Marwan Hage (, ''Marwān Ḥāja'') (born September 14, 1981) is a former

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

who played for the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home game ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

. Hage played college football for the

Colorado Buffaloes The Colorado Buffaloes are the athletic teams that represent the University of Colorado Boulder. The university sponsors 16 varsity sports teams. Both the men's and women's teams are called the Buffaloes (Buffs for short) or, rarely, the Golden ...

. He emigrated from Beirut, Lebanon to

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

in 1990. Participated in the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

' 2004 training camp. During his retirement announcement in 2014, Hage revealed that he would become the owner of two

Tim Hortons Tim Hortons Inc., known colloquially as Tim's, Timmies, or Timmy's, is a Canadian multinational coffeehouse and restaurant chain with headquarters in Toronto; it serves coffee, Doughnut, donuts, sandwiches, Breakfast sandwich, breakfast egg mu ...

franchises in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Professional career

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

Hage was selected by the Tiger-Cats in second round of the 2004 CFL Draft. In 2006, he founded the Hage's Heroes program which sends under-privileged children to Hamilton Tiger-Cats home games. In 2009, he was awarded the

Tom Pate Memorial Award Tom Pate Memorial Award, selected annually by the Canadian Football League Players' Association, is awarded to a player with outstanding sportsmanship and someone who has made a significant contribution to his team, his community and Association ...

for his contributions to the Hamilton community. He was named a CFL East All-Star in 2007 and a CFLPA (Canadian Football League Players Association) All-Star in 2007 and 2008. He also won the

Leo Dandurand Trophy The Leo Dandurand Trophy is a Canadian Football League trophy awarded to the Most Outstanding Lineman in the Canadian Football League East Division, East Division. The winner of this trophy is chosen from a group of nominees, one from each team in ...

in 2010 as the Most Outstanding Lineman in the East Division. During the final game played at

Ivor Wynne Stadium Ivor Wynne Stadium (formerly Civic Stadium) was a Canadian football stadium located at the corner of Balsam and Beechwood avenues, two blocks west of Gage Avenue North in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The stadium was the home of the Hamilton Tiger ...

, Hage was named to the All-Time Hamilton Tiger-Cats Team. He also was a member of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 2013 East Division championship team and played in the

2013 Grey Cup The 101st Grey Cup was a Canadian football game played between the East Division champion Hamilton Tiger-Cats and the West Division champion Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League to decide the Grey Cup champions of the 2013 ...

Ottawa Redblacks

He was acquired by the

Ottawa Redblacks The Ottawa Redblacks (officially stylized as REDBLACKS) (Canadian French, French: ) are a professional Canadian football team based in Ottawa, Ontario. The team plays in the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL ...

in the third round of the 2013 CFL Expansion Draft. Instead of playing for the RedBlacks, Hage announced his retirement on April 14, 2014. On Tuesday, May 13, his playing rights were acquired by the

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium a ...

along with the first overall selection in the 2014 CFL Draft in exchange for

Jon Gott 2024 Fantasy Football Champion Jon Gott (born October 2, 1985) is a former Canadian football offensive lineman. He was drafted by the Calgary Stampeders in the fifth round of the 2008 CFL Draft. He played five seasons for the Stampeders before ...

Politics

Hage ran for the

Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada (CPC; , ), sometimes referred to as the Tories, is a Government of Canada, federal List of political parties in Canada, political party in Canada. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of the two main Right-wing ...

nomination in Hamilton East—Stoney Creek for the

2019 Canadian federal election The 2019 Canadian federal election was held on October 21, 2019. Members of the House of Commons were elected to the 43rd Canadian Parliament. In keeping with the maximum four-year term under a 2007 amendment to the ''Canada Elections Act'', ...

, but was not the party's nominee that year.

References

1981 births Living people Canadian football offensive linemen American football offensive linemen Canadian people of Lebanese descent Colorado Buffaloes football players Jacksonville Jaguars players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Ottawa Redblacks players Sportspeople from Beirut Canadian football people from Montreal Lebanese players of American football Lebanese players of Canadian football Canadian sportsperson-politicians Sportspeople of Lebanese descent Players of American football from Quebec {{Canadianfootball-offensive-lineman-stub