The Edmonton Elks acquired defensive lineman Sam Acheampong from the Toronto Argonauts on Saturday in exchange for a 2024 fifth-round pick and the negotiation rights to wide receiver Xavier Gipson. In addition, the Elks released defensive lineman Daniel Ross.
Sam Acheampong is six foot five and weighs 270 pounds. The 27-year-old from Brampton, Ontario, played one game for the Toronto Argonauts in 2023. The Argonauts drafted Acheampong in the second round (20th pick) in the 2020 CFL Draft.
Acheampong played three seasons in Toronto tallying 33 tackles and three sacks in 31 games, of which he made three starts. He is a member of the Toronto Argonauts 109th Grey Cup Championship team.
Collegiately, Acheampong played five seasons at Wilfrid Laurier University (2015-19) with 50 tackles (40 solo, 22 assists), 16.5 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks, one pass breakup, one forced fumble, and one blocked kick in 30 games for the Golden Hawks.
He is a member of the 2016 Men’s Football OUA Championship team. In addition, he was named 2019 OUA Men’s Football First Team All-Star, and a two-time Glenn Caroll Team of the Year.
Xavier Gipson is five foot nine and weighs 188 pounds. The 22-year-old from Dallas, Texas, is currently playing for the New York Jets. He signed with the Jets as an undrafted free agent on May 5, 2023.
Collegiately, Gipson played four seasons at Stephen F. Austin (2019-22) with 146 catches for 2,649 yards, 22 touchdowns, 20 carries for 123 yards, 20 kick returns for 332 yards, 17 punt returns for 343 yards, and three touchdowns in 28 games for the Jacks. He was named Second Team All-Southland Conference as a wide receiver and Third Team All-Southland Conference as a kick returner in 2019.
Daniel Ross is six foot five and weighs 305 pounds. The 30-year-old from Louisville, Kentucky, played five games, of which four were starts for the Elks in 2023 with eight tackles. He was in his second stint in Edmonton after signing with them in 2014 as a 21-year-old.
After Edmonton, Ross signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2016. He played one game before he was released. Then, Ross signed with the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent in 2017. In addition to Houston, he had stints with the Dallas Cowboys, Las Vegas Raiders, and Jacksonville Jaguars playing 21 games with 27 tackles (14 solo, 13 assists) and two sacks.
Collegiately, Ross played two seasons at Northeast Mississippi Community College (2012-13) with 71 tackles (38 solo, 33 assists) and 2.5 sacks in 17 games for the Tigers.
