Somebody who is elevating his level of play is defensive back, Patrice Rene.
Rene lived for the big collisions on special teams in 2023, accounting for all his 12 tackles during the regular season. He revealed that during his exit meeting with the Lions front office and coach Ryan Phillips, they all believe Rene can take an even bigger leap in 2024 and the future.
“They let me know what they saw I could do on special teams. I was able to go out there and make some noise. But they want me to take a bigger step, that right step to contribute to defence. They let me know in the offseason that I have an opportunity,” Rene recalled.
Rene suited up as the SAM linebacker last weekend in Toronto, the 26-year-old defensive back finished the game with four tackles and two special teams takedowns.
This week, Rene collided with teammate, Justin McInnis mid-play during practice on Wednesday and injured his ankle. He is listed as a game-time decision heading into Saturday’s matchup against the Calgary Stampeders.
Rene went into this offseason with the mindset of ‘nothing is going to be given to me’, and it surely has paid off this early on into the season.
The physical defensive back stands at 6’2’’, who grew up in a Haitian household in Ottawa and is one of five children in the family.
“Family means a lot to me. I’m the youngest of five. Three older brothers, and one sister. Both my parents and I were born in Haiti and moved to Canada when I was two. We’ve always been tight. I was able to go east for the Montreal game last year, my family was able to come out to support,” Rene said.
Rene underwent several cultural changes leading up to the CFL. First was immigrating to Canada, then he later moved to the U.S. to pursue football and education at the University of North Carolina and Rutgers University.
The gratitude to all the people who have helped Rene throughout his life is endless.
“They know who they are,” Rene added.
“A lot of cultural adaptations but it’s been a fun process and being able to represent my family in the States means the world to me.”
There have been a lot of people on Rene’s list since the beginning of his football journey, particularly Victor Tedondo, who runs Gridiron Academy, a sports performance academy that has produced numerous Division 1 athletes in 2012.
“Him and his wife, Charmaine, they’ve kind of taken me under their wing. Gridiron Academy in Ottawa has grown into this big factory of production to get guys into the next level,” he added.
“Shout out to my SPK family, the Bengals, East Ottawa Generals where I first started playing football, just everybody who put a hand on me. I definitely can’t wait to come back home and put on a show for them.”
The Lions travels to the nation’s capital in Week 12 to face the Ottawa REDBLACKS.
Photo by David Dermer
Playing on RP’s defence, there is a high standard to obtain on and off the field. The saying ‘Look good, play good’ absolutely applies to the defensive backs.
“As a group, I think we set the tone for the rest of the team. They feed off our energy. For me to step into this role, I’m the next man up. We all hold ourselves to a high degree of play. Like GP, Manny, T.J. has done it for years before me,” Rene said.
While he is optimistic about this weekend’s season home opener, Rene has to match the same energy as his gameday outfit since 50 Cent is performing in front of 50,000 fans.
Some may dig deep into their wallet to purchase a luxurious outfit. But for Rene, it’s all about the mindset.
“Look good, play good. That’s very important to me. It’s a feel-good factor when you put on a nice fit that gives you the confidence. I don’t go too over the top, stay within my budget. I’m not a designer guy. It’s more like a mindset, refresher type of thing,” he said.
“You just always must be stylish. RP is like the head of our guys. He’s always telling us that he wants everyone to look sharp. We don’t want to be a group that kind of looks a little sloppy or whatnot. We stay on top of each other to make sure we all look clean.”
