They are called “RKGs”: the right kind of guys. And with the help of Ron Ferguson (BSc ’89), former outside linebacker for York University’s football team, five RKGs from Calgary are joining the York Lions football squad this fall.
Ron Ferguson and Warren Craney (right), head coach of the York Lions football team, chat with players in a huddle at the York Stadium.
Ferguson is no stranger to recruiting RKGs. The York biology grad is a mergers and acquisitions partner with Stikeman Elliott LLP, a Canadian business law firm, where as part of his practice he has spent the better part of the last 20 years helping recruit, mentor, and retain top talent for the firm. When he is not chasing his wife, Pauline, and two daughters, Taylor and Phoebe, down the ski hill in his spare time, Ferguson is a member of the Special Olympics Festival board, the York University Alumni Association, York’s President Advisory Council on Advancement, and Chair of the York Football Alumni Association. He has also taught law classes at both the Osgoode Hall Law School at York and Queen’s University. So when it comes to recruiting RKGs for the Lions football team, Ferguson tells it like it is.
“The first thing I tell prospects and their families during recruitment is this isn’t for everyone. You gotta want something different if you want to play football at York. You have to want to build something special for yourself that contributes to the team, something you can look back on 20 years from now and say, ‘I helped build that,’” he says.
Recently, Ferguson committed significant financial resources and personal time to help York’s football recruitment efforts.
“I believe we have all the necessary elements in place at York to move the program to the next level,” he says. “We have a fabulous coaching staff led by head coach Warren Craney, the full backing of the administration, and a brand-spanking-new Pan Am stadium. I felt very comfortable the next step was to help any way I could to find those RKGs.”
(L-R) Mitchell Fraser (fullback), Jarrett Carson (receiver), Chris Kolankowski (offensive lineman), Ron Ferguson, Cole Austen (defensive lineman), Warren Craney, Jamal Campbell (offensive
lineman), Ryan Farr (offensive lineman), and Jordan Young (defensive lineman).
As someone who grew up playing football with his father and two brothers in their Dundas, Ont. backyard, Ferguson places a great value on what one can take away from the sport. “The lessons you learn on the football field about teamwork, about perseverance – getting knocked down and getting back up – these are lessons you can’t learn in a classroom or in a boardroom,” he says. “And they are lessons and experiences you can continually draw on and apply for the rest of your life.”
Having previously set up the Jim Ferguson Football Bursary at York in his father’s name, Ferguson says he wanted to provide more hands-on help. The latest five recruits came out of a number of back-and-forth trips between Calgary and Toronto, during which Ferguson met all of the kids and their parents.
“It was important for Warren to have alumni support, for me to show the parents our vision, and for the parents and the players to hear not only from the coaches and school administration, but from an alumnus and former York football player,” Ferguson says. “These recruits will be the cornerstone of our program moving forward. They are special kids who want to make a difference, who want to come in on Day 1 and lead, come in on Day 1 and play. They are not scared of stepping out of their comfort zone.”
Thanks to Ferguson’s help, Craney says they have been able to cast a wider net for RKGs across the country.
“It’s very expensive to recruit, and Ron is really invested in what we are doing,” Craney says. “I don’t even think of him as an alumnus, I consider him one of the guys I work with. It’s pretty incredible knowing he believes in me that much – words can’t describe it. He’s got my back and that feeling is incredible.”