Division D1: A New Face Under Center for Judith
For Division D1, the season is starting to take shape. Most teams have gotten a decent sample size of games under their belt. My own team has only played once so far, but we have a back-to-back this weekend and will quickly catch up in games played.
At the top of the standings, Snowdon Deli Degens remain the only true undefeated team. Junior XL Special Ed. will try to join them after Week 5. Meanwhile, GMC and No Punt Intended are still searching for their first win and with only eight playoff spots available, the pressure is starting to build.
As I mentioned in my Division D2 article, I've had conversations with players from both splits and one topic keeps coming up: the idea of crowning a true Division D champion rather than having separate D1 and D2 winners. As a player, I'd love to see it. The talent level between both divisions is closer than people might think and it would create some incredible matchups.
While I'm familiar with most of the teams and players in D1, there was one name I wasn't familiar with when I watched Judith take on Studz.
Samuel Desrochers.
Going into the season, I assumed Raphaël Caron would be playing quarterback since he's the QB I associate with this team. Instead, I watched Desrochers lead Judith to a 39-32 victory while throwing six touchdown passes.
After seeing him play in person, I wanted to learn more about both the player and the story behind him. I was able to speak with Desrochers himself, as well as teammate Guillaume Boulanger, one of the smartest quarterbacks I've come across in the mid-tier divisions, to get a better understanding of what makes this Judith team tick.
Everyone arrives in FPF through a different path and for someone I had never seen before, Desrochers quickly became one of the more interesting stories in the division.
From Receiver to Quarterback
For Desrochers, football has always been a major part of his life.
He spent five years playing receiver at CSJV before being recruited by the Spartiates du Vieux Montréal, where he spent three years in the organization. Unfortunately, two hip surgeries prevented him from taking the field with the team and kept him away from football for an extended period.
"Malheureusement deux opérations aux hanches ne m’ont pas permis de jouer avec l’équipe. Donc ça fait longtemps que je n’avais pas touché à un terrain."
As someone who has dealt with hip surgery myself, that answer resonated with me. Returning to the field after multiple surgeries is one thing. Trusting your body again is another challenge entirely. Every cut, sprint and sudden change of direction becomes something you think about.
For many players, that much time away from the sport would be enough to walk away. Instead, Desrochers found another path back onto the field.
He became a quarterback.
"J’ai toujours joué receveur et je n’avais aucune expérience comme quart arrière avant les deux matchs que j’ai joué cette saison à FPF. Je n’étais pas encore prêt à revenir jouer receveur parce que les changements de direction sont encore difficiles pour mes hanches. Donc QB c’est un nouveau défi."
The move wasn't simply about filling a need for Judith. It was an opportunity to reconnect with football while continuing his recovery.
Against Studz, you wouldn't have guessed you were watching someone making only his second start at quarterback.
Desrochers threw six touchdown passes and helped lead Judith to a 39-32 victory against one of the better teams in the division.
Earning The Team's Trust
What impressed Boulanger the most wasn't necessarily the six touchdown passes.
It was the composure.
"C’était sa deuxième game à vie comme QB. C’est un receveur de base qui revient d’une longue absence et il est juste calme. Il est prêt à faire les jeux, il n’a pas peur de prendre des shots, ses concepts sont super bons et c’est juste un leader."
That's a pretty strong endorsement coming from a player who has seen plenty of quarterbacks throughout his FPF career.
Boulanger continued by explaining that despite the lack of experience, Desrochers quickly earned the trust of the entire offence.
"Même s’il n’a pas beaucoup d’expérience, c’est vraiment une personne qu’on veut suivre."
Watching parts of the game in person, that confidence was evident. Every time Studz found the end zone, Judith responded. There never seemed to be any panic from the offence.
Boulanger believes that mentality started with the quarterback.
"Même si on se faisait marquer en défense, on savait qu’on allait remarquer à l’attaque par la suite. Sans Sam, on n’aurait pas gagné cette game-là. C’est lui qui a lancé toute la game et qui a organisé l’attaque pendant qu’on marquait sans arrêt presque toutes les drives."
When a veteran player is giving that level of praise to someone making his second career start at quarterback, it says a lot about the impact Desrochers had on the game.
The Luxury Of Three Quarterbacks
One advantage Desrochers has that many first-time quarterbacks don't is the support system around him.
While he's learning the position in FPF, he's surrounded by two experienced quarterbacks in Guillaume Boulanger and Raphaël Caron.
