Ticats add kickers, make roster moves as camp gets underway

The Ticats made a few roster moves this morning just before the opening of training camp at McMaster.

They signed three kickers from the four that worked out for the club last week: Sergio Castillo, Ryan Hawkins and Craig Peterson. Castillo and Peterson were at mini-camp while Hawkins played four years at Northern Arizona University, making 24 of his 29 field goal attempts (82.8 per cent) and punting 73 times for an average of 47.7 yards – remember, the successful candidate has to be able to do all three jobs.

The team also signed quarterback Cody Keith and offensive lineman Palmer White. Keith, 25, started his college career at East Carolina and finished at New Mexico Highlands University where he played in 11 games in 2016, completing 182 of his 369 pass attempts (49.3%) for 1,981 yards, nine touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He’s  6-4, 205-pounds and offers an extra arm and some competition at the bottom of the depth chart.

With the retirement of Jake Olson, which the team made official, the Ticats added offensive lineman Palmer White. The 22-year-old played in 31 games, starting 29 times mostly at left tackle, over four seasons (2013-16) at Chadron State College. He’ll be in the mix at right tackle.

The team also announced a couple of other retirements in American running back Jeremy Stewart and Canadian receiver Matt Uren – the latter coming as a bit of a surprise. He was selected by the Tiger-Cats in the eighth round, 67th overall, in the 2016 CFL draft and played in one game last season and re-signed with the club in January. It’s not a huge loss but it impacts the depth at the national receiver spot. Canadian defensive back Tyler Storie was also released.