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June 27, 2013

What’s in a name?

Nicknames are as synonymous with sports as jerseys and Gatorade.

However, nicknames can take on a very complex meaning depending on what you use them for. There is a fine line between a really good nickname and a complete disaster an athlete will never live down — see baseball’s Adam “Big Donkey” Dunn.

“It has to have validity,” says Stampeders resident label-master DeVone Claybrooks. “There needs to be meaning in a good nickname.”

If anybody knows, it’s Coach Claybrooks. He is the proud owner of a longstanding nickname that traces its roots back to his grandmother.

“One day, I’m playing video games with him,” says veteran QB and long-time friend Kevin Glenn, “and a friend lets it slip — Biscuit. And I’m like ‘Biscuit?’ I called him that when we played against each other, and we’ve been friends ever since.”

To clarify, Claybrook’s grandmother used to make a plate of biscuits with honey every day after school. She used to say she was going to call him biscuit if he ate too many.

He did, and she did. The rest is history.

Thinking he might be able to escape the nickname in college, Claybrooks claimed to not have any AKA’s in his first football team introduction meeting.

“My roommate was like ‘uh-uh, his grandma called him Biscuit when they dropped him off,’ recalls the leader of the defensive titans.

“Once you get stamped with it, it’s yours,” says No. 99, Corey Mace — owner of numerous titles. “You just have to ride with it and make the best of it.”

Mace’s nicknames derive mainly from his mixed background, earning him titles like Sir-Mix-A-Lot and Malcolm Mix.

Others are not so complimentary though.

“The worst nickname you can get on the defensive line is Can’t-Get-Right,” says Mace.

“If you can’t get right, you can get out,” chimes in Coach Claybrooks. “Aisle or window seat?”

Other names can be derived from performance on the field of battle, such as the one given to kicker Rene Paredes.

Shortly after arriving, teammates began calling him El Matador; a tribute to the Venezuelan-born, Canadian-raised kicker’s stone-cold confidence and victory pose he’d strike after each completed kick.

When it comes to these titles of distinction, there is a certain etiquette that should be followed.

Rule No. 1, you can’t assign your own nickname. Rule No. 2, not everyone can address another player by his nickname.

“Nooo! If you don’t have any cred, you might get knocked out. You feel me?” says Biscuit . . . err, Coach Claybrooks.

The Stampeders have a lot of great name attributions on the team.  You have Corndog (Jon Cornish), Tater (Drew Tate), Lil’ Baby Simp (Jonathan Williams), El Matador (Paredes) and Shrek (Charleston Hughes). But one stands out for its distinguished presentation.

Receiver Joe West  is known as “The Congressman Joe West”. How did he earn such a proper designation?

It comes down to the way he carries himself — dignified and focused like a politician, leading a former Stamps staffer to call him The Congressman Joe West.

“It’s a good title for me because of the situations I came out of,” says the towering downfield target.

Overcoming some of the politics found in sports at times, and always staying positive so that he can put himself in the right position to make a play is how he justifies the alias.

There is another nickname West is hoping will attach itself to him this season — if the nickname gods allow.

“Big-Play Joe,” says West with the million-dollar smile fit for a campaign sign.