The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have added some depth to their special team's unit with the signing of Devin Anctil on February 22nd.
The 26-year-old Punter began punting at a collegiate level while attending Coffeyville Community College and leveraged 38 yards on 46 punts during his time there. He then transferred to Kansas State University, where he had to wait 2 years before taking the field again.
Anctil made the most of his opportunity, winning the starting job halfway through the 2018 season. He remained the team's starting Punter and through 20 games, he punted 83 times for over 3,700 yards. Anctil finished his college career as one of the top Punters in school history, setting the school record for career punting average at 44.8 yards per punt. Devin also managed to have 30% of his punts travel over 50 yards and pinned his opponents inside their own 20-yard line on 30% of his punts as well.
While he has yet to play professionally, it isn't from a lack of trying. Anctil has attended over 14 showcases with the highly-respected Novak Kicking & Consulting, including the 2023 CFL Showcase. Watching his performance is electrifying! Anctil has a huge leg and makes 50+ yard punts look easy. Specifically on his second punt, where he hit a huge 50-yard punt that hung in the air for 5.15 seconds! He even hit a 66-yard, 4.68-hang time punt during his XFL Showcase late last year. According to this tweet, he has averaged over 50 yards a punt and a 4.71 average hang time for all of his punts combined.
The Bomber's decision to sign Anctil was likely driven by a desire to create healthy competition among their special team's players. Although Marc Liegghio punted 106 times for an average of 46 yards per punt last season, many of the team's fans have been calling for new blood to be brought into camp.
As the age-old saying goes, competition breeds excellence, and the Blue bombers are hoping that Anctil's skills will push their special teams unit to new heights in the 2023 season.
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