A special teams ace from the U of Nebraska Cornhuskers will try his luck at playing in the C-F-L with the Saskatchewan Roughriders this year.

The Green and White announced Friday that they have signed American Phalen Sanford to their training camp roster. The five-foot-11, 195-pound defensive back was a walk-on transfer to Nebraska from Hastings College, a small N-A-I-A school located in the state. Sanford established himself as a key special teams contributor and eventually started five games at safety in his senior year in 2023. Sanford went unselected in the 2024 N-F-L Draft but signed with the Las Vegas Raiders as an undrafted free agent. He appeared in three pre-season games, but was released after training camp. Following is the news release from the Riders…..

DATE:                       March 14, 2025

RELEASE TIME:      IMMEDIATELY

RELEASE:                SR25-038

RIDERS SIGN NEBRASKA DB PHALEN SANFORD

The Saskatchewan Roughriders have signed American defensive back Phalen Sanford.

Sanford (5’11-195) signed with the Las Vegas Raiders as an undrafted free agent, following the 2024 NFL Draft. He spent training camp with the team, showing a knack for being where the ball is when he recovered a blocked punt and ran it back 42 yards in preseason action against the Minnesota Vikings on August 10th and recovered a second fumble against the San Francisco 49ers on August 23rd.

Sanford spent five collegiate seasons at Nebraska (2019-2023) suiting up for 40 games as a Cornhusker. A walk-on in 2019, the Nebraska native worked his way up from standout special teamer to starter by the time his senior season came in 2023. He contributed 55 career defensive tackles, one tackle for loss, two fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles.

Prior to attending Nebraska, he spent his freshman year at Hastings College as a multi-sport athlete competing in numerous track and field events and winning three titles as a freshman. Sanford also qualified for the NAIA Indoor Track & Field Championships in high jump that year.