"Ce qui m’aide le plus c’est de jouer avec Guillaume Boulanger et Raphaël Caron, deux QB dans cette ligue. Leur vision du jeu est excellente et ce sont deux joueurs intelligents sur le terrain lorsqu’il vient le moment de se positionner ou de proposer des idées de jeux contre certaines défensives."
"C’est vraiment un luxe d’avoir une attaque à trois QB."
For a player learning on the fly, that's not a bad group to lean on.
Another adjustment has been transitioning from traditional football to the dimensions of FPF. Many quarterbacks in the league grew up playing flag, but Desrochers comes from a football background where spacing, timing and field dimensions are very different.
"Je suis plus un joueur de 12v12 avec un terrain plus grand donc évidemment les gars m’ont donné des petits trucs afin d’ajuster quelques jeux selon les dimensions de FPF."
Having experienced players around him has helped accelerate that learning process and allowed him to settle into the position quicker than most would expect.
Focused On Improvement
One thing that stood out during both conversations was that neither Desrochers nor Boulanger spent much time talking about standings.
The focus was improvement.
Boulanger knows his quarterback is still learning the position and believes the entire team can continue growing alongside him.
"On veut juste continuer à améliorer notre game. À l’attaque, on veut améliorer ça et on veut en défense. On veut juste montrer de quoi on est capable."
Of course, winning remains the goal.
"C’est sûr qu’on veut gagner nos matchs, mais quand il y a deux matchs de même, on se dit qu’au moins on aimerait ça en gagner un des deux."
With games against Double Dip and Ball Hawks on the schedule, that mindset will be tested.
Desrochers actually sees part of the challenge as an advantage.
"Je connais pas vraiment les équipes et les autres joueurs et j’utilise ça comme un avantage. J’arrive au match et peu importe les six joueurs devant moi, le but reste le même : mettre des points sur le scoreboard."
Most quarterbacks spend time studying opponents and building expectations before a game. Desrochers doesn't really have that luxury yet, but he doesn't see it as a weakness. Instead, he focuses on what his team can control.
What's even more encouraging for Judith is that they've remained competitive despite missing key contributors such as Simon Calvet-Cowan and Filipe Barros.
"Ce qui est bien c’est qu’il nous manque deux joueurs importants, Simon Calvet-Cowan et Philip Barros, et nous avons tout de même trouvé le moyen de bien compétitionner sans eux. Donc c’est très encourageant pour la suite des choses."
That's probably the biggest reason for optimism moving forward. Judith has managed to stay competitive while not being at full strength and the team expects to get even stronger once those players return.
As for the long-term goals, Desrochers kept things simple.
"Notre objectif est bien sûr de se rendre le plus loin possible et de jouer le plus de matchs possible dans la saison. Je pense qu’on va s’améliorer de match en match aussi."
But perhaps his most telling answer wasn't about standings, playoff positioning or championships.
"Personnellement, mon but est de renouer avec le sport après plusieurs saisons inactif en raison des blessures. Je veux retrouver le feeling de jouer et de gagner des matchs."
Whether Judith ends up competing for a championship or not, one thing is clear: they have found a quarterback who embraces challenges, wants to learn and has already earned the respect of his teammates.
For someone who entered the season with virtually no FPF quarterback experience, that's not a bad place to start.
Closing Remarks
That's all for this week's article.
I'd like to thank both Samuel Desrochers and Guillaume Boulanger for taking the time to answer my questions and provide some insight into Judith's season so far. One thing I enjoy most about writing these articles is getting the chance to learn about players I may not have known much about before. Every player has a different story and Samuel's journey back to football after multiple surgeries is one that I think a lot of athletes can appreciate.
As we approach the midpoint of the season, Division D1 is starting to become very interesting. Snowdon Deli Degens continue to set the pace, several teams are fighting to solidify their playoff positioning and others are still searching for that breakthrough performance that can change the direction of their season. With only eight playoff spots available, every win and every point will matter a little more from here on out.
For Judith, the results have been encouraging. They've remained competitive while missing key players and appear to have found something promising under center. Whether it's this season or in the seasons to come, it'll be interesting to see how Desrochers continues to develop at the quarterback position.
As always, if there's a player, teammate or team you think deserves some recognition, don't hesitate to reach out. Over the next few weeks, I'll continue highlighting stories from around Division D1 while also taking a closer look at the playoff race and some of the award conversations beginning to emerge.
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