139 FIRST-YEAR PLAYERS FORM 2026 ROOKIE CLASS
Teams and media members to vote for Most Outstanding Rookie
TORONTO (October 8, 2026) – The Canadian Football League’s (CFL) Most Outstanding Rookie award will come down to a class of 139 first-year players. The recipient is voted on by the nine teams, and the local and national voting members of the Football Reporters of Canada (FRC).
In lieu of a traditional awards ceremony, the CFL will introduce a fresh new approach to recognizing award winners. Recipients will be honoured through special surprise presentations as the season draws to a close and during the postseason, creating more personal and intimate moments to celebrate players’ outstanding seasons. The moments will be shared online, offering fans a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse into the people and stories behind the statistics and accomplishments.
Players must satisfy all the following criteria to be eligible for Most Outstanding Rookie:
- Named to the active 45-man roster of a CFL member club for a regular season game during the 2026 season
- Never dressed for a CFL member club in the regular season, postseason or championship game in any prior season
- Never dressed for a National Football League member club in the regular season, postseason or championship game in any prior season
PREVIOUS FIVE MOST OUTSTANDING ROOKIES
- 2025 | Trey Vaval (WPG)
- 2024 | Nick Anderson (EDM)
- 2023 | Qwan’tez Stiggers (TOR)
- 2022 | Dalton Schoen (WPG)
- 2021 | Jordan Williams (BC)
2026 ROOKIE CLASS
(Name | POS | School/Team)
Note: Rookies that have been released are not included.
BC LIONS
- Bailey, Emani | RB | Texas Christian
- Bolden, Silas | WR | Texas
- Cenacle, Nick | WR | Hawaii
- DeMontagnac, Nate | WR | North Dakota
- Goforth, Ralen | LB | Washington
- Gusta, David | DL | Kentucky
- Henning, Chase | LB | UBC
- Kemeni, Pierre Jr. | DB | Ohio
- McKenna, Parker | LB | Washington State
- Russell, Tyson | DB | Vanderbilt
- Salter, Kaidon | QB | Liberty
- Spatny, Matt | DL | Lehigh
- Taylor, Colby | DL | West Florida
- Walker-Hunt, Tyran | OL | Old Dominion
- Williams, Jaden | WR | Texas State
EDMONTON ELKS
- Bastone, Carmine | DL | Northwestern
- Carter, Cameron | OL | Murray State
- Cooper, Joe | OL | Slippery Rock
- Djabome, Dariel | LB | Rutgers
- Kettyle, Carter | WR | Alberta
- Luther, T.J. | WR | Gardner-Webb
- Meyer, Gavin | DL | Southern California
- Pace, Justin | LB | Queen's
- Pashula, Chris | OL | Calgary
- Powell, ShunDerrick | RB | Central Arkansas
- Reid, Terez | DB | Florida Atlantic
- Sangmuah, Benjamin | DB | University of British Columbia
- Tennison, Ladarius | DB | Central Florida
CALGARY STAMPEDERS
- Alexander, Zy | DB | Louisiana State
- Ashmore, Bradley | OL | Vanderbilt
- Coly, Bakyne | OL | Purdue
- Frazier, Savio | DL | Miami (Ohio)
- Grzesiak, Daniel | DL | Cincinnati
- Haie, Anton | DB | Laval
- Hills, Elijah | DL | Wisconsin
- Hunter, Jeremiah | WR | Washington
- Manns, Khairi | DL | James Madison
- Marois, Tristan | DL | Colorado
- Miller-Melancon, Ashton | DB | Queen's
- Moten, R.J. | LB | Florida
- Ojutalayo, Jesulayomi | WR | Wilfrid Laurier
- Rascoe, Eric | LB | Angelo State
- Stokman, Matthew | OL | Manitoba
- Wooldridge, Ben | QB | Louisiana
SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS
- Andersen, Erik | OL | Western
- Bell, Darius | OL | East Carolina
- Bell, Malcolm | DB | Michigan State
- Burgess, James Jr. | DB | Alabama State
- Chapman, Oscar | P | Auburn
