Former CIS standouts Federkeil, Giguère looking for Super Bowl rings

February 4, 2010

OTTAWA (CIS) – Two former CIS football players — Dan Federkeil and Samuel Giguère — can both earn a Super Bowl ring on Sunday if the Indianapolis Colts defeat the New Orleans Saints in the NFL final, scheduled for a 6 p.m. kickoff in Miami.

Federkeil of Medicine Hat, Alta., is already one of only two CIS graduates to own an NFL championship ring. A 2005 Canada West nominee for the J.P. Metras trophy as CIS lineman of the year with the University of Calgary Dinos, he was on the Colts’ active roster in 2006 but did not dress for the title game when Indianapolis beat Chicago 29-17 to win Super Bowl XLI on Feb. 4, 2007.

The 6-foot-6, 290-pound offensive tackle will once again be watching from the sidelines on Sunday as he was placed on injured reserve with a concussion on November 22. This past season, the 26-year-old appeared in six games as a reserve OT and special teams’ player after playing in 13 contests including one playoff game in 2008. He dressed for six contests in 2007 and three in the Colts’ 2006 championship season, including a wildcard win over Kansas City.

Federkeil, who starred at defensive end for the Dinos but switched to the O-line after he turned professional, was originally signed by Indianapolis as a free agent on May 1, 2006, and was resigned on December 2, 2006.

Giguère, a 24-year-old native of Sherbrooke, Que., is in his second season with the Colts after originally signing as a free agent on May 2, 2008. The 5-foot-11, 215-pound wide receiver played in his first (and only) NFL game on Jan. 3, returning five kickoffs for an average of 24.4 yards against Buffalo. He is currently on Indy’s active roster but did not dress for the Colts’ first two playoff contests.

Giguère played three seasons with the University of Sherbrooke Vert & Or and was a first-team all-Canadian in his final campaign in 2007 when he caught 45 passes for 871 yards and seven touchdowns.

Both Federkeil and Giguère were first-round selections in the CFL Draft. Federkeil was chosen fifth overall by Toronto in 2006, while Giguère was picked eighth, by Hamilton in 2008.

Four other CIS graduates have previously advanced to the Super Bowl as members of an NFL active roster, including three who played in the prestigious game.

Ken Clark, a Saint Mary’s Huskies graduate, was a punter for Los Angeles when the Rams lost 31-19 to Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XIV in 1980. It marked Clark’s lone season in the NFL.

Wide receiver Tyrone Williams, a product of the Western Ontario Mustangs, was on the Dallas roster but did not dress when the Cowboys beat Buffalo 30-13 in Super Bowl XXVIII in 1994. The previous year, he was on the Cowboys practice roster when Dallas went on to defeat the Bills 52-17 in the NFL final. Williams, who was also a Vanier Cup (1989) and Grey Cup (1996) champion, is the only other ex-CIS player to own a Super Bowl ring (two).

McGill Redmen grad Jean-Philippe Darche was the long snapper for Seattle in 2006, when the Seahawks lost 21-10 to Pittsburgh. Darche recently announced his retirement after nine NFL seasons including seven with Seattle and two with Kansas City. He also played one year with the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts.

Former Manitoba Bison Israel Idonije took the field for Chicago when the Bears lost to Federkeil’s Colts in 2007. Idonije, who just completed his sixth season with Chicago, was the Bears nominee for the 2009 NFL Walter Payton “Man of the Year” award.

CIS FOOTBALL PLAYERS IN SUPER BOWL

– 2010: Dan Federkeil (Calgary Dinos), Indianapolis, injured reserve
– 2010: Samuel Giguère (Sherbrooke Vert & Or), Indianapolis, active roster
– 2007: Dan Federkeil (Calgary Dinos), Indianapolis, active roster (did not dress)
– 2007: Israel Idonije (Manitoba Bisons), Chicago, active roster (dressed)
– 2006: Jean-Philippe Darche (McGill Redmen), Seattle, active roster (dressed)
– 1994: Tyrone Williams (Western Ontario Mustangs), Dallas, active roster (did not dress) *
– 1980: Ken Clark (Saint Mary’s Huskies), LA Rams, active roster (dressed)

* Williams was on Dallas practice roster for the 1993 Super Bowl.

Source: -CIS-