Als kicker Maltos Diaz puts mother’s name on his back — and carries it into Grey Cup

By Canadian Press on November 14, 2025.

WINNIPEG — Jose Maltos Diaz combined football and family in a special way this season.

When he learned in July that his mother, Maria, was having surgery in Mexico, the Montreal Alouettes kicker looked for a way to honour her — and added her family name, Diaz, to the back of his jersey.

“There was Maltos, my dad’s last name,” the 34-year-old said this week as he prepared for Sunday’s Grey Cup game against the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

“I need to honour my mom’s last name, so it’s just for her.”

When he was on one of his regular video calls with her, he had the new jersey on and turned around.

“I show her my jersey with Diaz, and she was just crying and happy with me,” he said.

Maltos Diaz, who has four older brothers, said his mom’s surgery wasn’t serious and she’s doing fine.

The name addition — common in Mexico, where two family names are often used — seemed to give him a lift, too.

“After that happened, everything goes up for me, in every aspect of my life, because I honour my mom, my dad (Francisco), because I love them and I’m doing this for them.”

He donned the jersey for the next game against the Calgary Stampeders on July 24 and connected on five field goals in a 23-21 victory – including a career-best 58-yarder with 70 seconds remaining that was a Montreal franchise record.

“I was so happy,” he said. “I’m so happy because now they know me as Maltos Diaz.”

He finished the season with a CFL-leading 58 field goals – another franchise record. His 65 attempts were a league high.

His 58th field goal was recorded in Princess Auto Stadium in a 19-10 road loss to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the regular-season finale.

He views that as a good omen.

“I’ve got a good thing in this stadium because I broke the franchise record here, so it’s just positive thoughts now already,” he said. “I just want to enjoy the game and the time.”

His family is working and can’t attend the game.

“I know they’re watching me on TV, so I’m happy, they’re happy,” he said, adding his girlfriend will be in Winnipeg.

Maltos Diaz heads into the championship on a high note.

He nailed a 45-yard walk-off field goal in the East Division final 19-16 victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

So does he visualize himself kicking the game-winner on Sunday?

“I’m just going to say it’s in my mind 24/7,” he said, adding his routines include listening to music in Spanish and reading Bible verses.

“I’m just ready to go and trying to enjoy this opportunity to play in a Grey Cup for the first time in my life.”

The native of Monterrey played soccer but switched to football in high school. He was a kicker at Autonomous University of Nuevo Leon. He was signed by the NFL’s New Orleans Saints in 2013, but was released before the first pre-season game.

Maltos Diaz arrived in the CFL as a 2018 free-agent signing by the B.C. Lions, but was released after training camp. Through the league’s global initiative, he joined the Ottawa Redblacks in the 2019 draft and spent most of that season and 2022 on their practice roster.

The Alouettes signed him in December 2022. He filled in for an injured David Cote over the next two seasons, but didn’t play in the team’s 2023 Grey Cup victory over the Blue Bombers.

When Cote retired before this season, Maltos Diaz got the job and has earned head coach Jason Maas’s trust, especially for long kicks.

“The moment we reach offensively those distances, we don’t even hesitate. It’s, we’re going,” Maas said. “I think everybody on our team knows that, and Jose knows that.”

Maltos Diaz was seven-of-eight from 50 or more yards out in the regular season.

Given the starts and stops in his football career, he also works year-round as a residential and commercial real estate agent in the Riviera Maya south of Cancun. His clients know about his football job, and some even watch his games, he said.

He’s in the midst of what he described as a “good deal” this week, even though he’s focusing on Sunday.

“But if they’re ready to go, to put money, I’m ready, too,” he said with a laugh.