The Ottawa Redblacks have signed American linebacker Ayinde ‘Ace’ Eley following his release from the B.C. Lions.
The 26-year-old native of Silver Springs, Md. played 17 regular-season games with the Lions in 2024, making nine starts and recording 60 defensive tackles, six special teams tackles, and one forced fumble. He was the team’s nominee for Most Outstanding Rookie.
The six-foot-three, 233-pound defender finished his collegiate career at Georgia Tech in 2022 and earned second-team All-ACC honours after transferring from the University of Maryland. He finished his collegiate career with 319 total tackles, 19 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, eight pass breakups, and two interceptions over 49 games.
Eley signed with the Carolina Panthers after going unselected in the 2023 NFL Draft, though he was waived at the conclusion of training camp.
The Ottawa Redblacks finished third in the East Division in 2024 with a record of 9-8-1 before losing to the Toronto Argonauts in the East Semi-Final. The team will open the 2025 CFL regular season against the Saskatchewan Roughriders at Mosaic Stadium on Thursday, June 5 with kickoff slated for 9:00 p.m. EDT.
