The York University Lions football team will get their first taste of in-game action this season with an exhibition tilt on Aug. 20 against the University of Sherbrooke Vert & Or, Lions head coach Warren Craney announced on June 8.
York Lions football team will start the season with home and home exhibition games against the University of Sherbrooke Vert & Or team
As part of a two-year home and home series signed with the University of Sherbrooke, the Lions will travel to Sherbrooke, QC to take on the Vert & Or this year, and will host them on the York Keele campus for a preseason game in 2017.
"We're thrilled to be able to reach this agreement with the University of Sherbrooke," said Craney. "They're a strong team and it will be a good test to see how we match up against them heading into the OUA season. Getting our players some live action in exhibition games is an important part of training camp and playing an out of conference opponent will be a nice change of pace for our group. We're looking forward to going to Sherbrooke this summer and hosting them in 2017."
In 2015, the Vert & Or finished in third place in the Sport.Éducation.Fierté (RSEQ) regular season with a 5-3 record before falling to the University of Montreal 31-24 in the conference semi-final. The Vert & Or have been a consistent team in recent years and have made the RSEQ playoffs every season since 2009.
After a strong 2015 recruiting class which brought a number of skill players to the roster, the Lions added some bulk to their line up this off season with a 2016 recruiting class built around size and strength. Among the top recruits were Skye King and Jamian Rush, a pair of linemen who will look to make their mark as rookies on the Lions roster this season. The young and improving Lions squad will be looking to make a jump up the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) standings this season after a 10th place finish in 2015.
The Lions will kick off the 2016 regular season just eight days after the exhibition game against Sherbrooke as they take on the Waterloo Warriors at home on Sunday, Aug. 28.