Ticats.ca Staff
HAMILTON — The Hamilton Tiger-Cats announced today that Marwan Hage has signed a new contract with the team that will keep the veteran offensive lineman in Hamilton through the 2012 season.
“We are pleased to extend Marwan’s contract, as he’s a veteran player who has established himself in the middle of our offensive line,” said General Manager Bob O’Billovich. “As our centre, Marwan sets the tone for the rest of the line by making calls and being aggressive with his play. Away from the field, he’s a great representative of our team in the community.”
Hage, a 6-2, 291-pound native of Beirut, Lebanon will enter his seventh season with the Ticats this year. Hage has played in 92 games with the Black and Gold after being selected in the second round (14th overall) of the 2004 CFL Canadian Draft. The 28-year-old has been nominated as the team’s Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman for the last three seasons and was also nominated as the team’s Most Outstanding Canadian in 2009. He has been named a CFLPA All-Star three times and was named an East Division All-Star in 2007.
Hage has also made significant contributions away from the field. His Hage’s Heroes community initiative has welcomed over 3,000 underprivileged youth to Tiger-Cats home games, fed over 4,000 families through food drives and made numerous donations to local charities. Last fall, he was honoured with the 2009 Tom Pate Memorial Award for his efforts.
“This decision was easy. The city of Hamilton has become a large part of my life and more importantly, I see where this team is heading. Every coach and player on this team has the same goal in mind – bringing a Grey Cup to Hamilton,” said Hage.
The Ticats also announced that the team has released import running back Tre Smith.
