Jeff Arp, BA'81

Mustang Athletics
2010 'W' Club Hall of Fame Inductee

Jeff Arp says the techniques and mental discipline he learned as a Mustang football player enabled him to succeed at the professional level - despite his size.

At 6-foot-3-inches tall, the 210-pound guard was considered small for his position of offensive guard. But the Mustang offense was able to take advantage of Arp’s lightning speed. And national recognition soon followed.

Arp became the first Western Mustang football player to be named a three-time first-team All Canadian (1979-1981), the same years he helped the Mustangs win three consecutive Yates Cup titles.

“I have many fond memories of great games while at Western,” Arp says.
Drafted by the Hamilton Tiger Cats in the third round of the 1982 Canadian Football League draft, he played in the Grey Cup in 1985. He went on to play for the Toronto Argonauts in 1986 before retiring at the end of the season.

Having majored in political science, Arp says his academic experiences at Western provided a great foundation for his career in Ontario public service. He has worked in a cabinet office, ministers’ offices and in communications branches at the Ministry of Education and Training, the Ministry of Community and Social Services. Today, Arp works at the Ministry of the Environment.