It wouldn’t be fair to say that the National Hockey League has failed in every way possible at marketing its product. It is true, however, that the National Football League is the gold standard. After all, the NFL has a $3.3-billion per year television deal and the NHL has a $70-million deal.

After a disappointing Saturday, the McGill Martlets were certainly not lacking in motivation for their clash with Concordia on Sunday. A draw against Laval denied McGill its bid for a perfect season and the cross-town rivals were the prefect targets on which to vent.

To say the Redmen were slumping heading into this weekend’s contest with Mount Allison University would be a gross understatement. Going into Saturday’s clash with the Mounties, McGill hadn’t tasted victory since Sept. 24, 2005, a whole 364 days earlier. Despite rainy conditions at Molson Stadium, quarterback Matt Connell led the charge, tossing five touchdown passes in front of just 1,441 fans, defeating Mt.

On Saturday, Sept. 29, the McCord Museum will be hosting the “Sports and Diversity Symposium: Marking the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s breakthrough in sports,” a vital conference on sports and diversity in Canada. Presented by the Association of Canadian Studies (ACS), the goal of this one day event is to raise awareness of the evolving face of Canadian sports and to highlight the impact that sports has on the diverse ethnicities and minorities in Canada.

The Redmen have struggled to put together a full 60 minutes of football this season, in recent weeks having held the lead at halftime against top-ranked Laval and keeping the score close at the break against Université de Montréal. Last Saturday, the story was no different.

National Football Conference North Chicago Bears (10-6): If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Last year’s division champion will return all its starters from last season. While that’s good news for the defence-finished second in total yards and first in points allowed-it’s less so for the offence.

The third ranked Martlets got off to a slow start in Friday night’s season opener at Molson Stadium. But a much stronger second half allowed them to escape with a 2-0 victory over the visiting Sherbrooke Vert et Or. Neither side had been able to find any rhythm or assert itself during the first frame.

Sports are a transcendent element in today’s turbulent society. To use a cliché, any team can win on any given day. It is not always the supremely skilled squads that capture championships; rather, spirited, passionate and hard-working often trump the talented.

Coming off what can only be described as the worst year in the football program’s history, there’s really nowhere for the Redmen to go but up. On the field the team finished a dismal 1-7, but that was only the tip of the iceberg. Instead it was the black eye the franchise suffered as a result of the team’s hazing scandal which will be remembered as the legacy of the ’05 edition of Redmen Football.