Courtesy Edmonton Journal:

Apparently, the quote/unquote “controversial” holding penalty that denied the Edmonton Eskimos a victory last October was the final straw.

First, Sean Fleming, who had what would have been a 47-yard winning field goal against the Saskatchewan Rough-riders erased, retired.

Now, Mike Maurer, who was called for the hold, has retired as well.

“Yeah it was just too much to bear,” laughed Maurer.

The truth is Maurer, 32, simply realized it was time.

“The only thing that makes it crappy is that it’s always better to go out on a winning note. But it was time to move on,” said Maurer, a special teams stand-out and fullback who signed as a free agent with Edmonton in 2005.

“When we won the Grey Cup in ‘05, I thought I’d play until I was 38. But as you get older, it gets tougher.”

The last two seasons, Maurer either led or tied for the team lead in special-teams tackles.

“Mike excelled at doing the tough jobs on field — special teams, blocking and long snapping. He should be very proud of everything he accomplished in the CFL and our entire organization wishes Mike and his family all the best in the future,” said Eskimo head coach and director of football operations, Danny Maciocia.

While Fleming is a business consultant for the Edmonton branch of Price Waterhouse-Coopers, Maurer is running his own tree-cutting business in his home city of Regina.

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