Stamps rookie kicks win away from Lions

What a difference a week makes for Rene Paredes.
Around this time last week, the 25-year-old Toronto product was a kicker without a team. But Friday night, the rookie kicked the first two field goals of his Canadian Football League career to give the Calgary Stampeders a 34-32 victory over the B.C. Lions at Empire Field.
Paredes’ first attempt was a 50-yarder. Talk about a rude introduction to the pro ranks. But he made it with a few yards to spare.
“Actually, I didn’t know how far it was,” he said. “I was asking everybody after and found out it was a 50-yarder.”
The field goal, with 4:20 left in the game, was the longest of his career. He kicked a 49-yarder with his Concordia Stingers squad last season.
“You see all the teammates happy, and they were cheering for me, so it was exciting,” he said.
But the second one, from 25 yards with 2:05 remaining, proved to be more important. because it gave the Stamps a 34-26 lead before the Lions rallied for a late touchdown, only to fail on the two-point convert attempt.
Parades, who is originally from Caracas, Venezuela and was a soccer player until his Miami, Fla., football team needed a kicker, also made a touchdown-saving tackle as Tim Brown returned his opening kick-off. Not a bad performance.
Especially when you consider that he was released by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers after their training camp and only got the call to Calgary after second-year incumbent Rob Maver suffered a quadriceps injury in its season-opening loss to Toronto.
“I was back home in Toronto just hanging out with some guys,” said Paredes, who was also working in a paint shop. “My agent called me and said, ‘Get ready, you’ve gotta go.’ ”
The Stamps signed him after a tryout Sunday in which he made a 55-yarder – after he had taken a week off from kicking.
“The whole week, I just relaxed,” he said. “I had a month in Winnipeg, so I was just relaxing.”
And what would he be doing if he had not received the call from Calgary?
“I was planning to go back to school and finish my fifth year, but I got the call so I’m here,” said Paredes.
But now he has a new team and a new nickname – the Matador – courtesy of long snapper Randy Chevrier, who had never heard of him before.
“When Maver went down, it was very upsetting,” said Chevrier. “I mean, Maver’s a great guy. But it’s pro sports and you’ve gotta find a replacement pretty quick. Luckily, the Matator from Venezuela came to town and he did the job. That’s what you need in pro sports. Someone’s gotta step up when someone goes down. Thankfully, he showed up for us tonight and made some huge kicks at the end.”
If anyone is unhappy, it’s probably Maver’s old coach at Concordia, because his university career is over. By playing Friday, he is no longer eligible for the Canadian university ranks.
But new CFL adventures are just beginning.