The Golden Hawks men’s football team was honoured this past month as 10 different student athletes were named to the OUA First or Second All-Star team.
Laurier was disappointed in their season result as they finished with a 4-4 record and missed the playoffs for the second consecutive year. However, the total of ten athletes awarded is their highest total of all-stars since 2009, and also matches Western for the largest total in the OUA this year.
The group of 10 all-stars consists of three first-team all-stars and seven second-team all-stars, as well as six players earning the honour for the first time in their career.
Leading the group of the three first-team all-stars is none other than star running back Levondre Gordon, who finished his career with the Golden Hawks in an impressive fashion. This led to him being recognized this past Thursday at the Vanier Cup Gala in Quebec City as a USPORTS First Team All-Canadian.
The prestigious award for Gordon marks the eleventh Golden Hawk player to be named an All-Canadian under head coach Michael Faulds.
Levondre Gordon described how much head coach Michael Faulds supported him his five years with the team, and said “Coach Faulds meant a lot to me. When I came in, he spoke about developing a good culture and trusting the process.”
After former All-Canadian running back, Dilon Campbell left the Golden Hawks in 2015, Gordon stepped right into his place and leapfrogged Campbell in several franchise statistics this year.
“Coach [Faulds] started a rebuild, that came with a new playbook, and required us as players to buy in to the process, which we did,” Gordon explained.
The rebuild that Levondre Gordon spoke about was executed quickly by Coach Faulds, as Laurier won the OUA championship, known as the Yates Cup, back in 2016.
The fifth-year Sociology major from Mississauga, Ontario ended his career with his best season, as he led the OUA rushing for over 1000 yards on the ground, becoming only the sixth Golden Hawk to achieve that threshold.
In addition, Gordon had four touchdowns on the ground and was second in the country as he averaged a career high 127 yards per game, and just over six yards per carry.
With Gordon’s career season, his legacy is cemented at this program. He will finish second all-time in school history for career rushing yards (3348) and carries (534). Gordon also surpassed Dion Campbell in touchdowns, which puts him third all-time in rushing touchdowns with the school (25).
If an opportunity presents itself, I would love to continue my career – but at the end of the day I have realistic perspectives and have built a future career path in law enforcement if an opportunity does not arise.
– Levondre Gordon
Gordon was honoured with the awards that he received, but was ultimately disappointed in the team’s result. “The personal accolades are nice, although it was a disappointing result season wise as we missed the playoffs for the second straight year,” he said.
Gordon came to Laurier in 2015 and gained a more prominent role in the offense once Campbell left in 2016. Gordon increased his productivity each year with the Golden Hawks, as he scored over six touchdowns in three of his past four seasons.
Gordon was eligible for the CFL Draft last year, and went unselected as he came back to Laurier for a fifth and final year. Levondre is hopeful for a CFL opportunity but has continued working towards a strong education at the same time.
“If an opportunity presents itself, I would love to continue my career – but at the end of the day I have realistic perspectives and have built a future career path in law enforcement if an opportunity does not arise.”
Laurier will be losing one of their stars on offense once Gordon leaves, but Gordon has his sights set on a very interesting future after dominating the OUA for five years.
The Golden Hawks’ other two first-team all-stars were linebacker Tommy Bringi as well as defensive tackle Sam Acheampong, who both earned the honour for the first time in their career.
Bringi recorded a team high 41.5 tackles in just seven games, while Acheampong was an absolute force on the defensive line, as he racked up 5.5 sacks, along with a career high 19 tackles.
Highlighting the second-team all-stars for the Golden Hawks is wide receiver Brentyn Hall who capped off his fourth straight season with over 500 receiving yards and is continuing to climb the all-time ranks. Hall has proven to be one of the most dynamic wide receivers Laurier has had, as he now sits in the top five in both receiving yards and touchdowns as a Golden Hawk.
Another player who was honoured for the first time as an all-star was kicker Nathan Mesher, who ends his stellar Laurier career as the franchise leader in field goals and points, as well as holding the longest kick ever made by a Golden Hawk kicker.
The team now turns their focus to a long off-season with some key players departing and many returning players ready to take the next step.
The Golden Hawks will have to rely on some of these all-stars if they are looking forward to getting back in the playoffs next fall!
