Ottawa Invaders To Play Under Sooners Brand in 2018

This is an interesting development.

To be entirely honest, I came across this news completely by coincidence. I was actually looking to find out if the Invaders were playing at all this year fully prepared for the news that they would not.

The Ottawa Invaders first took to the field in the summer of 2010 with the goal of providing a place to play for players who had exhausted all amateur options due to age. With former Ottawa Rough Rider Ken Evraire at the helm, they achieved a 3-4-1 record in their inaugural season, then reached the Northern Football Conference championship game in their second and third seasons.

I can't speak to more recent seasons because I was not involved in any way. During the early years however, I managed the team's website and can confidently state that there was no lack of effort from founders James McAllister, Richard Smith II and Erik Faucon. They genuinely wished to emphasize the "pro" aspect of semi-pro football from both an on-field product standpoint and that of the fan experience.

Evraire's high profile, as both a former pro player and a media personality, was difficult to replace following his departure in 2012 and it seemed like the team was far less visible over the past couple of seasons. They remained quite solid on the field though, posting 6-2 and 4-4 records in 2016 and 2017 respectively.

Nonetheless, I feared their reduced exposure might hinder their ability to recruit and therefore sustain the team financially so I braced for the possibility that The Invaders might go quietly into that good night.

Thankfully, that doesn't appear to be the case, at least not entirely. We'll find out tomorrow whether their name and logo will remain in circulation beyond this weekend. But the good news is that a post-junior and/or CIS playing option remains available in Ottawa under the guidance of a club that has been in operation since 1960. I can't help but view that as win.

Note: Above photo copied from this nugget.ca article.