BY SCOTT
HADDOW
It's another game in the Northern Football Conference (NFC)
and an opposing player is looking to sack the Sudbury Spartans
quarterback.
The player finds a hole and charges full force at the pivot.
The player feels he's in the clear and will be rewarded,
but there's just one problem and it's a big one:
Spartans offensive lineman Bruce Vaillancourt.
The opposing player soon finds himself engulfed in the
ominous shadow of Vaillancourt's six-foot-four, 300-pound
frame. With the power of a rogue bull elephant, Vaillancourt
descends on the opponent with brute force, sending deep shivers
down the spines of those watching the awesome collision from a
distance.
The opponent has been flattened and the Spartans made a
first down thanks to the efficiency of their hard-hitting
offensive lineman.
All season, Vaillancourt regularly kept Spartans'
quarterbacks Paul Gauthier and Reg Bonin safe from enemy
linebackers, and for doing it so well, he earned status as a
NFC Second Team All-Star.
It marked the third straight season Vaillancourt made the
grade to the Second Team.
"I was hoping for the First Team, but it didn't happen,"
said the candid 24-year-old. "Many people think I am one of the
better linemen in the league, so it's nice to be recognized
by them for the job I do on the field.  Nonetheless, I am
happy to be an All-Star."
Vaillancourt's 2006 All-Star year almost never came to
be after a mishap on the field in one of the final games of the
2005 season.
During a routine play, Vaillancourt hurled his body through
the air to make a tackle. He fell and an opposing player of the
same size accidentally stepped on Vaillancourt's neck,
almost crushing it.
"Half my body went numb," said Vaillancourt. "It was scary
and a shock. I was hauled off the field in an
ambulance...anything can happen in football. It's a
physical sport."
Vaillancourt was lucky, he was able to walk again soon after
and regain feeling in his body. The whole mishap left him
pondering his future in the sport. But his passion kept him
gravitating towards the game he loves in the spring of this
year.
"This year was up in the air...Because of my passion, I
couldn't say no," said the Notre Dame graduate. "The whole
thing gave me second thoughts about playing football again. My
right arm feels like pins and needles now, but there's
nothing major wrong."
Vaillancourt was a valuable member of the Spartans offensive
line this season.
"He's a team player," said head coach Chris Bartolucci.
"He's big with a lot of natural strength. He also has
tremendous leg strength. Bruce has good physical drive and he
can move people around in a big way. He helped anchor the
offensive line. He also moves well for such a big man. If you
don't have your head on a swivel, he can put a licking in
on you pretty quick. People remember Bruce when he hits them -
because he hits hard."
Vaillancourt makes no bones about his loyalties.
"I am a totally different person on the field than I am off
it," said the 10-year NFC veteran. "I'm very intense and
physical. I'm a team leader and I will do anything for my
teammates on the field. I lay it on the line and play every
play like it's my last."
When he's not running over people like a tank in the
NFC, Vaillancourt can be found working his job as a supervisor
with Dalron Construction.
Vaillancourt will play in the NFC All-Star Game, which takes
place at Queen's Athletic Field on Sept. 9.
