Hall of Fame
The 1996 Gryphon football team secured the third OUA title in program history, and second in a five-year stretch, with the road win over the Waterloo Warriors in the 1996 Yates Cup. It marked the first time OUA history in which a team that finished in last-place the season prior, was crowned Yates Cup champions the following season, with the Gryphons going 1-6 in 1995 before hoisting the Yates in 1996. The Gryphons posted a 6-2 regular season record in 1996, and opened up their playoffs on the road in the OUA semifinals at Western, where they held the two-time reigning Yates Cup champion Mustangs to just nine points in a memorable road playoff win. For the 1996 Yates Cup, the Gryphons made their way to Waterloo to face the Waterloo Warriors in front of a soldout crowd at Seagram Stadium. The Gryphons left Waterloo with a 23-13 win, with Gryphons standout running back, Gerrit Stam, named Yates Cup MVP. Stam had a sensational season, leading the OUA with 11 rushing touchdowns. A tenacious Gryphon defence was led by All-Canadians Bill Vastis and Kyle Walters, with Bill Brown leading the OUA in interceptions on the season. Gryphons head coach Dan McNally was named the CIAU Coach of the Year, and to this day, remains the only Gryphon football coach in program history to be named the recipient of the Frank Tindall Trophy as the national coach of the year in Canadian university football.
