I've decided to start a thread on SFU football because there is hope, if limited, for the future for this one-time CFL talent factory that has fallen on such hard times that it has not won a game since 2014 and is in the midst of a 33 game losing streak. SFU is also unique because it is the only Canadian university playing in the NCAA, making it distinctive in another respect. To be fully transparent, I also admit that I am a SFU graduate.
The hope comes in the form of a new HC, Thomas Ford. Under the previous HC, Kelly Bates, who played for the BC Lions, the SFU Clan were 0-29. Ford may or may not succeed. However, he does have a track record of success elsewhere and of rebuilding teams.
In a recent CIS post, ArgoGabe22 talked about York being Yorked during its losing streak. SFU is well past that point, so we could say it's SFUed. But, it still has a way to go to beat U of T's 49 game losing streak, a CIS record set between 2001 and 2008, so the team is not yet in a Blue mood.
Ford's rebuilding plan outlined below seems reasonable and time will tell if it works out. As noted in the article below, one problem that he faces in recruitment is competition from the highly successful UBC program for new talent. Nevertheless, his proposal for a revival of the Shrum Bowl against UBC should help build community support.
It is not simply that SFU's mostly Canadian players cannot meaningfully compete against American talent, as the team went 5-6 in its first season against its NCAA Division II rivals in 2012. However, it's been downhill since then because of poor recruiting and coaching.

Thomas Ford was named head coach of the SFU Clan football team Monday and we hit him straight away with the tough question: Why do it? Ford, a Seattle man who had been guiding the gridiron team at Stadium High School in Tacoma, Wash., was obviously looking to get back into the NCAA after three coaching stints there. ...

“UBC has been phenomenal,” said Ford. “With the job they’ve done, it shows the talent that’s here. It means that I’m going to have to do a really good job at getting myself out to schools in B.C. and presenting our case.” Ford, in fact, says he wants to help resurrect the Shrum Bowl, the UBC/SFU game that had been mainstay on the Lower Mainland football calendar for years but hasn’t been played since 2010 because of scheduling conflicts. “I want to find a way to do it,” said Ford. “I want to compare apples to apples.”

Ford had been a star running back at Linfield College, helping the McMinnville, Ore., program to a 41-4 record during his time there, which included the 2004 NCAA Division 3 national title. He went on to assistant coaching jobs at Linfield, Division 2 Southeastern Oklahoma State and Division 3 Puget Sound before taking on the head job at Stadium High in 2014. Stadium went 0-10 in his inaugural campaign, but made steady progress and finished 6-4 in 2016, marking their first winning season since 1993.
“I look at this situation and this is a university that has all the tools to have a successful football program,” said Ford. “The keys are there. It’s about having the right person driving.
“I’m a small college guy. I take great pride in knowing about the small college programs in the Northwest. I knew quite a bit about SFU before the job came open. There is a rich tradition here. They’ve been a successful program before. That was a selling point to me. I want to reach out to the coaches in B.C., and especially the SFU alumni who are coaching. I know there are a lot of SFU grads who are coaching high school football. To me, recruiting is about building relationships more than anything.”
Clan grads include former B.C. Lions stars such as Lui Passaglia, Glen Jackson, Nick Hebeler, Sean Millington and Angus Reid. Former CFL standouts like Doug Brown and Glen Suitor are also SFU products. ...

“I know at some point we will be measured by wins and losses, but, right now, I just want to improve daily. I know we have to improve our roster size and make sure that the competition for spots at spring practice is hot and heavy.”
SFU had a 21-17 lead in the fourth quarter on the road against Western Oregon in their season finale on Nov. 11, but surrendered a touchdown at the 7:26 mark of the frame and ended up losing 24-21. That was their closest game of the season. They were outscored by an average of 55-11 on the campaign.
http://vancouversun.com/sports/university/new-sfu-football-coach-aims-to-revive-program-end-33-game-losing-skid/wcm/353c774b-8cfe-4d72-9b21-f0469483ee63