Mickey Donovan, a 30-year-old native of Laconia, N.H., has been appointed assistant head coach and defensive coordinator of the McGill University football team, announced Clint Uttley, head coach of the Redmen, on Friday.
Donovan, a former all-Canadian linebacker and team captain with the Concordia Stingers who went on to play for Canadian Football Leagueβs Hamilton Tiger Cats, joins his younger brother Patrick on the McGill coaching staff and will be responsible for recruiting across the country.
βMickey is arguably among the top three recruiters in CIS football,β says Uttley. βHe has tremendous energy and passion and also puts an emphasis on the team as a family. His tough hard-nosed approach to the game will be an asset to our program.β
Donovan, who signed a three-year contract with McGill, began coaching in 2006 as an intern at the University of New Hampshire (NCAA Division 1 AA). He moved on to the University of Western Ontario in 2007 to coach linebackers and over his four years with the Mustangs, he handled special teams, was the defensive front seven coordinator and served as the teamβs recruiting coordinator. Among the key recruits he developed was defensive tackle Vaughn Martin, who was drafted by the NFLβs San Diego Chargers in 2009 and linebacker John Surla, who went on to play for the Montreal Alouettes.
Donovan, who was a guest coach at the Winnipeg Blue Bombers training camp in 2011, has also served as a special teams coordinator for the Canadian under-19 team at the 2009 world junior championship in Columbus, Ohio, as well as the defensive coordinator for Team Ontario West at the Canada Cup tournament in 2010 and 2011.
He played linebacker at the University of Maine (Division 1 AA) before transferring to Concordia, where he graduated with a bachelorβs degree in leisure science in 2005. During his three seasons with the Stingers, he was twice named as the most outstanding defensive player in the Quebec conference and won the Presidentβs trophy in 2004 as the top defensive player in the CIS. He joined the Tiger-Cats in 2005, but suffered a knee injury that ended his playing career the following year.
Uttley is expected to announce his complete coaching staff in early December.
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