‘Prepare for the future’: Roughriders’ 2026 Canadian draft concludes with 8 new players selected

Saskatchewan Roughriders Helmet

Eight young men had their names called Tuesday night saying they had been drafted in the Canadian Football League’s (CFL) draft by the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Fresh off their fifth ever Grey Cup title, Saskatchewan was looking to fill the holes left in their Canadian depth with the departures of key names like A.J. Allen, Tommy Neild and Ajou Ajou.

General Manager and VP of Football Operations Jeremy O’Day says the draft represents a lot of work each year but it always creates excitement for the future.

“You’re relieved,” he told reporters after the conclusion of the draft. “Some of the assistant coaches are super excited and other ones, they didn’t get many guys. You can’t make everyone happy with all the picks but for the most part it’s a pretty collaborative effort.”

Saskatchewan held one pick in each of the eight rounds in the CFL’s Canadian player draft.

The team led things off selecting Michigan State defensive back Malcolm Bell with the ninth pick in the first round.

“He’s long corner, played at a high level at Michigan State, very good coverage corner” O’Day said about Bell. “Obviously, when you look at our roster and how we’re constructed, we’re starting with two [Canadian] DBs going into camp.”

“We like a lot about him going through his tape and his interview process, and he’s got length and speed,” he added.

While Bell could be a replacement for star DB Tevaughn Campbell down the road, O’Day says having a Canadian at cornerback isn’t necessary if depth forms in other areas.

“If it works out, and we’ve had success with Tevaughn of course, [he’s] a pretty unique player,” he added. “We looked at it and going into the season, it’s a nice opportunity for us to have another really good guy that can change the ratio.”

Bell has accepted an invite to Cleveland Browns mini camp this spring and is not expected to attend Saskatchewan’s training camp in May.

The Riders went to the offensive side of the ball in round 2, picking receiver Dylan Djete out of Alabama State 18th overall.

“[We] liked him from the beginning,” the GM said. “He’s one we went back and looked at multiple times, different from the receivers we have that are a little bit bigger. But he’s a fast receiver, willing blocker, can do a lot of different things with him in how we’re set up. He can play multiple spots.”

Heavy adds

In all, Saskatchewan added three offensive linemen in centre Darius Bell (29th), guard Jez Janvier (47th) and tackle Albert Reese IV (56th).

Together, they total more than 19.5 feet in height and nearly 1,000 pounds in strength.

“They’re different positional players, they’ve all played different positions,” O’Day added. “We took a centre, a guy that can come in to be played at a high level.”

“Jez is just super athletic; he’s more of a guard but also started a lot of games at Eastern Michigan and impressed us. I just thought there was a good value there. Yeah, we took a flier with Albert as well,” he said.

Reese IV went unselected in last week’s NFL Draft but signed as a free agent with the Carolina Panthers.

“You just kind of think about, ‘what ifs,” said O’Day. “You hope it happens, you just never know.”

Rounding out

Defensively, Calgary Dino linebacker Osasere Odemwingie was picked in the fourth round of the draft by Saskatchewan.

The Roughriders rounded out their picks with another receiver in Shemar McBean from UBC in Round 7 and special teams standout Ryan Speight with the final pick of the draft.

At least five of the eight picks are training camp hopefuls, with Speight expected to be out for the entirety of 2026 with an injury.

O’Day says draft day never truly goes as planned.

“We do a lot of mocks and they’re all over the place compared to what you would know,” he explained. “You just don’t understand what other team’s draft boards and what their needs are. Their needs are different than [ours] are and you try to do a good job projecting. You also don’t think some players would be there later, so you take some risks on those.”

The GM adds each draft is different as team needs and goals shift.

“You go in with different needs and wants and what you’re trying to accomplish,” O’Day said. “Every year, as free agents move on or retire, it changes. Some years we took receivers in the beginning, sometimes you take DBs and sometimes we took o-lineman. But we really try to prepare for the future, create some depth for our team and that’s a big part of it.”

The Riders are expected to have Canadians starters in Logan Ferland and Zack Fry on the offensive line, Kian Schaffer-Baker, Dhel Duncan-Busby and Sam Emilus at receiver, along with Tevaughn Campbell and Nelson Lokombo in the defensive secondary.

Sask. players go elsewhere

As the Roughriders completed their draft, a few players from Saskatchewan were picked by other teams across the CFL.

Charlie Parks, who is from Regina and played at the University of Saskatchewan, was picked in the fourth round, 31st overall by the Ottawa Redblacks.

Regina Rams’ offensive lineman Ethan Graham was selected 54th overall in the sixth round by the B.C. Lions.

The Calgary Stampeders added Huskies’ OL Jack Warrack with the 71st pick.

Our live coverage of the draft can be found below:

9:15 p.m. – Riders end draft, selecting Laurier’s Ryan Speight

With the 74th and final pick of the 2026 CFL Canadian Draft, the Roughriders selected Laurier University Golden Hawk Ryan Speight.

Speight is a two-time U Sports Academic All-Canadian, winning both the Yates Cup as OUA champion and the Uteck Bowl in 2024.

Listed as a 6’2”, 228lbs fullback and tight end, the Brandfort, Ont. product had 197 receiving yards on 14 receptions and three touchdowns in 39 games for Laurier.

However, he also was an asset on special teams, making 21 tackles, forcing a fumble, recovering another and blocking a kick.

The Riders say he is recovering from a knee injury and is not expected to play in 2026.

8:20 p.m. – Shemar McBean selected in 7th round

Calgary product Shemar McBean has been selected in the seventh round, 65th overall, in the 2026 CFL Draft by the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

The University of British Columbia receiver played 41 games across four years with the T-Birds.

