Riley among five players to retire as Riders’ camp approaches

The Saskatchewan Roughriders’ first-round pick in the 2020 CFL draft has retired after appearing in just one game.

The Roughriders announced Monday that offensive lineman Mattland Riley and four other players had retired, just days before the team is to open training camp.

Riley, a 25-year-old product of Melfort who played at the University of Saskatchewan, was picked seventh overall by the Roughriders in 2020.

A back injury in training camp caused him to miss time to start the season and then he dealt with a bout of mono, which also kept him out of games in 2021. He only played in one game for the team that season.

The other players whose retirements were announced Monday were Canadian running back Jonathan Femi-Cole, Canadian receiver Terrell Jana, global defensive lineman Christopher Ezeala, and American offensive lineman Bryce Hargrove.

The Roughriders drafted Femi-Cole in the sixth round (53rd overall) of the 2020 draft. He didn’t appear in any games with the Green and White. Femi-Cole was one of four players who suffered torn Achilles tendons a day before training camp was set to begin.

Jana was Saskatchewan’s second-round pick (17th overall) in the 2021 draft. He played in two games last season and caught one pass for seven yards.

Ezeala, a German whom the Roughriders took with the fifth pick overall in the 2021 global draft, appeared in 11 games for Saskatchewan last season.

The Roughriders also announced they had released wide receiver Ricardo Louis, who caught 18 passes for 213 yards and two touchdowns in nine games last season.

Saskatchewan also added six Americans: Defensive linemen Benjamin Davis, Kailon Davis, Ezekiel Rose and Justin Thomas, and receivers Dieuly Aristilde Jr., and Charles Headen III.

Benjamin Davis is a 6-foot-4, 236-pounder who started his collegiate career at the University of Alabama before heading to the University of Texas. With the Longhorns, he had 16 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and one quarterback hurry.

Kailon Davis spent last season at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. The 6-foot-3, 250-pounder recorded 18 tackles, 1.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and one blocked kick.

Rose played in one game for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers last season. The 6-foot-2, 308-pounder out of West Virginia University had 43 tackles, 6.5 sacks, two interceptions, two passes defended and one forced fumble over 25 games with the Mountaineers.

The 6-foot-5, 265-pound Thomas played his college ball at LSU and the University of Alabama at Birmingham. In his season with the Blazers, he put up 11 tackles, 4.5 sacks, one defended pass, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.

Aristilde Jr., a 6-foot-4, 215-pound target, played at Eastern Michigan University before spending last season at Bethel University. There, he caught 32 passes for 768 yards and six touchdowns.

The 5-foot-9, 198-pound Headen III started at Shippensburg University before transferring to SMU. Last season, he played in two games with the Mustangs.