With national signing day just a week away, it is becoming a little less likely that the Mount Douglas Rams send football prospects southward to NCAA schools.
Hopes still remain for star running back/receiver Marcus Davis and lineman Zach Wilkinson, but there could be a flood of players heading eastward to the Manitoba Bisons.
One of them may be six-foot-six, 215-pound quarterback Ashton Mackinnon, who will visit the school next week.
“I think I’m down to my final two,” MacKinnon said of joining either Manitoba or the University of Guelph. “They’re both pretty similar. I haven’t seen the Manitoba campus yet, personally, but it will be a tough decision.”
Former Vancouver Island Raiders quarterback Jordan Yantz is at Manitoba, but will be heading into his final year. In fact, both the Bisons and Guelph have expressed interest in bringing MacKinnon to the school to learn from their respective starters (both in their final year of eligibility) before competing for the position the following campaign.
“Working with someone like Jordan Yantz would be beneficial,” said MacKinnon, who has also visited Regina and was recruited by Laurier and Simon Fraser, but as a tight end.
The clincher may be the fact that Rams’ teammates Christian Krause, Aarmin Purewal, James Nicholas and Julian Luis may be favouring Manitoba as well. The latter is a runningback/linebacker, while the other three are all linemen.
“It would be pretty cool if we all ended up going together,” MacKinnon said.
Rams receiver Sean Waugh is also considering his university options.
Meanwhile, Davis visited Washington State University, but was not offered a scholarship, instead asked to walk on (no financial assistance that first year). The much-in-demand star, who was named B.C. triple-A player of the year for the second straight season, is still weighing his options.
Wilkinson was pitched a deal by Northern Colorado and is said to be leaning in that direction.
POINT AFTER: Mount Douglas grad Alex Anthony re-signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Tuesday. No details were released. The 22-year-old played one regular-season game with the Riders in 2013, after spending the year on the practice roster.
