Jermaine Mays
Encyclopedia
Jermaine Mays is a professional American and Canadian football
cornerback
for the Toronto Argonauts
of the Canadian Football League
. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Minnesota Vikings
in 2003. He played college football
for the Minnesota Golden Gophers
.
Mays has also been a member of the Indianapolis Colts
, Orlando Predators
, Nashville Kats
and Hamilton Tiger-Cats
.
on July 13, 1979 and he grew up there. He attended Miami Jackson High School
where he was an All-State selection in his senior year despite breaking his collarbone.
position for the Golden Gophers in 2001 and 2002. He majored in Youth Studies & Leadership while at Minnesota.
After getting redshirted
in 2000, Mays saw limited action in 2001. He recorded 21 receptions and 381 yards. He also scored an 81 yard touchdown which proved to be a game winner against Iowa
.
In 2002, Mays won the team MVP award after playing on special teams and setting a school record with five blocked punts in one season.
on September 10, 2003 as a wide receiver
. On August 5, 2003, Mays switched to cornerback
.
Mays was assigned by the Vikings to the Berlin Thunder
in 2004. He helped lead the Thunder to a World Bowl
. The Vikings released him on September 6, 2004.
on February 11, 2005 and was assigned to the Berlin Thunder
. He recorded 22 tackles, and scored a touchdown for 100 yards which is the league record. He was released by the Colts on September 4, 2005.
signed Mays on October 12, 2005, but did not play in any games for the Predators that season.
In 2006, he started the first four games for the Predators before he pulled his hamstring
and was traded.
for future Toronto Argonauts
teammate defensive back
Khalil Carter
on March 15, 2006. He recorded 74 tackles, two interceptions one of which he returned for a touchdown during his rookie year. At the end of the season he was named the AFL Rookie of the Year.
on May 12, 2006. He played in eight games for the Argonauts, seven of which he started. Made his CFL debut against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
and recorded his first interception in the CFL in the same game, picking off Jason Maas
.
In 2007, he dressed for four games with the Argonauts, but was released on August 18, 2007.
. However after not playing a game for the Tiger-Cats, he was released on July 29, 2008.
Gridiron football
Gridiron football , sometimes known as North American football, is an umbrella term for related codes of football primarily played in the United States and Canada. The predominant forms of gridiron football are American football and Canadian football...
cornerback
Cornerback
A cornerback is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in American and Canadian football. Cornerbacks cover receivers, to defend against pass offenses and make tackles. Other members of the defensive backfield include the safeties and occasionally linebackers. The cornerback position...
for the Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
of the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
in 2003. He played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
for the Minnesota Golden Gophers
Minnesota Golden Gophers
The Minnesota Golden Gophers are the college sports team for the University of Minnesota. The university fields both men's and women's teams in basketball, cross country, gymnastics, golf, ice hockey, swimming, tennis, and track and field. Men's-specific sports include baseball, football, and...
.
Mays has also been a member of the Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
, Orlando Predators
Orlando Predators
The Orlando Predators are an Arena Football League team based in Orlando, Florida that was founded in 1991. Their playoff streak is currently 19 seasons in a row, as of the season, becoming the ArenaBowl champions in 1998 and 2000...
, Nashville Kats
Nashville Kats
The Nashville Kats were an Arena Football League team, located in Nashville, Tennessee. They were last coached by Pat Sperduto, who coached the team's original incarnation to two ArenaBowl appearances prior to the original franchise's move to Atlanta in 2002...
and Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a Canadian Football League team based in Hamilton, Ontario, founded in 1950 with the merger of the Hamilton Tigers and the Hamilton Wildcats. The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Ivor Wynne Stadium...
.
Early years
Mays was born in Miami, FloridaMiami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
on July 13, 1979 and he grew up there. He attended Miami Jackson High School
Miami Jackson High School
Miami Jackson High School, also known as Andrew Jackson High School or Jackson High School, is a high school located at 1751 NW 36th St in the Allapattah neighborhood of Miami, Florida, United States. Its athletic team name is the Generals....
where he was an All-State selection in his senior year despite breaking his collarbone.
College career
Mays attended Minnesota University and played football at the wide receiverWide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
position for the Golden Gophers in 2001 and 2002. He majored in Youth Studies & Leadership while at Minnesota.
After getting redshirted
Redshirt (college sports)
Redshirt is a term used in American college athletics that refers to a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen his or her period of eligibility...
in 2000, Mays saw limited action in 2001. He recorded 21 receptions and 381 yards. He also scored an 81 yard touchdown which proved to be a game winner against Iowa
Iowa Hawkeyes football
The Iowa Hawkeyes football team is the interscholastic football team at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes have competed in the Big Ten Conference since 1900, and are currently a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
.
