Riders’ Milligan happy to be back on the field after COVID hiatus

It had always been Rolan Milligan’s dream to play in the NFL.

But in 2020, Milligan made the hard choice to step away from football due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“My fiancé was pregnant with our third child and that was part of the reason. I didn’t want to jeopardize anything with them. I’m thankful that we made it through that first year without anybody in our household getting sick,” the Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive back said earlier this week. “That was my main reason. I wasn’t scared but I just didn’t want to risk it.”

Milligan has three children — seven-year-old Lyric, two-year-old Peace and one-year-old Loyal – and his fiancé, Samantha McElroy, only has one kidney after having one removed as a child.

Milligan was a member of the Indianapolis Colts and heading into his sixth year in the NFL when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. With everything going on, Milligan decided to opt out of the 2020 season.

“(My family) comes first. I love playing football, I’ve always known I wanted to play football but I have other priorities as well. Their health matters more than me playing football,” Milligan said.

Milligan now finds himself in the starting secondary for the Roughriders in his second CFL season. Milligan and the Riders take on the Edmonton Elks on Saturday at Commonwealth Stadium.

Kickoff for the game is set for 7:30 p.m. The Green Zone pre-game show begins at 5:30 p.m.

His chance in the CFL isn’t the only unlikely opportunity he has had throughout his career.

The Lake Wales, Fla., product started playing tackle football when he was just four years old, with his brothers and dad all playing the sport at some point as well.

In high school, Milligan was given a chance to become his team’s quarterback, a role he accepted reluctantly.

“I didn’t really want to do it. The whole reason I did do it was my coach asked me to do it and my teammates said, ‘We trust you as a player and we trust you being in that position to lead that team,’ ” Milligan said.

“I don’t like getting hit for one. Two, I played it a little bit when I was younger but that wasn’t a position I really wanted to play. It was just stepping in and being a leader on the team.”

When it came time to take his talents to the collegiate ranks, Milligan once again found himself on the defensive side of the ball as a defensive back at Jacksonville University. After a season there, he transferred to Reedley College, a junior college in California.

He then transferred to the University of Alabama Birmingham.

“It helps being able to adjust and adapt to different situations. It was tough for sure but it was my choice,” Milligan said.

But UAB wouldn’t be his last stop as he and other football players were forced out of the sport in December 2014 when the school announced it was cancelling its football program to save money.

“That was a weird situation. I never heard of anything like that,” Milligan said. “For me, it felt like being at a funeral. There was a lot of crying going on. A lot of guys didn’t know what was next for them. Some guys might not get a scholarship. You never know what happens with people when that happens.”

Milligan was lucky enough to play his final season of eligibility with the University of Toledo.

“I was grateful,” he said. “It’s not guaranteed and I was grateful that teams felt like I could help their team.”

Milligan wasn’t selected in the 2016 NFL draft but did sign with the Dallas Cowboys. He was released by the team in August of that year.

In 2017, Milligan signed with the Detroit Lions with whom he would stay until October 2018.

He signed with the Colts in 2019 and appeared in 11 games for the team, recording 15 tackles.

After opting out of 2020, Milligan rejoined the Colts for 2021 but was released in August.

“It was a dream come true. Once I started playing football, I knew I wanted to be an NFL player,” Milligan said. “I just wanted to learn what I could and soak up as much information as I could.”

With no more opportunities in the NFL, Milligan signed with the Riders in October.

“My agent gave me a call and said, ‘There’s a team in Canada interested in you.’ They sent me some information on them – I didn’t really watch much CFL before I got here,” Milligan said. “I talked it over with my family and friends about it and I was like, ‘Well, I get another chance. I still get to play.’

“A lot of guys don’t get chances. I feel like you’ve got to take advantage of the opportunities because if you don’t, you never know when you’ll get another one so it was pretty easy of a choice for me to make the move.”

Milligan made his CFL debut last season, appearing the Riders’ regular-season finale against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Milligan had five tackles and a sack in the 24-3 loss.

His performance in that game led to him getting onto the active roster for both of Saskatchewan’s playoff games last season.

“It shows that they trust me. I appreciate them trusting me. I try to be the best I can and do whatever they need me to do and be dependable,” Milligan said.

Milligan came into 2022 training camp and won a starting spot with the team. In Week 1 against the Ti-Cats, Milligan had three tackles, a sack and a forced fumble.

“I’m happy. I get to continue to play and learn from a lot of guys out here, get to gel with them and mesh with them and take it one day at a time,” Milligan said. “We’ve just got to prepare like we did last week. New week, new team.”