Justin Rankin wants to become first CFL player to reach 1,000 rushing and receiving

Photo courtesy: Jeff Vinnick/B.C. Lions

Justin Rankin isn’t lacking for confidence.

Fresh off his first 1,000-yard rushing season, the burgeoning Edmonton Elks star has set an ambitious goal for 2026: to become the first player in CFL history to rush and receive for 1,000 yards in the same year.

“We gotta get that thousand-thousand. We were super close (in 2025) — I think two, three hundred yards off, so that would be awesome to do something nobody’s ever done before,” Rankin told 3DownNation.

“You do something that nobody’s ever done before, it causes everybody behind you to want to accomplish that same feat. That’s an awesome feeling that you make history and push people to shoot and be great.”

The closest a CFL player has come to reaching the double-milestone is Andrew Harris, who recorded 1,035 rushing yards and 857 receiving yards with his hometown Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2017 to earn his fourth of five career All-CFL selections.

For what it’s worth, the mark has been eclipsed by three NFL players: Roger Craig of the San Francisco 49ers in 1985, Marshall Faulk of the St. Louis Rams in 1999, and Christian McCaffrey of the Carolina Panthers in 2019.

Craig and Faulk both reside in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, where McCaffrey will likely join them once his playing days are done.

Rankin caught 56 passes in 2025 and thinks that number could be even high this year thanks to the man Edmonton has under centre.

“We got the man, the myth, the legend, the old man of the league, Cody Fajardo — the check-down king,” he said. “Worst-case scenario, Cody’s gonna look at that check-down, so I think I can take advantage of that a little bit, turn some of those check-downs into 20, 30-yard runs.”

The 28-year-old is no stranger to catching the ball, even dating back to his collegiate career.

Rankin played receiver for part of his tenure at Kent State University, a move that was made after the team suffered a rash of injuries at the position. He also played the position in the Indoor Football League prior to coming north, originally joining the Elks as a receiver.

He continues to run routes in the offseason a few times per week, training alongside veteran CFL quarterback and former Kent State teammate Dustin Crum.

“I love receiver. The art of playing receiver — it’s fun to learn how to get open because there’s a real art to it, it’s crazy. At running back, they always say it’s the easiest position on the field, which I do agree to an extent, but running back it’s a lot of instincts,” said the native of Oberlin, Ohio.

“At receiver, there’s instincts but you’ve gotta be able to read that coverage out there, know when to break down, when to speed cut, how to run the route, how to get in and out as efficiently as you can. There’s an art to it, and it’s enjoyable — when you do it good, it feels real good.”

In a perfect world, Rankin would play the ‘R’ position — the interior slotback spot to the wide side of the field.

“I would love to play R. Ideally, I would love to do what Nick Demski does (with Winnipeg). I would love to play that position, that’s a phenomenal position, but it’ll never happen,” said Rankin.

“I like that R position. I get to run routes, maybe get some jet sweeps, also can still motion into the backfield and play running back.”

Though he’s staying at running back for 2026, Rankin will be looking to do something only 11 receivers accomplished last year: surpass the 1,000-yard mark through the air.

The Elks opened training camp on Sunday, May 10. Edmonton won 34-16 in its first preseason game against the B.C. Lions. The team’s second preseason game is against the Calgary Stampeders on Friday, May 29. Final roster cuts are due on Saturday, May 30, after which the team will play its first regular-season game against the Ottawa Redblacks on Saturday, June 6.

Edmonton recently selected Rutgers linebacker Dariel Djabome with their first-round pick in the 2026 CFL Draft, adding a key piece to pair with fellow Canadian linebacker Joel Dublanko. The team’s other major offseason additions include receiver Austin Mack, offensive lineman Coulter Woodmansey, and defensive lineman Malik Carney.

In 2025, the Elks finished fifth in the West Division standings with a 7-11 record, missing the playoffs for the fifth straight season.