Rolan Milligan Jr. has been one of the best defensemen in the CFL this season.

Heading into the final week of the season, the 30-year-old from Lake Wales, Fla., leads the CFL in interceptions with eight and is tied for second in special teams tackles with 20 so far.

These statistics earned the Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive back the Saskatchewan Roughriders Most Valuable Player, Most Valuable Defensive Player and Most Valuable Special Teams Player.

The other team awards were also announced Wednesday.

During this first ballot, representatives of the Football Reporters of Canada from each CFL city as well as the respective head coaches voted for the six categories.

The West Division finalists will be announced on October 31 and the CFL awards will be presented on November 14 during the Gray Cup Festival in Vancouver.

The Riders will face the Calgary Stampeders in the CFL regular season finale on Saturday.

Most Valuable Player, Most Valuable Defensive Player, and Most Valuable Special Teams Player: Rolan Milligan Jr.

Milligan Jr. wins three awards for his work on the field this season. Not only is he a talented defender, but he has also been one of the league’s best contributors on special teams.

This resulted in him being a unanimous choice for all three team awards. He is the third Riders player to be unanimously nominated for three awards in a single season. Defensive back Ken McEachern in 1979 and 1980 was nominated for Most Valuable Player, Most Valuable Defensive Player and Most Valuable Canadian. In 2015, linebacker Jeff Knox Jr. was unanimously voted the team’s Most Valuable Player, Most Valuable Defensive Player and Most Valuable Rookie.

In addition to his interception and special teams tackle numbers, Milligan also has 10 pass knockdowns (tied for second in the CFL), 111 total defensive plays (fourth) and 71 defensive tackles.

This is the third year in a row that a defenseman has won the Riders MVP award. Linebacker Darnell Sankey was the team’s Most Outstanding Player in 2022, with Larry Dean winning the award in 2023.

Quintessential Canadian: Sam Emilus

For the second consecutive season, Sam Emilus was named the Riders’ Most Outstanding Canadian.

The 26-year-old Montreal product totaled more than 1,000 receiving yards for a second consecutive year. He had 1,064 yards and five touchdowns on 86 catches heading into the team’s final regular season game. According to Riders historian Rob Vanstone, Emilus is just seven catches away from tying the Riders’ regular season record for most receptions by a Canadian. Ray Elgaard set this record with 94 in 1990.

Emilus, who was the Riders’ first-round pick in the 2022 CFL Draft, was also the team’s top prospect last season after putting together a campaign that saw him tally 70 catches for 1,097 yards and six affected.

Emilus is the first repeated candidate for the title of Most Outstanding Canadian since Scott Schultz (2005 and 2006).

Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman: Logan Ferland

Logan Ferland has become a mainstay of the Riders offensive line since becoming a starter in 2021. He has started 65 games during his CFL career, all with the Riders.

The Melfort product and former member of the Regina Thunder has proven his versatility this year, progressing up the line as injuries have decimated the group. Ferland started 11 games at right guard this season, one game at right tackle and the last five games at center. Despite all the injuries and new faces, Ferland has been the anchor of a group that has allowed just 32 sacks this season – the fourth-fewest total in the CFL.

This is the third consecutive season that Ferland has been the team’s nominee for this award.

It was a unanimous choice.

Outstanding Rookie: Trevor Reid

The only other player to appear in every game on the offensive line this season is first-year CFL player Trevor Reid.

The Griffin, Ga., product spent part of the 2023 season on the practice squads of the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles and Atlanta Falcons after going undrafted in 2023.

Reid signed with the Riders on December 4, 2023. He played in all 17 games as the team’s left tackle.

The last Riders offensive lineman to receive the team award was Xavier Fulton in 2012.