CFL Finalises 2026 Rosters Ahead of Season Opener
The Canadian Football League has completed its roster preparations for the 2026 season, with all eight franchises finalising their lists over the weekend. The updated rosters feature a distinct contingent of players who previously competed in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) within the United States college system.
With the 2026 regular season set to commence in less than a week, the Canadian Football League (CFL) has finalised the composition of all eight teams. The roster announcements, released over the weekend, highlight the league’s continued recruitment of athletes from the American collegiate pipeline, specifically those who played at the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level.
The FCS, a division of NCAA Division I college football in the United States, has long served as a feeder system for professional talent north of the border. The 2026 roster lists confirm the presence of several former FCS players who have successfully navigated the transition to the professional game.
Identified athletes on the final cuts include Sione Teuhema, a defensive lineman from Southeastern Louisiana, and ShunDerrick Powell, a running back who played at Central Arkansas. The list also features quarterback Jacolby Criswell from East Tennessee State and running back Thomas Bertrand-Hudon, who attended Delaware State.
Defensive depth is represented by Michael Griffin II, a defensive back from South Dakota State, and Da’Marcus Johnson, a defensive lineman from Eastern Washington. Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund, another defensive end from Southeastern Louisiana, also secured a spot on a 2026 roster.
Additional players noted in the league’s finalised lists include T.J. Burke of the BC Lions and Tibo Debaillie, a defensive lineman from Lehigh. The source material indicates that an asterisk in the official player listings denotes institutions that were classified as FCS at the time of the player’s attendance but have since changed their classification status.
The finalisation of these rosters marks the conclusion of the pre-season preparation phase for the eight-team league. With the regular season starting in less than a week, the CFL has now locked in its personnel ahead of the competitive campaign.
