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Carleton Ravens logo.1945-1998
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Carleton University resides in Ottawa, and their football program is set to return for the 2013 season, for their second incarnation. Carleton's first inception was in 1945 when they played Macdonald College in Quebec, just after World War II ended. The Carleton team had war veterans who just turned students, but that did not matter for Macdonald College as Carleton was defeated 15-0. One reason why Carleton lost was that the university was first established in 1942 and they did not have the funds to properly support a football team at that time. Carleton's first win was in November 1945, when they defeated Macdonald College on their secoond try. In Carleton's first season as a university football team, the team finished with a 1-2-1 record.In 1947, the first league that Carleton entered was the Intermediate League with St. Patrick's College, the University of Ottawa, and Queen's University. With the University of Ottawa in the Intermediate League, Carleton found their rival that would last for over 50 years. In the 1947 season, Carleton finished with a 3-3 record. In their first five years of existence the Carleton had a 9-12-2 record.
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In the 1950s, Carleton had a rough start for the decade, due to low enrolment at the university. It was so low that there was no team for the 1951 season, but came back the following season in 1952. With Carleton back, they re-entered Canadian collegiate football in a new league with Macdonald College, Bishop's University, and St. Patrick's College. In their first season of their return, Carleton went 0-6.After their 0-6 season, Carleton finished the 1953 season with a 4-2-1 record which was their first winning season in school history. In the 1954 season, Carleton finished in second place with a 2-3 record.
In the 1955 season, the first ever Panda Game was played between the University of Ottawa and Carleton. The Panda Game is a rivalry game between these two universities and the winner of the game received Pedro the Panda Trophy for their prize for that year and in the first season of the Panda Game, Carleton defeated Ottawa 14-6 claiming the Pedro the Panda trophy and bragging rights for the city of Ottawa for that year. And also during the 1955 season, Carleton finished with a 4-2 record.
In the 1956 season, their last before entering the Ontario Intercollegiate Football Conference (OIFC), Carleton finished with a 2-5 record.
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In the 1957 season, Carleton entered the OIFC with McMaster University, University of Ottawa, and the University of Waterloo just to name a few. In Carleton's first season in the OIFC, the Ravens finished with a 1-6 record. While the 1950s were not as exciting due to the fact the teams that were on the field were not any good.5
Roster from an 1957 game between Carleton and OAC.Circa 1957
Frank Clair Stadium, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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The 1960s were a different story. Known as the first 'Golden Age' for Carleton football, they were starting to become a force in collegiate football. In 1960, Carleton had their first training camp, where football knowledge and skills were being developed. With their first training camp, the Ravens did something that was never done in their school history. Carleton was not shut out during the season. Also during the 1960 season, Carleton finished with a 2-5 record.The next significant season was in 1962 when Carleton was ready to finish first in the OIFC. In the first place game against McMaster, Carleton lost a close game 10-6, and settled for a second place with their 5-2 record.
The next significant season was in 1964, when the Carleton defeated Ottawa for the first time in eight years and won the Panda game, recaptured the Pedro the Panda trophy and bragging rights for the city of Ottawa. During their time in the OIFC, Carleton finished with an all-time record of 24-39.
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The next conference that Carleton played for was the Central Canada Intercollegiate Football Conference (CCIFC), which lasted for three seasons (1967-1970). Their most significant season in the CCIFC was in 1970 when Carleton finished the season with a 4-1-1 record.Following the CCIFC, Carleton entered the highly competitive Ontario University Athletic Association (OUAA) from 1971 to 1973. Within the Capital division, Carleton was joined by Queen's University and the University of Toronto (U of T). In the first season in the OUAA, Carleton compiled a 4-4 record. The most memorable games in that season were the first game in which Carleton played U of T. Carleton won that game, albeit being the underdogs won 12-3. The next memorable moment in that season was during the Panda Game in which Carleton once again defeated Ottawa 28-14. The all-time series at that time was 12-5 for the University of Ottawa.
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Game program from the Carleton vs. Queens game.7 October 1972
George Richardson Memorial Stadium, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
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Carleton's next significant season was in 1973, in which four Carleton players were selected for the all-star game that year. During their time in the OUAA, Carleton's record was 10-14 with one Panda Game victory.Carleton's next conference that they entered was the Ontario-Quebec Intercollegiate Football Conference (OQIFC) in which they stayed until the 1979 season. Carleton was part of the East division with Bishop's University, Concordia University, McGill, and Ottawa just to name a few. In their first two seasons in part of the OQIFC (1974 and 1975), Carleton lost their head coach due to him being committed to the Athletics Department at the university. Their new coach at the time led Carleton to two winless seasons.
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Roster for the 1975 Carleton Ravens.20 September 1975
George Richardson Memorial Stadium, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
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For the remaining three seasons, Carleton was one of the top teams in Canada. In fact during the 1977 season, Carleton won the Panda Game after not winning Pedro for the last five seasons. During that season, the Ravens were 4-4-1. In the 1978 season, Carleton once again won the Panda game as they defeated Ottawa 24-13. In what some Carleton fans are calling the 'Year of the Ravens' the Ravens were number three in Canada and were on the verge of winning their first championship in school history. Unfortunately for Carleton, they could not defeat the Queen's Golden Gaels in the OQIFC semi-finals. Even though Carleton lost, fans and alumni alike considered this season a success and were hoping for the continued success going into the 1980s.12
In 1980, Carleton could not live to the hype that was from the 1970s. In fact in the first three seasons, Carleton was 4-16-1, with their most successful season being in 1982 when the Ravens were 2-5. In the Panda games that were played in those three seasons, Carleton only won the 1980 Panda Game when Ottawa was defeated 30-21.Carleton's next successful season was in 1985 in which they won their 11th Panda Game. Also during the 1985 season, Carleton won the first championship and only school championship. Carleton won the Dunsmore Cup when they defeated the Concordia Stingers in the finals 46-21 and won the OQIFC championship. With that Dunsmore Cup victory, Carleton went on to their first Canadian national semi-final when they played in the Western Bowl, Carleton went on to play the Calgary Dinos in which Calgary won 56-14. With that loss, Carleton still produced one of their greatest seasons in school history.
In 1986, Carleton once again went on to play for the Dunsmore Cup. Not much like the previous season, Carleton lost to Bishop's 38-19. The Ravens finished the 1980s with a combined 26-47-1 with the one Dunsmore Cup championship.
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The 1990s were the last decade for the Carleton football program. In Carleton's final eight seasons, they were not good enough to compete with the rest of the schools and their record showed it. Carleton was a combined 14-50-1 record and won only one more Panda Game in 1994, when they won 27-15.14
The last Carleton Ravens team in the 20th century.Circa 1998
Frank Clair Stadium, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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