Electing to avoid free agency by signing a contract extension in December, Corey Mace is heading into his fourth season with the Stampeders.
After missing virtually all of the 2011 season after suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon in the season-opener, Mace came back in 2012 to start all 18 regular-season games, both playoff contests and the Grey Cup.
The B.C. native finished the 2012 regular-season with 25 tackles, a knockdown and a quarterback sack, and added three more tackles and another sack in the post-season.
You probably know that Mace was selected in the second round (11th overall) by Winnipeg in the 2007 CFL Draft. You also may know that he spent time with the NFL’s Buffalo Bills before joining the Stamps midway through the 2010 season. You surely remember his 60-yard fumble recovery touchdown in 2010 that sealed a victory over Saskatchewan.
But what do you really know about Corey Mace? We asked him to finish the following sentences to help us get to know him a little bit better.
Growing up in the Vancouver area… I remember always being outside even when it was raining. Playing basketball, playing football, and just always being outdoors. That Playstation stuff wasn’t cool back then.
There is no way I will… ever give up food to become a vegetarian for a healthier lifestyle. I just love to eat too much.
College… was an interesting transition for me, moving from Canada to the States. I had a heck of a time though. If I could go back, I would. But you’ve got to move on from stuff like that.
Playing in my first CFL game… was honestly a surreal moment. Growing up watching CFL football and having my chance to come in and hit the ground running in the Labour Day Classic against Edmonton was an awesome moment for me. And we beat the brakes off of Edmonton, so it was great.
The quarterback I’d like to sack the most… would have to be, I wanna say, Hank. Just because we’re good buddies and he’s known to shake off a couple when he has a chance. And I owe him one. I told him I’m going to get him before time’s up, so the earlier the better.
Losing… is probably one of the worst things that any athlete can go through, especially at this level when you put in so much time and effort on and off the field to prepare for each week. And to come out on the losing end of something, especially when you put all your effort on the field, it’s probably one of the hardest things an athlete has to go through.
I own a lot of… shoes. I got a little Jordan collection. I got some basketball shoes. I got some dress shoes. So I think that’s my thing, is what people are telling me.
In the future… I better win a dang Grey Cup, is really what’s on my mind after this last season, of course. It’s something that everyone in this organization is going to strive to, coming up that short again. Losing sucks. But losing a game of that magnitude really sucks. It’s just making us hungrier to get back there and win.
Patience… they say is a virtue. I’m not very good with patience, but I’m working on it.
In the off-season… I keep myself busy working out with the fellas here. And I picked up a part-time job, working at a group home with at-risk youth.