He was a 2,000-plus yard receiver at UBC in his career, making 158 catches for 2,477 yards – averaging more than 60 receiving yards per game – and had 13 touchdown receptions.

McBean was also a solid kick and punt returner, with 1,848 total return yards on 109 attempts. He also returned one punt for a touchdown.

Before his time with the T-Birds, McBean played for the Calgary Colts of the Prairie Football Conference.

8:10 p.m. – Saskatchewan adds more size to OL

Roughriders’ GM Jeremy O’Day selected his third OL of the 2026 CFL Draft in the sixth round, picking Edmonton, Alta. product Albert Reese IV at 56th overall.

Reese, a 6’7”, 330lbs lineman, played five seasons at Mississippi State University, playing in 48 career games with 22 starts.

In 2025, he started all nine games he played for the Bulldogs at both tackle positions and right guard with over 650 snaps.

Reese allowed just four sacks and committed four penalties. According to Pro Football Focus, he had a pass block grade of 69.0, a run block grade of 55.1 and an overall blocking grade of 61.1.

He did sign an undrafted NFL free agent deal with the Carolina Panthers.

8:00 p.m. – Jez Janvier fifth add of Riders’ draft

Southern Mississippi’s Jez Janvier has been picked in the fifth round, 47th overall by the Roughriders.

The 6′5″, 305lbs offensive lineman is the second OL added by Saskatchewan in the 2026 draft.

Janvier earned an IT degree from Eastern Michigan in April 2024, where he played in nine games for the Eagles after moving back to the offensive line. He also saw action in seven games on the defensive line that year, recording nine tackles, including five solos.

The Montreal, Que. product was a redshirt senior at Southern Miss, and dressed for just three games in 2025.

7:45 p.m. – Calgary’s Osasere Odemwingie joins Green and White

With their fourth-round selection, Saskatchewan added Calgary Dino linebacker Osasere Odemwingie.

The 38th overall selection played 31 games over four seasons at U of C, making 161 tackles, 10.5 for loss. He added four sacks, four pass knockdowns, five forced fumbles and recovered two fumbles.

7:40 p.m. – Regina product Charlie Parks headed to Ottawa

Regina defensive lineman Charlie Parks was selected in the fourth round, 31st overall, by the Ottawa Redblacks.

The University of Saskatchewan product played three seasons for the Huskies.

In 23 games, he made 53 total tackles, had 11 sacks, forced one fumble and recovered another.

The U of S lost the Vanier Cup to Montreal at Mosaic Stadium in November.

Parks made one tackle, for loss, in the national championship.

7:33 p.m. – Riders add size in Round 3

With the 29th overall pick, the Riders added six foot five, 300 pound center Darius Bell, out of East Carolina University.

Bell started all 13 games at center for the Pirates, logging 968 snaps on the offensive line which was tied for a team-high.

He helped provide running lanes for three 100-plus yard rushing games and was a member of an offensive unit which averaged 449.0 yards of total offense per game (13th nationally) and 176.3 rushing yards per contest (45th nationally).

ECU rushed for 200 or more yards in a game on four occasions, including a season-high 358 against Temple before going on to win the Go Bowling Military Bowl.

Prior to his time in East Carolina, Bell also played at Maine University.

7:25 p.m. – Jeremy O’Day speaks after first two picks

General Manager and VP of Football Operations Jeremy O’Day needed to fill Canadian depth at some skill positions on both sides of the ball, doing so with DB Malcolm Bell in round 1.

“Malcolm Bell, he’s long corner, played at a high level at Michigan State, very good coverage corner” O’Day said about his first round draft pick. “Obviously, when you look at our roster and how we’re constructed, we’re starting with two [Canadian] DBs going into camp.”

“We like a lot about him going through his tape and his interview process. And he’s got length and speed,” he added.

In the second round, O’Day added to his receiver room, selecting Dylan Djete with the 18th overall pick.

“[We] like him from the beginning,” the GM said. “He’s one we went back and looked at multiple times, different from the receivers we have that are a little bit bigger. But he’s a fast receiver, willing blocker, can do a lot of different things with him in how we’re set up. He can play multiple spots.”

7:10 p.m. – WR Dylan Djete picked at 18

With their second round selection, the Saskatchewan Roughriders picked Alabama State Hornet Dylan Djete.

The 18th overall selection is a wide receiver from Levis, Que.

In 12 games with the Hornets in 2025, Djete had 28 receptions for 422 yards and four touchdowns.

Prior to playing at Alabama State, the six foot, 185 pound pass catcher played 11 games for Wofford College – starting four times - with 20 catches for 209 yards, along with two touchdowns.

6:15 p.m. – Riders select DB Malcolm Bell in first round

With the 9th pick of the first round, the Saskatchewan Roughriders have selected Michigan State defensive back Malcolm Bell.

The Montreal, Que. product played 45 collegiate games over the course of four seasons (2022-25), including 31 career starts, notching 142 career tackles on over 2,100 defensive snaps.

The six foot two, 190 pound defensive back played in 33 games at the University of Connecticut, with 20 starts from 2022-24 - including a redshirt year in 2021 - before transferring to Michigan State in January 2025.

Bell played in all 12 games for Michigan St. last season, including 11 starts at cornerback and recorded a career-high 49 tackles, which ranked second in the Spartan secondary and fifth most on the team, was second on the team with a career-high 5.0 tackles for loss, including a sack and tied his career high with six pass break-ups, which led the team.

He has accepted an invite to Cleveland Browns mini-camp this spring.