Roughrider Joe McKnight shot to death in Louisiana

Running back Joe McKnight, who played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders following seasons in the NFL, was shot and killed Thursday in a suburb of New Orleans.

A local law enforcement official confirmed McKnight, 28, was the victim of a homicide described as an incident involving road rage.

A 54-year-old suspectwho remained on the scenewas in custody.

According to local media reports, a witness described an argument at an intersection in Terrytown, La., Thursday afternoon where shots were fired. McKnight died at the scene, according to an official at theJefferson Parish Sheriff's Office.

Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand said the shootinghappened about 2:43 p.m. CST.

Normand said McKnight was standing outside his car when he was shot by a man he identified as Ronald Gasser.

"The only thing we know right now, everything else is conjecture, is that Mr. Gasser did in fact shoot Mr. McKnight,"
Normand said.

The sheriffsaid Gasser, whose hometown was not immediately released, stayed at the scene and relinquished his weapon to responding officers.

Roughriders shocked by loss

"We are shocked to hear the news of Joe's sudden passing," Chris Jones, the Roughriders head coach and general manager, said in a statement Thursday. "We send our deepest sympathies to Joe's family, friends, and all those impacted by this tragedy."

Craig Reynolds, the club's president and CEO, added that everyone with the organization was "saddened to hear of the tragic loss."

"Losing a member of our Rider family this way is an unthinkable occurrence," Reynolds said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with Joe's family, teammates and coaches."

CFL commissioner Jeffrey Orridge released a statement Thursday: "On behalf of our board of governors and the entire CFL family, I'd like to convey my deepest sympathies to all those close to Joe McKnight, especially his loved ones and friends," Orridge said. "Our thoughts and prayers are also with the Saskatchewan Roughriders' organization at this difficult time."

McKnight signed with the Riders in September. He played three games and made 38 carries, gaining a total of 228 yards.

Before that, he was with the Edmonton Eskimos.

McKnight also played 41 career NFL games between 2010 and 2014 with the Kansas City Chiefs and New York Jets.

Some of his teammates have taken to Twitter to express their sadness over his death.

2nd slaying of a CFL player this year

The shooting is the secondthis year in which a CFL player was killed.

In September, Calgary Stampeder Mylan Hicks died following an early-morning shooting outside a Calgary nightclub.

A 19-year-old man is facing a murder chargein that case.

• Teen charged with murder in nightclub death of Calgary Stampeders' Mylan Hicks

McKnight is also the secondfootball player this year to die in the New Orleans area as a result of a
possible road-rage incident. Former New Orleans Saints player Will Smith was killed in April in a shooting that was sparked over a traffic altercation.

The sheriff said investigators have Gasser in custody and he's being questioned, along with a number of witnesses.

"We will release additional details when we get through with the interviews," Normand said.

The sheriff said he did not know how the incident started, but noted that McKnight was standing outside his vehicle when he was shot. He did not release any details on the number of times McKnight was shot, saying the coroner's office would do so.

Normand said no gun was found outside either vehicle, but they had not searched the cars and won't do so until a search warrant has been obtained.

Top-ranked running back

McKnight was considered the No. 1 running back recruit in the country when he came out of John Curtis Christian School in Louisiana in 2006 and signed with the University of Southern California, where he played under Pete Carroll.

With his running and catching skills, McKnight was often compared to do-it-all running back Reggie Bush, a USC star who was the No. 2 overall pick by New Orleans in the 2006 draft.

Bush took to Twitter to offer his condolences: "RIP my brother Joe McKnight," he posted, "this one hurts bad."

"For a life to be lost so senselessly is just beyond description," said JT Curtis, McKnight's high school coach, who's
been head coach there for nearly five decades. "Right now it's pretty devastating."

"He was just a good kid," the coach added.

Former Jets teammate Antonio Cromartie wrote on Twitter: "Just got a message saying my former teammate Joe McKnight was killed today. This hurt to the heart. I can't stop crying."