SMU ‘winning mentality’, small-town charm attracts 2

SMU adds one provincial commit and one out-of-province commit to their 2019 class.

Malachi Mccombie, a defensive back from Dartmouth High School and Jarid Byers, an offensive lineman from Football North St. Joes are excited to join the passionate St. Mary’s Huskies

Malachi Mccombie

For Malachi Mccombie, the Huskies have everything he wants. “I like the program they’ve built,” the 6’3, 180lb corner said. “They have an elite secondary that I’m excited to be a part of and they have what I want to study.”

Mccombie, who is interested in criminology, added that, “The coaching staff is experienced, energetic and very passionate.”

Mccombie is from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, where he played with the Dartmouth High School Spartans (NSSAFFL) and the Dartmouth Destroyers (NSFL). He won three Tier 1 minor football championships in 2012, 2013 and 2014, and a Tier 2 high school championship in 2018.

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???NEW SIGNEE ALERT ??? @headfbcoachsmu and SMU Football would like to introduce our newest member from our 2019 recruiting class @_malachi5 to the SMU family. “Malachai fits exactly what I want in a defensive back. He has the ability to play all positions but has the length to play the important boundary corner position. He’s athletic and was a valuable player for @dhs.spartan.fitness and @footballnovascotia. He will fit in quite nicely with our veterans and will get the knowledge of being apart of one of the best defensive backfields in the country. Malachi can easily earn playing time on our special team units but he can also add his abilities to a lot of our sub-packages.” ? HC James Colzie III #ELEVATE #KEEPTHEMHOME

A post shared by Saint Mary's Huskies Football (@smuhuskiesfootball) on Mar 19, 2019 at 6:27pm PDT

Jarid Byers

There were quite a few things about St. Mary’s that attracted Jarid Byers. “The team is on the come-up and showing great promise of being a big competitor outside the AUS,” Byers said. “The City of Halifax as well as St. Mary’s University all possessed a very small-town, tight-knit feel.”

Byers, who grew up in a small town himself, added that, “They’re able to offer me not only the ability to have great success with my future in football but also my future in academics.”

Byers aspires to earn a double major in psychology and biology. He would then like to further his studies with behaviour studies and focus on sports psychology. His final goal is getting a PhD.

Beyond academics, Byers said he only has good things to say about the Huskies coaches. “From the people I met, there is an all-around passion for not only the sport but also the school and community,” he said. “There’s a winning mentality and a drive by the coaches to continue to enhance the program and that’s something I wanted to help with.”

He added that, “Head Coach Colzie is a fantastic coach with a genius football mind and I’m excited to learn from him.”

Hailing from Winchester, Ontario, Byers has played football for roughly four years. The 6’2, 310lbs lineman started with the Kemptville Jaguars before he joined the West Carleton Wolverines (NCAFA). He then played with the Myers Riders (OPFL). In high school he played with Football North St. Joes.

In 2017, Byers helped the Riders go undefeated on route to a provincial championship. He also won a coaches’ award that year.

“Just wanted to give a shout out to both my parents for their love and support,” Byers said, “especially my mom for being a driving force in motivating me and attending almost every game of my football career.”

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???NEW SIGNEE ALERT ??? @headfbcoachsmu and SMU Football would like to introduce our newest member from our 2019 recruiting class @jarid.byers to the SMU family. “Jarid will be a big inside presence on our offensive line which will be needed now as well as in the future. He comes from the talented @fn_stjoes where they played one of the toughest American schedules in Canada during the 2018 season. Jarid will be relied upon to come in and push some of our veteran offensive lineman. He will need to come in ready to work and learn the playbook so he can contribute early in some form or fashion. Byers will be a force to be reckoned within the next 5 years.” HC James Colzie III #ELEVATE19 #OLINEWILLLEAD

A post shared by Saint Mary's Huskies Football (@smuhuskiesfootball) on Mar 26, 2019 at 6:07pm PDT