Heather breaks Finch’s week-old CIS passing record

OTTAWA (CIS) – Bishop’s quarterback Jordan Heather set a CIS football record for most passing yards in a season on Saturday in Sherbrooke, Que., when he racked up 484 in a 40-21 home win over McGill to finish the eight-game RSEQ conference schedule with a mind-boggling 3,132 yards.

The fifth-year senior from Oromocto, N.B., needed 400 yards against the Redmen to break the previous national standard of 3,047 established only a week ago by sophomore Will Finch of Western. Heather shattered the record in spectacular fashion, connecting with speedster Alexander Fox for a 93-yard score on the final play of the third quarter.

It was the fourth touchdown pass of the afternoon for Heather as well as his 20th this season and the 50th of his career, both school records. Thanks to 26 completions on 47 attempts on the day, the veteran pivot finished the campaign with 199 completions, another Bishop’s mark and the sixth highest tally in CIS history.

As has been the case all season, Fox was Heather’s primary target versus McGill and ended the contest with a pair of single-game team marks thanks to his 256 yards and four touchdowns on seven catches. The senior from Montreal was the country’s leader this fall in yards (1,009) and majors (12) on receptions, also new Gaiters’ records.

With the victory, nationally seventh-ranked Bishop’s (6-2) finishes second in the Quebec standings and will host Montreal (5-3) next Saturday for an RSEQ semifinal. It will mark the Gaiters’ first conference playoff date on home turf since 1993, the year of their last six-win season (6-1).

Bishop’s did host a national semifinal in 1994, losing 41-24 to Western in the Churchill Bowl.

In next Saturday’s other RSEQ semi, Sherbrooke (3-5) will visit No. 2 Laval (8-0), live on Radio-Canada at 1 p.m.

CIS FOOTBALL RECORD BOOK:

CIS SINGLE-SEASON LEADERS:

Passing yards
3132 Jordan Heather, Bishop’s (2013)
3047 Will Finch, Western (2013)
3033 Michael Faulds, Western (2009)
3001 Tommy Denison, Queen’s (2002)
2907 Tommy Denison, Queen’s (2003)

Passing completions
209 Matt Connell, McGill (2008)
204 Jérémi Roch, Sherbrooke (2012)
203 Tommy Denison, Queen’s (2003)
201 Michael Faulds, Western (2009)
201 Rob Mackay, Concordia (2009)
199 Jordan Heather, Bishop’s (2013)
199 Marshall Ferguson, McMaster (2013)

All-purpose touchdowns
25 Paul Brule, StFX (1967)
21 Jesse Lumsden, McMaster (2004)
20 Paul Brule, StFX (1966)
20 Kojo Aidoo, McMaster (2000)
20 Jesse Lumsden, McMaster (2003)
19 Mercer Timmis, Calgary (2013)

Rushing touchdowns
21 Paul Brule, StFX (1967)
21 Jesse Lumsden, McMaster (2004)
20 Paul Brule, StFX (1966)
20 Kojo Aidoo, McMaster (2000)
18 Mercer Timmis, Calgary (2013)

CIS CAREER LEADERS:

Punt return yards
2517 Chris Evraire, Ottawa (1994-98)
2279 Eric Duchene, Saskatchewan (1999-03)
2166 Jahmeek Taylor, Saint Mary’s (2008-12)
2071 Dillon Heap, Laurier (2005 / 2008-11)
2054 Guillaume Rioux, Laval (2009-13)

About Canadian Interuniversity Sport

Canadian Interuniversity Sport is the national governing body of university sport in Canada. Every year, 11,000 student-athletes and 700 coaches from 55 universities and four regional associations vie for 21 national championships in 12 different sports. CIS also provides high performance international opportunities for Canadian student-athletes at Winter and Summer Universiades, as well as numerous world university championships. For further information, visit www.cis-sic.ca or follow us on:

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/CIS_SIC
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cissports
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/universitysport

-CIS-