Rolan Milligan Jr. led the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ defensive backs in stops last season.
He added two more to the list last week, stopping in Georgia and Minnesota for overnight stays en route to the Coors Light Riders Training Camp.
By the time he completed the long journey from Lake Wales, Fla., to Saskatoon, he had been on the road for 36 hours.
“I can drive for a little while, but after eight or nine hours I start getting a little tired or a little drained,” Milligan said after Wednesday’s workout. “I was just trying to eat up as much daylight as I could.”
After listening to innumerable podcasts, playing an assortment of tunes and taking several walk/stretch breaks, he reached the Saskatoon city limits.
“It was nice knowing where I need to be,” he said. “I was like, ‘Finally!’ It took forever.”
On the field, Milligan also celebrates when drives come to an end — often with considerable input from himself.
In addition to making 71 defensive tackles in 2022 during his first full season with the Roughriders, he registered an interception, a sack, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a team-high eight pass knockdowns.
One priority for 2023 is to reduce the latter figure, which put him in a five-way tie for ninth in the CFL, by transforming the pass deflections into turnovers.
“I just want to take advantage of the opportunities that I get,” the 28-year-old defensive halfback said. “I had an opportunity last year to catch multiple picks that I didn’t catch for interceptions.
“It’s not about a number for me anymore. It’s more about if I do get those chances and opportunities, I need to take advantage and capitalize. It’s the same thing with tackling.”
Milligan decided against tackling free agency during the off-season. He could have tested the open market on Feb. 14, but instead signed a two-year contract extension in mid-December.
Comfortability with the Roughriders’ scheme, choreographed by defensive co-ordinator Jason Shivers, contributed to Milligan’s decision to re-sign.
A quickly emerging rapport with the team’s new defensive backs coach, Marcus Klund, has reinforced to Milligan that the decision he made was the right one.
“They give me the option to be free to be myself within the system and to play to my strengths,” said Milligan, a Roughrider since October of 2021.
“Just having the guys around me — the people they said they were trying to get back — I was banking on that happening.”
Five days after Milligan’s new deal was announced, the re-signing of cornerback Nic Marshall became official. Barely a month later, defensive halfback Jeremy Clark re-signed before he could test free agency.
“With Nic, me and him were playing the boundary (side) and we were building a lot of chemistry last year,” Milligan said. “Having him back, we can continue to build on that chemistry.”
Considering the continuity on defence as a whole, to which level can that unit ascend this season?
“The best in the league,” Milligan responded. “I truly believe that with the talent we have and the way that we click and just knowing how we play, it can be a lot of pain for a lot of offences.”
Milligan went to great pains to be part of the process in advance of training camp.
On April 23, he was in Fort Lauderdale to watch various hopefuls as they were put through the paces at the fourth of five open tryouts the Roughriders held during the off-season.
Milligan and his wife, Samantha, were invited to the Florida session by the Roughriders’ General Manager and Vice-President of Football Operations, Jeremy O’Day.
“J.O. gave me a phone call and they extended the invite to come down and kind of get the experience of just looking at guys and evaluating talent a little bit,” Milligan said. “He was asking my opinion on certain things and it was a good experience.
“My wife enjoyed it as well, so I told them that I was thankful that they asked me to do that.”
The bonus? The drive from Lake Wales to Fort Lauderdale was a mere 2½ hours.