- Charles, Kendy | DL | Duke
- Conley, Quali | RB | Arizona
- Djete, Dylan | WR | Alabama State
- Evans, Desmond | DL | North Carolina
- Gbenda, David | LB | Texas
- Hale, Alex | K | Oklahoma State
- Hoskins, Liam | DL | Windsor
- Hughes, Juwuane | DB | Fresno State
- Johnson, Johnny III | WR | Oregon
- Oladipo, Seyi Jr. | DB | Boise State
- Pate, Jaylen | DL | Northwestern
- Sexton, Mathew | WR | Eastern Michigan
- Wiebe, Daniel | WR | Saskatchewan
WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS
- Bouliane, Charles-Elliot | LB | Montreal
- Clark, Brody | LB | York
- Daniels, Dante | TE | North Carolina State
- Elgersma, Taylor | QB | Wilfrid Laurier
- Elsbury, Tyler | OL | Iowa
- Fletcher, Michael | DT | Appalachian State
- Gatkuoth, Nuer | DE | Wake Forest
- Hazen, Dylan | LB | Wake Forest
- Reese, David | DE | Syracuse
- Singer, Dorian | WR | Utah
- Stuart, Ethan | DB | McMaster
- Texada, Ridge | DB | North Texas
- Williams, Major | DB | Carson-Newman
- Womack, Kenneth | WR | Western Michigan
HAMILTON TIGER-CATS
- Benton, De’Jon | DL | Hawaii
- Biggins, Nahree | RB | Central Michigan
- Cromwell, Devynn | DB | Michigan State
- Crook, Jordan | LB | Arizona State
- Denis, Jonathan | OL | Louisiana Tech
- Gagné, Loïk | LB | Concordia
- Hayes, Kaleb | DB | Brigham Young
- Mang, Maximilian | TE | Syracuse
- McCarthy, Mitch | P | Indiana
- Nitychoruk, Jake | DB | Manitoba
- Notice, Aamarii | DL | Coastal Carolina
- Swartout, Brayden | OL | Central Michigan
- Szeman, Brayden | OL | Calgary
TORONTO ARGONAUTS
- Arnold, Akili | DB | Southern California
- Bell, Jalen | DL | Memphis
- Bland, Desmond | OL | West Florida
- Burnip, James | P | Alabama
- Ceasar, James | DB | Southern Illinois
- Davis, Solomon | WR | Central Michigan
- Gauthier, Louis-Philippe | DB | Montreal
- Goss, Owen | LB | Arizona
- Hickey, Dathan | DB | Youngstown State
- Hicks, Sam | RB | Abilene Christian
- John, Ethan | DB | Windsor
- Jones, Qualan | RB | Stephen F. Austin
- Kahmann, Tyler | WR | Emporia State
- Maisonneuve, Gabriel | DL | Montreal
- McKenzie, Darius | LB | South Alabama
- Miller, Dymere | WR | Rutgers
- Neal, James | LB | Texas State
- Parsalidis, Sebastian | FB | Wilfrid Laurier
- Piazza, Domenico | OL | McGill
- Rayam, Jalen | LB | UTEP
- Ready, Tristan | WR | Carleton
- Reimer, Rush | OL | California
- Shand, Paris | DL | Louisiana State
- Smith, Isaiah | RB | Guelph
- Teubner, Alexander | LB | Boise State
- Toia, Soane | DL | San Jose State
- Ulm, Nolan | WR | Eastern Washington
- Vreugdenhil, Frank | OL | McMaster
OTTAWA REDBLACKS
- Barlev, Zachary | OT | Old Dominion
- Barnes, Marcus | DB | William & Mary
- Briggs, Dennis Jr. | DT | Illinois
- Connors, Josh | LB | Wilfrid Laurier
- Diouf, Alassane | OG | Montreal
- Dobson, Benjamin | LB | Calgary
- Jordan, Ethan | WR | Wilfrid Laurier
- Lucien, Jeremy | DB | Vanderbilt
- McDonald, Cade | WR | Miami (Ohio)
- Parks, Charlie | DE | Saskatchewan
- Pearl, Julian | OT | Illinois
- Spencer, Lucus | LS | Bishop's
- Stafford, Jelani | DT | Connecticut
- Tezino, Kyahva | LB | San Diego State
- Vaccaro, Giordano | OG | Purdue
MONTREAL ALOUETTES
- Guy, TJ | DL | Michigan
- Jones, Rohan | TE | Arkansas
- Louis, Shakespeare | DB | Southeastern Louisiana
- Manuel, Donovan | LB | Florida International
- Mews, Mekhi | WR | Houston
- Sutherland, Jonathan | DB | Penn State
- Talbot, Liam | RB | Windsor
Lucas Barrett
Associate Vice-President, Communications & Public Affairs, Canadian Football League