UBC Thunderbirds land commitment from top-ranked Canadian QB, NCAA Division I transfer Drew Viotto

Photo courtesy: Minnesota Athletics

The University of British Columbia may have just landed the next Michael O’Connor.

On Saturday, the school announced the commitment of quarterback Drew Viotto, a consensus three-star high school recruit who spent time with three major NCAA programs. The native of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., returns to his home country after originally leaving in the eighth grade to pursue his football dreams.

Viotto originally committed to the University of Minnesota in 2023, redshirting his first season with the school. He transferred to Eastern Michigan University the next year, but dressed for just one game last season in a backup capacity.

The six-foot-four, 230-pound pivot entered the transfer portal for a second time ahead of the 2025 season and initially joined Missouri State University for spring camp. While it was projected that he would be the team’s backup for a year before taking over as the starter in 2026 for the team’s first season of FBS bowl eligibility, he elected to leave before playing a game and will now enroll in the prestigious Sauder School of Business at UBC.

The commitment is a substantial one for the Thunderbirds as Viotto was the number one ranked Canadian prospect in the class of 2023 according to CanadaFootballChat and the 30th best quarterback in the United States per Rivals. While attending Walled Lake Western High School in Michigan, he threw for 2,126 yards, 22 touchdowns, and just four interceptions as a senior to be named first-team all-state, earning the nickname “the Canadian Cannon.”

UBC is no stranger to high-profile quarterback transfers, as head coach Blake Nill famously recruited Michael O’Connor in 2015 after the former four-star recruit left Penn State. The move was an instant success as he led the team to a Vanier Cup title in his first season and was eventually selected in the third round of the 2019 CFL Draft. The native of Orleans, Ont., now serves as the quarterback for Canada’s national men’s flag football team in their quest to qualify for the 2028 Olympics.

The Thunderbirds later tried to replicate that success by recruiting former University of Connecticut starter Jack Zergiotis in 2023. He never played a snap for the team due to eligibility issues and UBC advanced to the Vanier Cup anyway that season, losing to the Montreal Carabins.

Sources have informed 3DownNation that four-year starter Garrett Rooker, who led the team on that playoff run, will not be returning to school for his fifth season of eligibility after going unselected in the 2025 CFL Draft. Viotto is expected to compete for the top QB job with incumbent backup Derek Engel, who is entering his fifth year out of Grapevine, Tex.

UBC went 5-3 in conference play last season before being upset by the University of Saskatchewan in the Canada West semi-finals. They will officially open the 2025 season on Thursday, August 28, when they host the University of Manitoba.