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Tunde Adeleke
Tunde Adeleke (born July 12, 1995) is a Nigerian-Canadian professional football defensive back for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He is a two-time Grey Cup champion after winning with the Calgary Stampeders in 2018 and with the Argonauts in 2024. Early lifeAdeleke was born in Lagos, Nigeria, and grew up in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.[1] University careerAdeleke played U Sports football for the Carleton Ravens from 2013 to 2016.[2] He played in 31 games where he recorded 155 tackles, three interceptions, one sack, and four forced fumbles.[2] Professional career Calgary StampedersAdeleke was drafted by the Calgary Stampeders in the third round, 25th overall, in the 2017 CFL Draft and signed with the team on May 27, 2017.[3] He played for two seasons with the Stampeders and won his first Grey Cup championship after the team's victory in the 106th Grey Cup game. Hamilton Tiger-CatsAdeleke signed as a free agent with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on February 12, 2019.[4] In 2019, he played in 18 regular season games, starting in 15, where he had 52 defensive tackles, five special teams tackles, and two interceptions.[5] He was then named a CFL All-Star for the first time in his career. He also played in both post-season games, including the 107th Grey Cup, where he had six defensive tackles and one pass knockdown in the team's loss to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.[5] He did not play in 2020 due to the cancellation of the 2020 CFL season.[5] In the 2021 season, Adeleke played and started in 12 of 14 regular season games in a truncated season where he recorded 44 defensive tackles, six pass knockdowns, two sacks, and two interceptions.[5] He also played and started in all three of the team's post-season games where he recorded 16 defensive tackles and two pass knockdowns.[5] Adeleke played in his fourth consecutive Grey Cup game, but lost for the third time as the Blue Bombers defeated the Tiger-Cats 33–25 in overtime.[6] Adeleke played and started in all 18 regular season games for the first time in his career in 2022 where he recorded a career-high 68 defensive tackles and eight pass knockdowns along with two special teams tackles, one forced fumble, one sack, and one interception.[5] He also played in the team's East Semi-Final loss to the Montreal Alouettes where he had three defensive tackles and his first post-season interception.[5] In 2023, Adeleke sat out eight games due to injury, playing in ten, where he had 31 defensive tackles, three special teams tackles, one pass knockdown, one forced fumble, and one fumble return.[5][7] He suffered a season-ending injury in week 14 and did not play in the team's playoff game.[2][5][7] He became a free agent upon the expiry of his contract on February 13, 2024.[8] Toronto ArgonautsOn February 13, 2024, it was announced that Adeleke had signed with the Toronto Argonauts.[9] He began the season on the six-game injured list before being placed on the practice roster for the two subsequent games.[10] He then played in the last ten regular season games, including three starts, where he had 15 defensive tackles, one special teams tackle, and one pass knockdown.[10] Adeleke started in all three post-season games, including the 111th Grey Cup where he had two defensive tackles in the Argonauts' 41–24 victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.[10][11] References
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