The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

It took just one play for Demetrius Ferguson to prove to the St Franxis Xavier University X-Men why the team made the right choice when they recruited him heavily coming out of Holland College.

In his debut with the X-Men, Ferguson intercepted a pass midway through the third quarter which he returned for a 78-yard touchdown.

St FX went on to dominate the Mount Allison Mounties 51-5 before a crowd of 2,200 who came out to witness the first night game in the Mounties’ history.

“My feeling was great going into my first game, the coaches got us really hyped and I was ready to go,” Ferguson said. “The competition level is much tougher than it was in the AFL (Atlantic Football League) but I knew I just had to come in and stay focused. Football is my passion, so whenever game day comes I stay focused and ready.”

Ferguson comes from a Holland programme where he led the Hurricanes to an AFL Championship and won the HiltonTrophy as the team’s MVP after finishing with 10 touchdowns, including seven on kick returns, two on interceptions and one rushing, despite playing with a cast on his wrist this season.

Now in a reserve role with the X-Men in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) League, Ferguson has already made an impression in a reserve role as an underclassmen.

“I didn’t start, but got into the rotation a lot. There are guys here that have been here for a few years, and as an underclassman respect that. We have a really good defensive backfield that can cover anyone in our conference,” he said.

In game two, Ferguson finished with nine total tackles, seven solo tackles and two assisted, in a 41-20 loss at the hands of the Concordia Stingers’ in the X-Men’s home opener at Oland Stadium.

The versatile defensive back, who stands at 5’11 and weighs 190 pounds, played free safety, wide receiver, special teams (kick return, punt return) in his two years at Holland.

At St FX he is focusing on the defensive backfield, a shift that he said has already proven to be beneficial to his game. 

“Sticking to one side of the ball is making my game much better. I don’t have that pressure anymore, to learn every single play on offense and defense, now I can focus and concentrate on one position and I am bettering my skills by doing so,” Ferguson said. “As a defensive back I have to work more on my back pedal, try to stay on my opponents’ hips, and not lose site of the guy that I’m defending, so getting more repetitions are key.”

Next up for St FX will be a rematch with the Mounties 2pm September 22.

This year, 26 university teams are scheduled to play CIS football, the highest level of amateur Canadian football. The X-Men is a member of Atlantic University Sport (AUS) – a regional membership association for the CIS.

“I plan to continue my education in business marketing and excel in the classroom and on the football field. My spirit just took to X when I first visited the campus so I just went with my gut feeling,” Ferguson said. “St FX football has a great football programme and I would love to be a part of that tradition.”

In 1966, the X-Men Football team won the College Bowl (now the Vanier Cup) as the top university football team in Canada. The other three regional associations coordinating university-level sports in Canada are Ontario University Athletics (OUA), the Canada West Universities Athletic Association (CWUAA), and Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ).