Vanier Cup champ, MVP Merchant headlines rosters for 2018 U SPORTS Valero East-West Bowl

TORONTO, Ont. (U SPORTS) – With the 2018 Canadian Football League (CFL) draft two days away, all eyes will turn next week to the next generation of top Canadian football prospects.

The Vanier Cup finalist Université Laval will host the 2018 U SPORTS Valero East-West Bowl for the second consecutive year, which features U SPORTS football players heading into their CFL draft year. The 16^th annual top prospects game will be played at TELUS-U.L. Stadium on Saturday, May 12 at 12:30 p.m. ET. Livestreaming details will be confirmed at a later date.

Reigning Vanier Cup champion and MVP Chris Merchant of the Western Mustangs was one of 86 players announced on Tuesday that will suit up for the game, which serves as the first step to identifying future CFL talent. For the next year, players from both squads will vie for coveted spots on the CFL Scouting Bureau Top 20 Prospects List – published in August, December and April – before showcasing their skills at regional and national combines in advance of the draft next spring.

Merchant, who took home the Ted Morris Memorial Trophy as the most valuable player in the 53^rd ArcelorMittal Dofasco Vanier Cup, threw for 276 yards and one touchdown, while rushing for another 89 yards and a pair of scores, leading the Mustangs to a 39-17 win over Laval – Western’s first national title since 1994. He will share quarterback duties with York’s Brett Hunchak for the East team, while UBC’s Michael O’Connor and Guelph’s Theodore Landers will be under centre for the West side.

Mustangs head coach Greg Marshall, who captured his first national championship as a U SPORTS bench boss last November in Hamilton, Ont., will be behind the West team bench. Bishop’s head coach Cherif Nicolas, who led the Gaiters in their first season in the Atlantic University Sport (AUS) conference, will coach the East team. Full rosters for both teams are available below.

The 2018 edition of the event, which also includes four days of practices, a combine for participating players, and a CFL free-agent camp, kicks off on Monday, May 7.

The West team is mostly made up of U SPORTS football players from Canada West and Ontario University Athletics (OUA) schools, except Carleton, Ottawa and Queen’s, which play for the East squad. The rest of the East team features players from AUS and Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) schools.

Last year, the West defeated the East 37-13 for their second straight win, extending their lead in the all-time series to 9-6. The game featured 10 of the 20 prospects on the final CFL Scouting Bureau List released last month for the 2018 CFL Draft.

2018 U SPORTS VALERO EAST-WEST BOWL ROSTERS

Note: Some players will play for both teams to fill out all the positions

EAST TEAM

Head Coach: Cherif Nicolas, Bishop’s

Offensive Coordinator: Gabriel Cousineau, Montreal

Defensive Coordinator: Paul Eddy Saint-Vilien, Carleton

Special Teams Coordinator: Dan McNally, Acadia

WEST TEAM

Head Coach: Greg Marshall, Western

Offensive Coordinator: Ryan Sheahan, Calgary

Defensive Coordinator: Dwayne Cameron, Laurier

Special Teams: Brendan Conway, Waterloo

Offensive Line: Irv Daymond, Laurier

Quarterbacks: Steve Snyder, Western and Kyle Quinlan, McMaster

Receivers: Jabari Arthur, Calgary

Running Backs: Tom Flaxman, McMaster