Larry Dean
Larry Dean moved into football operations, as the Roughriders’ Player Personnel Co-ordinator, after being a star linebacker in the CFL since 2016.
As a player, he spent time in the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings (2011 to 2013), Buffalo Bills (2014) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2015) before becoming a member of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (2016 to 2018, 2020), Edmonton Elks (2019) and the Roughriders (2021 to 2023). Dean missed the entire 2021 season with an Achilles tendon injury but returned with a flourish by registering 101 defensive tackles in 2022 and 104 in 2023.
In 2023, he was named the Roughriders’ Most Outstanding Player and Most Outstanding Defensive Player. As well, he was recognized as a CFL Divisional All-Star for the fourth time. He was previously honoured in 2017, 2018 and 2019. In 2018, he was also named the East Division’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player.
With 570 career defensive tackles, he is 25th in CFL history, even though he didn’t play his first game of three-down football until he was nearly 28.
Dean hails from Tifton, Georgia, where “Home of Larry Dean” signs are prominently posted. He gives back to his hometown through the Larry Dean Foundation Inc., which invests in and empowers young people. In addition, Dean has been inducted into the Tift County Blue Devils Hall of Fame (in 2018) and the Valdosta State University Blazers Hall of Fame (2019).