In 2002, Mays won the team MVP award after playing on special teams and setting a school record with five blocked punts in one season.
Minnesota Vikings
Mays was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Minnesota VikingsMinnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
on September 10, 2003 as a wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
. On August 5, 2003, Mays switched to cornerback
Cornerback
A cornerback is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in American and Canadian football. Cornerbacks cover receivers, to defend against pass offenses and make tackles. Other members of the defensive backfield include the safeties and occasionally linebackers. The cornerback position...
.
Mays was assigned by the Vikings to the Berlin Thunder
Berlin Thunder
The Berlin Thunder were a professional American football team in NFL Europe, which was a springtime American football league serving primarily as a developmental league for the National Football League. Most of the players were young American professional players assigned by NFL teams to receive...
in 2004. He helped lead the Thunder to a World Bowl
World Bowl
The World Bowl was the American football Championship game of NFL Europe, similar to the Super Bowl of the National Football League.The World Bowl trophy itself was a globe made of glass measuring 35.5 cm in diameter and weighing 18.6 kg .-World League of American Football:When NFL Europe was...
. The Vikings released him on September 6, 2004.
Indianapolis Colts
Mays was signed by the Indianapolis ColtsIndianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
on February 11, 2005 and was assigned to the Berlin Thunder
Berlin Thunder
The Berlin Thunder were a professional American football team in NFL Europe, which was a springtime American football league serving primarily as a developmental league for the National Football League. Most of the players were young American professional players assigned by NFL teams to receive...
. He recorded 22 tackles, and scored a touchdown for 100 yards which is the league record. He was released by the Colts on September 4, 2005.
Orlando Predators
The Orlando PredatorsOrlando Predators
The Orlando Predators are an Arena Football League team based in Orlando, Florida that was founded in 1991. Their playoff streak is currently 19 seasons in a row, as of the season, becoming the ArenaBowl champions in 1998 and 2000...
signed Mays on October 12, 2005, but did not play in any games for the Predators that season.
In 2006, he started the first four games for the Predators before he pulled his hamstring
Hamstring
In human anatomy, the hamstring refers to any one of the three posterior thigh muscles, or to the tendons that make up the borders of the space behind the knee. In modern anatomical contexts, however, they usually refer to the posterior thigh muscles, or the tendons of the semitendinosus, the...
and was traded.
Nashville Kats
Mays was traded to the Nashville KatsNashville Kats
The Nashville Kats were an Arena Football League team, located in Nashville, Tennessee. They were last coached by Pat Sperduto, who coached the team's original incarnation to two ArenaBowl appearances prior to the original franchise's move to Atlanta in 2002...
for future Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
teammate defensive back
Defensive back
In American football and Canadian football, defensive backs are the players on the defensive team who take positions somewhat back from the line of scrimmage; they are distinguished from the defensive line players and linebackers, who take positions directly behind or close to the line of...
Khalil Carter
Khalil Carter
Kahlil Rafiq "Khalil" Carter is a former professional gridiron football player in the Arena Football League, NFL Europe, and the Canadian Football League. His last season of professional football was spent playing defensive back in the AFL for the Iowa Barnstormers in 2010...
on March 15, 2006. He recorded 74 tackles, two interceptions one of which he returned for a touchdown during his rookie year. At the end of the season he was named the AFL Rookie of the Year.
First stint with Argonauts
Mays was signed by the Toronto ArgonautsToronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
on May 12, 2006. He played in eight games for the Argonauts, seven of which he started. Made his CFL debut against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a Canadian Football League team based in Hamilton, Ontario, founded in 1950 with the merger of the Hamilton Tigers and the Hamilton Wildcats. The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Ivor Wynne Stadium...
and recorded his first interception in the CFL in the same game, picking off Jason Maas
Jason Maas
Jason Maas is a former Canadian football quarterback. He is best known for his career in the Canadian Football League, which was largely spent with the Edmonton Eskimos...
.
In 2007, he dressed for four games with the Argonauts, but was released on August 18, 2007.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
On March 7, 2008, Mays was signed by the Hamilton Tiger-CatsHamilton Tiger-Cats
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a Canadian Football League team based in Hamilton, Ontario, founded in 1950 with the merger of the Hamilton Tigers and the Hamilton Wildcats. The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Ivor Wynne Stadium...
. However after not playing a game for the Tiger-Cats, he was released on July 29, 2008.