UBC Thunderbirds The UBC Thunderbirds are the athletic teams that represent the University of British Columbia in the University Endowment Lands just outside the city limits of Vancouver , British Columbia , Canada . The Thunderbirds are the most successful athletic program in the CIS , though a few of their teams are members of the U . S . NAIA . Football . The UBC Thunderbirds football team has won the Hardy Trophy conference championship 15 times , which is third all - time among competing teams . On a national level , the team has won the Vanier Cup championship three times , in 1982 , 1986 and , most recently , in 1997 . The team has also lost twice in the title game , in 1978 and 1987 . The Thunderbirds program has also yielded three Hec Crighton Trophy winners , Jordan Gagner in 1987 , Mark Nohra in 1997 , and , most recently , Billy Greene in 2011 . In recent years , the program has seen little success . Since 2007 , the Thunderbirds have qualified for the playoffs just once and last had a winning record in the 2004 season . The team ' s best campaign came in 2011 when they finished with a 6 - 2 record and in second place in the CWUAA with an appearance in the Hardy Cup . Quarterback Billy Greene would also become the third Thunderbird to win the Hec Crighton trophy that year . However , all team accolades would be for naught as an ineligible student - athlete , who played in all eight games , would force UBC to forfeit all six regular season wins as well as its post - season results from that year . The school was fined and the program was placed on probation for the following season . This seemed to halt any progress that was made as the team finished 2 - 6 for the 2012 season and out of the playoffs for the fifth time in six years . The team has a long - standing rivalry with the cross - town Simon Fraser Clan which has been dormant since SFU left for the NCAA Division II Great Northwest Athletic Conference . While the two teams did not play within the same governing bodies until 2002 ( SFU played in the NAIA while UBC has always competed in the CIS ) , they would compete in an annual match - up known as the Shrum Bowl , named after Gordon Shrum . After SFU moved to NCAA II , it seemed as though the game would stop , however , the two teams would indeed play in October 2010 at Thunderbird Stadium using Canadian rules . The game has not been played since then , as scheduling conflicts have prevented the two teams from playing . The most identifiable rivalry within the conference is with the Saskatchewan Huskies who they have met in their last four playoff games including a win at Thunderbird Stadium in 2011 . Recent Regular Season Results . A . UBC forfeited all six regular season wins and their post - season games were removed from record in 2011 due to use of an ineligible player . Thunderbirds in the CFL . As of the start of the 2012 CFL season , four former Thunderbirds are on CFL teams ' rosters : CIS and NAIA National Championships . Canadian Interuniversity Sport Championships . Football ( 3 ) See also Canadian Interuniversity Sport . Fight Song . UBC used to have a fight song " Hail UBC " , written by Harold King in 1931 . < br > A pep song with the same name " Hail UBC " , written by Steve Chatman , was adopted in 2011 . The lyrics go : " Hail to the Thunderbirds ! Hail UBC ! " < br > " Thunder and lightning — Onward to victory ! " < br > " Hail to the Blue - and - Gold ! Hail UBC ! " < br > " U , B , C forever — Onward to victory ! " NCAA membership bid . In 2005 , they applied to become members of the principal U . S . college sports governing body , the NCAA . They are not the first Canadian school to try to join the NCAA ; in 2000 , local rival Simon Fraser , then exclusively an NAIA member , sought to join the NCAA but was turned down . At the time , the NCAA ' s constitution prohibited non - U . S . schools from joining ; however , some observers believed the real reason Simon Fraser was turned down was that the school sought to join as a Division II school , and the NCAA did not want to set a precedent with a lower - level school . UBC , on the other hand , was reportedly interested in joining Division I . UBC ' s athletic budget of approximately $ 4 million Canadian is dwarfed by those of schools in the Pacific - 10 Conference , the only BCS conference on the U . S . West Coast . However , at least two mid - major conferences with a West Coast presence , the West Coast Conference and Western Athletic Conference , had been suggested as possible future homes for the Thunderbirds . The NCAA approved a change to its constitution on January 14 , 2008 to allow Canadian schools to become members . Under a 10 - year pilot program due to begin June 1 , 2008 , Canadian schools can join the NCAA as Division II members , and any school that meets the June 1 deadline for application can become a member as of the academic year immediately following the deadline . CIS has not officially indicated whether a school joining the NCAA under this program can retain its CIS membership . It was expected that both UBC and Simon Fraser would be among the first schools to apply for NCAA membership under this program . Simon Fraser did apply and was accepted , but in April 2009 UBC deferred a decision on applying .