The Golden Bears welcome a highly-touted player to their team.
Declan O’Flaherty, a quarterback from Centennial High School, has a lot of winning experience and he will be brining his talents and competitive drive to the University of Alberta Golden Bears.
O’Flaherty is already a highly-decorated football player, but he is looking for another trophy to add to his collection. “The football team is one on the rise and Head Coach Morris has established a winning mentality that is evident in all of his players. I want to be apart of the Golden Bears family when they win the Vanier Cup and be key contributor to the future success of the program,” he said.
Declan O’Flaherty and his family as he signs his LOI.
“During my campus visit, I learned that the coaches are very personable and eager to continue building towards competing and winning in the Canada West,” O’Flaherty said.
“Coach Morris and the rest of his staff have truly devoted all their time and effort to the Golden Bears program and it is amazing to see the changes that have occurred since Coach Morris has stepped into the head coach position,” O’Flaherty added. “I believe their plan compliments my values as a competitor and student and am excited to play for an exceptional coaching staff.”
The future commerce student didn’t only have winning on the brain when he committed to the university. He said that he chose the UofA because if its exceptional academic programs. “The academic programs, learning supports and facilities, including the inflatable cover over the playing surface in the winter, are all top-notch. I’m excited to play at Foote Field next fall,” he said.
He added that, “Coach Chris Morris has made sure that his players have every opportunity to become successful after football and that was very important to me.”
Declan O’Flaherty runs forward with the ball. Courtesy of Declan O’Flaherty.
The 5’11, 165lbs Calgarian has spent his entire playing career in his hometown. He played house league with the South Calgary Colts. He started his high school career with the Bishop O’Byrne Bobcats (Calgary Senior High School Athletic Association). In grade 12, he joined the Centennial Coyotes (CSHSAA), which went 5-1 on the 2016 season. He threw for 14 touchdowns and added six more on the ground in 2016. He has also played for the Calgary Bantam Selects and Calgary Zone 3 in the Alberta Summer Games.
In his ten-year career, O’Flaherty has collected his fair share of awards:
2016: Centennial High School – CSHSAA Division 1 All-Star Quarterback, Offensive Player of the Year
– South Calgary Midget Colts – Offensive Player of the Year, CAMFA Academic Scholarship Recipient
2014: Bishop O’Byrne High School – Offensive Player of the Year
– Alberta Summer Games Gold Medalist (Zone 3)
2013: Calgary Bantam Selects
– South Calgary Bantam Colts City and Provincial Champion
– South Calgary Bantam Colts Most Valuable Player
2012: South Calgary Bantam Colts Offensive Player of the Year
2011: South Calgary Bantam Colts City and Provincial Champion
2010: South Calgary Peewee Colts Offensive Player of the Year
2009: South Calgary Peewee Colts Heart and Hustle Award
2008: South Calgary Atom Colts Heart and Hustle Award
O’Flaherty said he wants to thank his parents, coaches, teammates and trainers for helping him achieve this milestone. He added that he is looking forward to helping the Golden Bears suceed in the future.
About Canadafootballchat.com
Canadafootballchat.com (CFC) is the number one national amateur football website (source: ComScore.com) and most respected source for high school and recruiting news in Canada. CFCs mission is to promote players, coaches, administrators, teams, & leagues from coast to coast. Powered by 40+ local reporters, CFCs content driven network covers Canadian NCAA & CIS recruiting, and high school players & teams like no one else.
About CFC Insider
The ‘CFC Insider’ section is for the fan, player, coach, parent, looking for MORE. The mission of this exclusive membership section is to give more recruiting newOs, exclusive rankings and multi-series stories as well as coach-player instructional videos.
Advocating for football prospects one story at a time.
