Five Acadia grads to suitup for 2015 CFL season

WOLFVILLE, N.S. - The CFL kicks off the 2015 regular season tonight on Thursday, June 25 as the expansion Ottawa Redblacks take on the Montreal Alouettes in Montreal. This season, five former Acadia Axemen will be playing for their respective teams this season including Mike Benson (B.C. Lions), Mike Miller (Edmonton Eskimos), Jake Thomas (Winnipeg Blue Bombers), Matt Carter (Ottawa Redblacks) and Kyle Graves (Montreal Alouettes).

Carter and Graves are on the injured lists - Carter is on the 6-game injured list while former Axemen pivot Graves is on the 1-game injured reserved list. So both former Axemen, Carter and Graves, will not be participating in tonight's season opener - Montreal hosting Ottawa.

Mike Benson who has been a long snapper in the  CFL for several seasons starting in Edmonton in 2013, played in all of Lions' exhibition games this season and was on the Lions roster last season. Mike Miller, who was a defensive halfback with the Eskimos is now listed as a fullback in the team's last exhibition game depth chart. Jake Thomas, who dressed for most if not all of the Bombers games last season was not on the depth chart in the team's last exhibition game and hopes to be dressing in Winnipeg's season opener on Saturday in Regina versus the Saskatchewan Riders.

Acadia's head coach Jeff Cummins coached all five players during his ongoing coaching career at Acadia. Cummins enters his 13th season leading the Axemen. "We are very proud of our graduates of our program who have acheived their dream of playing professional football. I think every Canadian kid who plays football, dreams of being able to play in the CFL after getting their university degree", pointed out Cummins. "I am very pleased to see our players graduate with a hard earned degree from Acadia, but even prouder to see them fight for a position on a game day roster in the CFL".

Best of luck to our former Axemen in their respective CFL careers. We will be cheering for them.