OVERVIEW
The Saskatchewan Roughriders enter training camp with 10 defensive linemen who have game experience with the team. The list includes Micah Johnson and Anthony Lanier II, both of whom are mainstays. Experience is complemented by potential, such as that exhibited by Christian Albright (who had two sacks and a forced fumble in his CFL debut last season) and Lake Korte-Moore (the Roughriders’ first-round Draft choice in 2023). The unit as a whole should be bolstered by the arrival of Head Coach Corey Mace, who was a successful defensive lineman and Defensive Line Coach with the Calgary Stampeders.
PERSONNEL
CFL Returnees
CHRISTIAN ALBRIGHT (A-#97): Three sacks in four games as a newcomer to the CFL in 2023.
HABAKKUK BALDONADO (G-#95): One sack with the New York Giants in the 2023 NFL pre-season.
MILES BROWN (A-#90): Sturdy defensive tackle has six sacks in 25 career games with Roughriders.
BRYAN COX JR. (A-#50): First two CFL sacks were registered Oct. 21 versus Toronto.
TRE’ CRAWFORD (A-#93): Four sacks in 12 games with Hamilton over the past two seasons.
CHARBEL DABIRE (N-#99): 55 games played over four seasons with Roughriders.
NICHOLAS DHEILLY (N-#96): Played his way on to Roughriders’ roster with standout performance in 2022 pre-season finale.
MICAH JOHNSON (A-#4): Three-time CFL All-Star and six-time Divisional All-Star defensive tackle.
LAKE KORTE-MOORE (N-#49): Celebrated first CFL sack Aug. 6 against Ottawa REDBLACKS.
ANTHONY LANIER II (A-#91): Three-sack game in each of the past two seasons.
CALEB SANDERS (A-#92): Made CFL debut Oct. 7 at Hamilton.
Newcomers
ROMAN HARRISON (A-#79): Eight sacks and 25 tackles for a loss over 47 NCAA games with Tennessee.
SIDNEY HOUSTON JR. (A-#75): 12 sacks and 17 tackles for a loss over 24 games and two seasons at Ball State.
R.J. McINTOSH (A-#94): New York Giants’ fifth-round Draft choice (139th overall) in 2018.
ELIJAH PONDER (A-#78): Spent 2021 NFL season on Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ practice roster.
TYRONE TALENI (G-#98): USC product was Roughriders’ first-round Global pick in 2024.
A—American
N—National
G—Global
FAST FACTS
- Bryan Cox Jr. is the 29-year-old son of former NFL star linebacker Bryan Cox.
- Cox Jr. is one of three Roughriders who have sacked an NFL quarterback. Lanier had five sacks in 11 games with Washington in 2017. McIntosh produced two sacks in 12 games with the 2019 Giants. Also in 2019, Cox had a half-sack for the Cleveland Browns, for whom he played in six games. He and Larry Ogunjobi teamed up to topple Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton on Dec. 8, 2019.
- McIntosh’s sacks were at the expense of the Minnesota Vikings’ Kirk Cousins (Oct. 6, 2019) and the Miami Dolphins’ Ryan Fitzpatrick (Dec. 15, 2019).
- Cousins and Lanier II were teammates in Washington. On Dec. 17, 2017, Lanier II sacked the Arizona Cardinals’ Blaine Gabbert on two occasions. The first sack forced a fumble. In 2017, Lanier II also sacked the New Orleans Saints’ Drew Brees (Nov. 19), the Giants’ Eli Manning (Nov. 23) and the Los Angeles’ Chargers’ Philip Rivers (Dec. 10).
- Further to the previous item: In 2017, Lanier II registered a sack against three quarterbacks who are now among the top 10 on the NFL’s all-time passing-yardage list: Brees (80,385; second), Rivers (63,440, sixth) and Manning (57,023; 10th).
- Corey Mace’s son, Micah, is named after Micah Johnson.
- Over Johnson’s final two seasons at Fort Campbell High School in Kentucky, he rushed for 2,543 yards and 46 touchdowns in addition to amassing 293 tackles as a linebacker.
- Similarly, Brown was a 260-pound running back in high school. As a senior at Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C., he rushed for 1,012 yards and averaged 7.4 yards per carry.
- Crawford registered two sacks for Hamilton in his first start of the 2023 season (July 28 versus Ottawa).”
- Korte-Moore’s full name: Garnet Lake Korte-Moore. “Our cottage is on Lake Ontario, so my parents were like, ‘Hey, let’s just name him Lake,’ ” he explained after being drafted third overall in 2023. “My mother liked the name Lake a lot, so she would call me that, and it stuck.”
QUOTABLE
“After talking to Coach Mace, he put so much motivation and excitement in me to be a part of this team.” — Charbel Dabire
