By McGill Reporter Staff
The McGill Redmen football team is looking to end a decade-long drought in Shaughnessy Cup play as it hosts the Concordia Stingers tonight at Molson Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.
The crosstown rivals will participate in the 45th Shaughnessy Cup, first awarded in 1969 when McGill beat Loyola College to lay claim to local football supremacy. Since 1975, the cup has been fought for in an annual match between McGill and Concordia University. Overall, Concordia holds a 21-17 edge over McGill in the Shaughnessy Cup series.
The Redmen are coming off a 32-8 loss to Vanier Cup champion Laval last Saturday while the Stingers suffered a 48-3 loss to the Montreal Carabins to begin their season. By the end of tonight’s game one team will have stumbled to a 0-2 start while the other will have improved to 1-1 while earning the right to raise the coveted Shaughnessy Cup. The trophy is named for the legendary Frank (Shag) Shaughnessy, who coached McGill for 17 years, including Yates Cup championships in 1913 and 1919. A football innovator, Shaughnessy first introduced the forward pass to Canadian university football during a McGill-Syracuse game in 1921 and lobbied for 10 years before the Canadian Rugby Football Union revised the rules and adopted the forward pass in 1931.