U of T announces first group of nine recruits

The University of Toronto Varsity Blues football program is pleased to announce an exciting group of talented student-athletes that intend to pursue their education at U of T while playing for the Blues in the fall of 2010.

“We are very exciting about this recruiting class,” said head coach Greg DeLaval. “Our coaches have done a great job researching and securing some of the country’s best talent. These are hard-working individuals both on and off the field and they are fully committed to the resurgence of Varsity Blues football.”

Leading the way in this first group of nine is London, Ont. native Alex Pierzchalski. The 6-foot-4 wide receiver played his high school football at South Collegiate Institute and was a member of the London Falcons. An Ontario scholar award winner, Pierzchalski is also a volunteer minor football coach and the athletic director of his school council.

JC HaskoUniversity of Calgary transfer Shane Dignum and true freshman JC Hasko are two Don Bosco Secondary grads eager to wear the Blue and White. Dignum is a 5-11 wide receiver originally from Toronto, while Hasko is an outside linebacker born in Albania, who moved to Ohio, but now calls Etobicoke, Ont. home.

Source: U of T
Dignum, who led his Don Bosco squad to the 2006 TDSB finals, will continue to pursue his degree in Engineering. He was the school’s football MVP is 2006 and was also named one of Weirs magazine’s top 150 players in the GTA that same season.

The 2009 defensive player of the year in high school, Hasko was also named a GTA all-star this year and is looking to pursue a degree in business at U of T.

A product of Sinclair Secondary in Whitby, Ont., Aaron Milton is another wide receiver trying to crack Varsity’s starting line-up. The 6-foot-2 political science student was the Celtics athlete of the year in 2008 and 2009. Milton is an honour roll student that was also a member of Canada’s under-17 national rugby team. He delivers meals to senior citizens in his spare time and hopes to study law at the U of T.

Steven Filice, Michael Fuendling, Adam Lauer, Stephen Muzamhindo and Joey Rattazzi round out the first wave of high school stars that hope to make an impact on the field and make a statement in the classroom over their collegiate careers in Toronto.

Filice, a 6-foot-2 linebacker, is a native of Woodbridge, Ont., and a student at Vanier College who considers Baltimore Ravens all-star Ray Lewis his favourite athlete. Filice comes by this sport honestly – his uncle, Tony Pajaczkowski, is a Canadian Football League hall of famer who played 13 years in the league and won the Schenley award in 1961 as the CFL’s most outstanding Canadian.

A native of Elmira, Ont., Fuendling comes in with the 2010 recruiting class, competing for a spot on the Blues roster. The 5-11 running back, whose father was a fullback at Missouri State, was also a member of the Guelph Bears football team.

Lauer of Corfu, NY looks to add depth to Toronto’s offensive line. A member of the 2009 national honour society, Lauer is a six-time scholar-athlete and enjoys film editing and acting when not on the gridiron.

An honour roll student and junior scholar award winner, Muzamhindo is a 5-foot-10 linebacker from Niagara Falls, Ont. He played his high school ball at Stamford Collegiate under the guidance of head coach Brad Marten.

Rattazzi is a 5-foot-7 defensive back from London, Ont. who can also return the ball effectively on special teams. With St. Thomas Aquinas, he helped guide his school to the 2006 OFSAA Western Bowl title and was named the team’s outstanding special teams player in 2007.

Students who sign a letter of intent and commit to Varsity Blues intercollegiate teams will be eligible to play at the University of Toronto provided they are academically admissible and have applied through the normal process with the Ontario Universities Application Centre.

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