Three Inductees Selected for Gee-Gees Football Hall of Fame Class of 2026
The Gee-Gees Football Hall of Fame will welcome two athletes and one builder on October 3 as Grey Cup Champion receiver Andrew Grigg, two-time All-Canadian cornerback Mark Raphael, and National Coach of the Year award winner Cam Innes will be inducted as the Class of 2026.
The induction dinner event will be held at the Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club on Saturday October 3, prior to the Panda Game on Sunday October 4. Ticket information for the Hall of Fame event will follow.
Cam Innes : Builder (1978-1981)
Cam Innes amassed a 19-13 overall record over his four seasons as Head Coach at uOttawa, which included the Atlantic Bowl winning team in 1980. He was inducted into the Gee-Gees Football Hall of Fame in 2021 as a member of that 1980 team. He earned the National Coach of the Year award in 1980 and was named Coach of the Year at the conference level in both 1979 (OUAA) and 1980 (OQIFC). He is one of only two Gee-Gees head coaches to earn the conference Coach of the Year honour twice. He was also the Atlantic Conference's Coach of the Year award winner with StFX in 1977 before joining the Gee-Gees.
In 1978 Innes took the reins of the Gee-Gees program as the fourth head coach in the four years since the 1975 national championship and it was reported in the Ottawa Citizen at the time that he was the first full-time football coach in the history of the program. He is quoted as saying, "the challenge was obvious. It was to rebuild the program into national prominence."
His stability and knowledge translated into growing success as the 1979 team posted a 5-1 regular season record and the 1980 squad went 6-1 in regular season play before rattling off three playoff victories en route to the College Bowl. Ottawa defeated Bishop's 22-10 in the OQIFC semifinal, edged Innes' alma mater, Queen's, 13-12 in the Dunsmore Cup, and roared to a victory 28-8 victory over Acadia in the Atlantic Bowl, creating many memorable moments along the way.
Known for his sense of organization, motivational skills, and dedication, Innes served as president of the Canadian University Football Coaches Association during his tenure at uOttawa. "After four years, I think the Gee-Gee is special and it will go on after I'm gone," he said following the 1981 season. Innes would go on to coach at the University of Calgary before working for both Football Canada and the Calgary Stampeders.
Andrew Grigg : Athlete (1990-1992)
A member of the 1000-yards receiving club for the Gee-Gees, Grigg went on to have a notable eight-year CFL career. Grigg totaled 1100 yards in Garnet and Grey and was the OQIFC conference's leading receiver in 1991 with 600 yards on 37 catches, with five total touchdowns.
In his final season at Ottawa, 1992, he was again the primary target of the Ottawa offence, leading the team in receptions (28) and yards (435), and ranking second with 21 points scored. As the team battled injuries that season, Grigg took occasional emergency reps at quarterback and kicker. The following season he played for his hometown Sault Ste. Marie Storm and was named to the CJFL All-Star team.
He was first signed to the Hamilton Tiger Cats in 1994 after attending the CFL Evaluation Camp, but made his CFL debut in 1995 as a slot back before earning CFL East All-Star honours as a wide receiver in both 1998 and 2001. He was a Grey Cup champion with Hamilton in 1999 and totalled 5309 receiving yards over 127 career games played before retiring following the 2002 season.
Mark Raphael : Athlete (1993-1997)
A key piece of an ascendant Gee-Gees defense, Mark Raphael was a two-time All-Canadian cornerback and a member of the Gee-Gees during their three straight Dunsmore Cup championships.
Raphael, who learned his football at Montreal's Vanier College, became a starter for the Gee-Gees as a sophomore after playing behind All-Canadian Chris Banton in his rookie season. The 1995 season saw Raphael fracture his ankle in the third game after logging eight tackles; he was back on the field for the playoffs and helped Ottawa lift their first Dunsmore Cup since 1980. He was a First Team All-Canadian in 1996 and 1997 as Ottawa won three consecutive conference titles and returned to the Vanier Cup game.
He was drafted 26th overall by Saskatchewan in 1997 but returned to the Gee-Gees for a fifth season in 1997. Typical of high-performing corners, his pass protection skills were measured more in how often teams avoided his coverage than in his scoresheet tallies. He totalled 44 tackles and four interceptions over his five seasons of regular season play.