Mitchell Blair
The Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive line may have gotten all the ink following a 10 sack performance against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats to open up the CFL season, but a lot of those sacks may not have been possible had it not been for a secondary that may be the best in the league.
While Dwight Anderson and Tyron Brackenridge get a lot of publicity for their play in the secondary, the guy who may arguably be the most solid at his position is third year halfback Terrell Maze.
The 5 foot 11, 175 pound Maze is a guy who is just happy to contribute.
“We’re like a brotherhood back there,” Maze said. “We’re real tight back there and everyone wants to see one another do well. Everyone has their strengths and at the end of the day it makes it tough for the quarterback to do his thing back there.”
Maze is a guy that opposition quarterbacks rarely throw at with success. In fact, opposition quarterbacks find that throwing at Maze is a no-win proposition most of the time and they stop looking his way altogether. That doesn’t mean the 30 year old takes any plays off.
“Every game is different. Some games I don’t see a lot of action, but it’s always work because you have to play as if the ball is coming at you on every snap.” Maze insisted. “I’m not taking any plays off because I can’t afford to. If I do that I’m letting the other guys down.
Defensive backs coach Barron Miles is one of the best to play the game and when he talks about Maze, he gushes over how good he is and how good he can be.
“He keeps his emotions in check,” Miles said. “He doesn’t get too high and he doesn’t get too low after plays. He has quickly gained a reputation out there. When you see the game sheet at the end of the game, you don’t see a lot of his name on it because of his play. He isn’t getting noticed and that’s OK.”
As good as Maze is playing right now, Miles thinks we have a long way to go before we see the best of the San Diego State grad.
“Its still to come,” Miles said without hesitation. “He’s good now, but he’s still learning the game and I think before all is said and done he is going to be a great player in this league. He might not get noticed now, but he will be and it will be because of his play.”
Another thing Miles credits Maze with having is a tremendous amount of confidence. He says Maze walks around knowing his group is a good one. When asked about it, Maze says there is no doubt that he is a member of the best secondary in the league.
“We are the best secondary in the league. “ Maze says without hesitation. “We are a very confident group, but I think we proved it last year and with the fact everyone is back this year, it feels like we are on the same page right from day 1. Everyone is focused, everyone knows what each other can do and everyone is ready to prove how good we are week to week to week. As I said, we’re a tight knit group, but we learn from each other and that includes the new guys. “
The secondary has a tough task in front of them this Saturday as Ricky Ray will try and light them up when the green and white head to Rogers Centre to battle the Toronto Argonauts. Maze relishes the chance to go up against one of the league’s best.
“He was just voted the number one player in the league for a reason,” Maze said. “They know they didn’t play well last week and its their home opener so they’ll be ready. They have a no-name receiving group outside of Chad Owens. He might not even be their best receiver, but they have some receivers like me and that is guys who fly under the radar and just get the job done without a lot of notoriety.”
That game will go Saturday afternoon in a 1 o’clock start Saskatchewan time with the Riders looking to start the season at 2-0.
