Bone signs with Waterloo
Football has been a part of Dallas Bone’s life for as long as he can remember.
At age two, he would lug a football up and down the sidelines while his father, Larry, was a coach with the Niagara Spears varsity football team. When he was a little older, he would practice kicking at the Fort Erie High School, aided by his grandmother, Nancy Wilson, who would fetch the ball after each kick.
Football has been a lifelong passion for Bone.
“I just love being part of a team, the celebration when big plays happen and the whole atmosphere,” the 12B student said.
The 18-year-old’s devotion to football paid off in a big way Tuesday at A.N. Myer Secondary School when he signed a letter to play scholarship football with the University of Waterloo. The signing, held in the foyer at A.N. Myer, was attended by his parents, grandparents and members of the Myer football team.
It was a moment Bone has been dreaming of and working towards for a long time. He realized it was a possibility during his Grade 11 year of football.
“I was starting to get talked by schools and I thought ‘Wow, I can try and do this some day,’ ” he said.
The 18-year-old had interest from several schools across Ontario, including Western and Windsor, but Waterloo was an easy choice.
“When I first got there, it felt like a second home and I thought I was going to become an immediate part of the culture there,” the 6-foot-1 170 pound receiver said. “They told me that wanted be to come in and start, hopefully my first year.
Waterloo is already home to several A.N. Myer alumnus including Tre and Tyrell Ford. Bone has credited Tyrell for teaching him the commitment required to be a successful football player.
“Knowing their level of competition and how good they (Fords) are now, just makes me want to become a better football player,” Bone said.
He is already working towards being ready for Waterloo’s training camp next summer.
“I am trying to workout six times a week, running more to make sure my conditioning is good and catching a lot of passes.”
He’s hoping all the work will pay off.
“I’m just trying to start and I just want to play football,” he said, adding he doesn’t mind where, be it at receiver or on special teams. ‘It doesn’t matter as long as I can play.”
At Waterloo, he is planning to study recreation and leisure sports business with hopes of having a career in sports.
Waterloo head coach Chris Bertoia, present at the signing, was delighted to land Bone.
“Obviously Myer is a great football school and we’re excited to keep our connection with A.N. Myer going at the University of Waterloo and Dallas is an exceptional athlete,” he said. “He is a great receiver and it is a great decision on Dallas’ part to join our football program and our university.
“We’re pretty excited about it and we are excited to see what he can do in the future.”
Bone was a kicker, punter, kick returner and receiver with the Marauders, but Waterloo plans to use him primarily as a receiver.
“He is refined, he has been to a lot of camps and he comes from a very good school with regards to passing the football,” Bertoia said. “He is a refined route runner, has great hands, he has good speed and the ability to make big plays, and obviously he comes from a winning pedigree which is important to us as well.”
There are no surprises when Bertoia says what Bone has to work on to play at the post-secondary level.
“He needs to get in the weight room and he knows that too,” he said. “We’ve already had the discussion with him, his parents and coach (Dave) Buchanan, and we are going to put him on a pretty regimented program.”
If Waterloo has the name success with Bone as it has had with previous Myer signings, the move is a great one for the Warriors.
“We want Dallas to continue to carry that torch forward,” Bertoia said.
