It will be a day of celebrations as the University of Toronto Varsity Blues football team hosts the Ottawa Gee-Gees in their 999th game in program history this Saturday, September 27 at Varsity Centre.
 
The Blues are set to honour 2014 Hall of Fame inductee Rick Kollins as well as members of the all-century team. Kick off is set for 1 p.m. Advanced tickets are on sale here. The game will also be streamed live on OUA.tv.
 
Kollins served as an assistant coach and defensive coordinator with the Blues football team from 1973-81, and helped the Blues win the Yates Cup and Atlantic Bowl and make the team's second Vanier Cup appearance in 1974.

In 1977, Kollins researched and wrote the first history of Varsity Blues football, and in 2011 served as the co-author and editor of the book "150 Years of Football at the University of Toronto". He was a founding member of the Friends of Varsity Blues Football organization and joined the U of T Sports Hall of Fame committee as a consultant in 1999. That same year, Kollins received a U of T Arbor Award, which recognizes volunteers for outstanding personal service to the University.
 
Before we touch on more traditions of Varsity Blues football, let's take a look at this week's matchup:
 
This Saturday, the 1-3 Blues will battle the 2-2 Gee-Gees in a must-win Week 5 match-up. Playoff berths are on the line at the midway point of the season.  Ottawa currently sits in a three-way tie for fifth, while Toronto is two points behind in eighth.
 
Toronto is coming off a tough 63-15 loss to the No. 3 Western Mustangs, while Ottawa, winless in their last two, fell victim to a last-play touchdown from the Carleton Ravens in last week's 33-31 Panda Bowl loss.
 
The two teams have met 40 times since Nov. 11, 1905, with Ottawa winning the head-to-head battle 23-17-0. Ottawa has taken the previous three meetings, with Toronto's last win coming on Oct. 2, 2010.
 
Blues quarterback Simon Nassar and Ottawa QB Derek Wendel match up evenly, averaging 232.2 and 256.0 passing yards per game.  Overall, Toronto ranks second in the OUA with 1149 passing yards, while Ottawa sits second with 916 yards on the ground.
 
Now for a brief history of football at U of T:
 
The earliest documented game of football on the University of Toronto campus occurred on November 9, 1861 – when the game was played under uniquely local rules that required players to bounce the ball. It was in 1877 that the rules of rugby were introduced to U of T by J.H. Mayne Campbell, giving birth to the modern Varsity Blues football team.
 
Toronto captured the inaugural Yates Cup in 1898, and 10 of the first 17 championships. The Blues also claimed national titles in 1905 and 1909 through 1911. The latter three are best known as they represented the first Grey Cup championships, which is now the pinnacle of the Canadian Football League season.
 
Here are but a few proud milestones in the tradition of Varsity Blues football:
 
1861 – First documented football game involving U of T students.
1867 – U of T defeats Trinity College in earliest recorded intercollegiate football game in North America.
1894 – Mulock Cup competition for intramural football begins
1898 – Winners of the first Yates Cup
1901 – Introduction of the modern rules of Canadian football
1909 – Winners of the inaugural Grey Cup
1911 – First of 20 Grey Cup games played at the new Varsity Stadium
1924 – Varsity Stadium expanded to 20,000
1932 – Warren Stevens named head coach and first U of T athletic director.
1950 – Varsity Stadium expanded to 27,000 and attracts all-time record crowds.
1958 – First perfect U of T football season in 48 years.
1965 – Winners of the first Vanier Cup.
1967 – Mike Eben, first winner of the Hec Crighton Trophy
1974 – Richard Nakatsu, four interceptions in each of two consecutive playoff games.
1982 – Dan Feraday, first Canadian quarterback drafted by the NFL.
1993 – Winners of Varsity's second Vanier Cup.
2008 – David Hamilton, CIS Russ Jackson award for academics, football and citizenship.
2014 – Sept 27 – Toronto Varsity Blues play 999th game in program history.
 
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