first drive. They then gave up a safety with three minutes left in the first quarter. Sherbrooke punted the ball through the endzone for an additional rouge that extended their lead 10-0. 

Sherbrooke added fuel to the fire in the second frame, while Concordia tried to avoid getting burned. A touchdown reception by Sherbrooke receiver William Marchand with 10 minutes to go in the half made it a 17-0 game. 

The Stingers' offence continued to struggle as quarterback Olivier Roy threw an interception, followed by the unit giving up a second safety. Sherbrooke led 19-0 with just under five minutes left to play. 

All was not lost for Concordia. An interception by Stingers defensive back Louis-Philippe Leclerc on the ensuing drive gave Concordia good field position for the first time all game. They capitalized when receiver Jaylan Greaves caught a touchdown to tighten the gap 19-7.   

High-scoring continued by both teams. An impressive 83-yard run by Dalin, followed by a touchdown run by backup quarterback Gianni Casati gave Sherbrooke a quick score. The two-point conversion failed, and Sherbrooke had a 25-7 lead. 

The Stingers were unperturbed, as they themselves drove the length of the field with not much time remaining in the half. Receiver Jeremy Murphy came up with a much-needed touchdown reception. The second quarter ended 25-14.

This stream of offensive successes for Concordia was obsolete in the second half. Turnovers plagued Concordia as they totalled two lost fumbles and 3 interceptions thrown on the day. Any drive momentum was halted by their inability to connect through the air or muscle yardage on the ground. 

Sherbrooke’s offensive line aided Dalin in amassing 170 yards rushing. Dalin broke tackles and was generally difficult to bring down. His running led to two field goals for Vert et Or kicker Louis Tardif, and a second rushing touchdown for Casati sealed the victory. The final score read 38-14 for Sherbrooke. 

Stingers head coach Brad Collinson was frustrated after the loss. “We didn’t play well… We dug ourselves a hole and couldn’t get out. In [the RSEQ] you can’t do that,” he said. 

With a lot of film to go over, the Stingers look to reignite their team as they face UdeM on Saturday, Oct. 8. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m..