The Edmonton Elks have signed American running back Khalan Laborn and American receiver Deontez Alexander to their practice roster. The club has also released American running back Mekhai Johnson and Canadian receiver Danny Vandervoort.
Laborn played at Marshall University this past season where he carried the ball 302 times for 1,513 yards and 16 touchdowns over 13 games with the Thundering Herd and was named first-team All-Sun Belt. He attended training camp with the San Francisco 49ers earlier this year but was released by the team after dressing for one preseason game.
The five-foot-nine, 204-pound ball-carrier was originally a five-star recruit coming out of high school in Virginia and committed to Florida State where he ran for 297 yards and four touchdowns in 12 games. He missed most of the 2018 season due to a knee injury and was dismissed by the team in July 2020 for violating team rules.
Alexander played for the Houston Gamblers of the USFL last season and made five catches for 27 yards over four games. The Indianapolis native previously attended training camp with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2021.
The six-foot-one, 196-pound target has previously had brief NFL stints with the Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions. He was a two-time first-team All-HCAC selection at Franklin College, a Division III program located in Indiana.
Johnson was a relatively recent addition to the Elks, signing with the team in mid-August.
The 24-year-old native of Dorchester, Mass. spent the 2022 season at Tusculum University in Tennessee where he recorded 100 carries for 635 yards and eight touchdowns over 11 games with the Pioneers.
The five-foot-eleven, 200-pound ball-carrier spent his first four collegiate seasons at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. where ran for 863 yards and eight touchdowns over 33 games with the Red Foxes.
Vandervoort caught eight passes for 75 yards and one touchdown with the Elks in 2022, though he spent all of this season on the team’s practice roster. This was his fourth season with the team since joining them as a free agent in 2019.
The native of Barrie, Ont. was a first-round pick of the B.C. Lions in the 2017 CFL Draft out of McMaster University. He has since made 12 receptions for 154 yards and three touchdowns over 57 career CFL games.
The Elks (2-10) are scheduled to host the Calgary Stampeders (4-8) at Commonwealth Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 9 with kickoff slated for 7:00 p.m. EDT.
