Four players from the Saskatchewan Roughriders were nominated Wednesday for 2018 CFL awards.
International Willie Jefferson picked up two nominations for most outstanding player and top defensive player.
Over the course of 18 regular-season games, the defensive lineman registered 34 tackles, 10 sacks, and ran back two interceptions for touchdowns.
“I’m just happy to be named player of the year for my team,” Jefferson said.
“The defence made a lot of plays this year. Not saying that I made all the plays, I’m saying that the defence really stood out this year for our team and I want to give a shout out to everybody on the defence besides me.”
The top offensive lineman nominee, by unanimous selection, was Brendon LaBatte. He was the last Rider to win the CFL award in 2013.
LaBatte, from Weyburn, Sask., started all 18 games, playing the first 15 at left guard before moving to centre for the final three contests.
In the first nominations of his career, Brett Lauther was chosen twice for top Canadian and special-teams player. The kicker from Nova Scotia made 54 of 60 field-goal attempts, including one from 56 yards out.
“There’s a lot of guys on this team that work hard every week and they don’t get the credit that they deserve,” Lauther said.
“Without those guys being in my corner and knowing, ‘I can do it’ and staying with me. You come here for your first kick and you miss it at home and we kind of bounced back and got on a little streak there … a lot of other people are the real reason why I’m here.”
By unanimous decision, Jordan Williams-Lambert was nominated as top rookie with Saskatchewan this season. The international receiver recorded 764 yards on a team-leading 62 receptions as well as four touchdown catches.
Nominees were selected in six categories by members of the Football Reporters of Canada and the head coach of their respective team.
The East and West Division winners will be decided next week. The 2018 Shaw CFL Awards will be determined by a third round of voting and announced Nov. 22.
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