The Saskatchewan Roughriders have signed American receiver and return specialist Kermit Whitfield.
The five-foot-eight, 195-pound Whitfield joins the Riders after a stint in the XFL and three years on the Cincinnati Bengals practice roster.
Whitfield went pro after four NCAA seasons at Florida State University. The 27-year-old played 52 games as a Seminole and recorded a total of 1,427 receiving yards with seven touchdowns while adding another 258 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. A premier kick returner, Whitfield returned 94 kick-offs for 2,386 career return yards and three touchdowns with an average of 25.4 yards per return.
As a freshman in 2013, he led the entire NCAA with an average of 36.4 yards per kick-off return, breaking the Atlantic Coast Conference record. It was also the seventh best average in NCAA major college football history. He won the BCS National Championship with the Seminoles in 2014 after returning a kick-off 100 yards for the go-ahead touchdown. As a junior he was named All-ACC second team as a receiver and All-ACC third team and Honourable Mention as a specialist.
Noted for his speed, Whitfield was considered one of the fastest players coming out of high school in 2013 after being clocked at 4.37 seconds in the 40-yard dash.
