Hage is still my Hero

Don't like this at all. Marwan still has another few years of playing time and he was an anchor for our offence.
His replacement better be damned good because we also lost a great community guy too.
I hope Marwan can continue his good work in Ottawa.
Thanks for everything you have done for this team Marwan...on and off the field. :thup:

A true class act, right down the line.

Marwan was an excellent all-star caliber centre at his peak but the years and injuries have taken their toll and his level of play has eroded over the past few seasons. IMO, Tim O’Neill, when he was in at centre, played the position as well as or better than Marwan this past season. Throw in Marwan’s salary level and I can understand why the Ti-Cats chose not to protect him, commendable community work not withstanding.

When the REDBLACKS make their first appearance at THF (the Coffee Grounds) I hope it's the Ottawa offense that gets introduced so Marwan can get the standing ovation he richly deserves.

I can’t help but think that maybe Marcel Desjardins did this to rub it in Hamilton’s face … kinda like what we did a few years ago when we fired him prior to a home game.

Marwan Hage ?@marwanhage 2h
It's a bittersweet day. A quick note to thank the great city of Hamilton, its devoted fans, my teammates and the Ticats organization.

I don’t think so. Desjardins wouldn’t waste a draft pick to make a point even if he wanted to. Hage can still play at a high level which makes him a legit pick. He’s a solid vet who they can build not just the line around but the whole team. I mean where else could they have come up with a veteran Canadian centre? They don’t grow on trees. However, I guess they’re betting that he can stay healthy.

An Argo-Cat fan

It's not often that a player is here for nine years and does as much both on and off the field as Marwan Hage has done. And it will be quite unusual seeing him in another team's uniform. And as Steve Milton tweeted:

http://postmediaedmonton.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/screen-shot-2013-12-16-at-12-51-04-pm.png?w=457&h=220

After everything he has done for this team since 2004, I wanted to see him get that Grey Cup win with this team. But it was good to see him at least celebrate with this trophy:

Although I do understand the reasons for leaving him unprotected in the expansion draft, it isn't easy to see him go this way. You can replace a player, but you can't replace a person. It may be quite some time before we see another player do as much for this team and for this community as Marwan Hage has.

http://wpmedia.sports.nationalpost.com/2013/11/hage-1.jpg?w=620

Thank you, Marwan.

seymour: The money part I understand. I think the jury is still out on whether his level of play will continue be affected by his injuries.
I guess we will see when the Redblacks (ugh!) hit the field next season.

Thanks Marwan, for everything that you have done for the 'Cats!
Good luck in the future with the RodBlacks.
We're disappointed that you won't be here this season...

I had tears in my eyes when I read about it this morning, he will be truly missed :cry:

I have had a night to think about this and I STILL HATE IT!!!! It sucks the big one. Still very disappointed in the Ticats for not protecting Marwan. I don't feel that his play has "eroded" significantly and the leadership he brings on the field more than makes up for any slight deterioration. We struggled quite a bit without Marwan in the line-up. Apart from that, no single player has done more for the COMMUNITIES of the CFL than Marwan. He gave to every community he played in and enriched the lives of so many children with his Hage's Heroes program. He took a group of children from my daughter's school and some of them still talk about that experience to this day. He truly understands the concept of paying it forward and I can't believe he is not going to be a part of the team anymore. To say he is a class act is an understatement. The last time I felt this upset about a player getting the shank by us was when we pushed Grover out. I don't believe for one second that there was nobody else we could have left unprotected in the 3rd round in order to protect Marwan. When we got through round 2 with Delahunt I thought we were home free. Man was I wrong.

Marwan’s level of play has already been affected by wear and tear and injuries - to the point where the Ti-Cats now have equally-effective and less-costly options at centre. Clearly, that’s the reason Marwan was not protected.
It’s not a charity - it’s a business and a rather cold one at that. But that’s the way Ti-Cat management must view it if they’re serious about winning.

I’m not convinced that you always need to build for the distant future at the expense of the present. Sask seemed to be aiming for the present this year, and I kind of liked the outcome. So what if Geroy isn’t there in a year or two? They have Grey Cup rings. And they will have another chance to compete in 2014 - with their chances being that much better if they play for the present yet again.

If players stuck around longer, then fine - grab a 22-year old because you know he’ll be with you for the next 5-to-8 years. But in reality, we all know that it’s rare these days to hang on to anyone for longer than 2 or 3 seasons.

All the O-Linemen that have come and gone during the past 10 years are useless to us if they’re playing somewhere else now. And whoever replaces Marwan, is he going to stick around? Hope so, but it seems like the odds are against it based on past patterns. We know Marwan could have played well for us for the next couple of years (barring injury).

In 2014, I don’t really care about who has a chance to still be playing in 2019. I want guys that want to be here and can make a contribution today!

My jaw dropped. I understand it is business, but losing Marwan is like losing a old friend, he has been around along time.

I don't care if he would only play a couple of more years, played only half the games......I don't know of many players who've been with a team this long, done so much good for the community and brought so much positive PR to a team than he has. I think 99% of the fans would want him here no matter if his play slowly deteriorated. This hurts the Cats more than they imagine. I really hope we can trade for him after he plays his mandatory 2 games next year.

Why ? most of CFL media, Spec included, predicted he was going to be available. The disappointment I understand but the “surprise” is a little much.

IMO only two things led to Hage being left unprotected and drafted
#1......Austin took a gamble on the Checkerboards not drafting Hage and lost
#2......Austin left Hage unprotected because in reality he was looking at other options at the OL and Hage wasn't going to be one of them in 2014......let's face it if Austin really wanted Hage back for 2014 he would have found a way to protect him in the final round of the draft,he didn't which leads me to believe that Hage wasn't going to be a part of the 2014 team regardless of what happened.The Cats have a lot of young OL depth waiting in the wings,and after leading the league in allowing Q.B sacks last year,changes should and will be made to upgrade the line.I'm guessing that with Dyakowski's future up in the air,look for the team to have at least two new faces starting on the OL in 2014 at left guard and center.
Hage will be missed though,no doubt on and off the field,but alas it's the nature of the beast in pro sports,where change is ongoing and players nowadays are rarely around for more than 2 or 3 seasons with the same club.The fact that Hage was here for a 10 year run shows his true grit and dedication to the Cats,but as the saying goes "Nothing is forever"
If he does decide to play for the Checkerboards next year,then all I have to say is....good luck to him and thank you Marwan for all your tireless off field work in the community and your dedication on the field the last 10 years.

Maybe because I missed it.

the odds are against Marwans replacement sticking around? The guy Marwan replaced was Carl Coulter who was a Ti-cat C for 6 seasons…who actually was also picked off the roster by an ottawa expansion draft (for 1 season, then he returned ) so in my opinion, center is actually a position this franchise has actually done a good in keeping stable. We shall see though, all the same…it sucks seeing Marwan go…