Preview: Als host Argonauts in home opener on Friday night
After last week’s thrilling come-from-behind win over the Tiger-Cats in Hamilton, the Montreal Alouettes are back at home for the first time since last November’s East Division Semi-Final. They’ll take on the Toronto Argonauts at Percival Molson Stadium on Friday night at 7:00 p.m. ET.
This will be the only visit the Argos make to Montreal in the regular season. The one other matchup between these two rivals will come in Toronto during the final week of action.
To purchase your tickets for the game, click here.
Success in June:
The Alouettes have won each of their three home openers with head coach Jason Maas at the helm. Their last loss in a home opener occurred back in August of 2021, but that was before Maas arrived.
Also, the Als have a record of 10-1-0 in the month of June since Maas’ arrival.
Whatever happened in previous years won’t make a difference this Friday, but it proves that this coaching staff knows how to prepare their players for early-season action, which isn’t easy after such a long layoff.
“We touch on that all the time,” quarterback Davis Alexander said. “We have to be the most conditioned team in the CFL by the way we practice. It’s just the standard that we all hold each other to. It starts in the off-season, and it starts in camp. We have a veteran group that knows what’s right and what’s wrong.”
Depth will be tested:
Unfortunately for the Alouettes, three players exited last week’s game due to injury. Starters Justin Lawrence (centre), Travis Theis (running back) and Cole Spieker (receiver) were all banged up in the first half. Of the three, only Theis will be able to suit up on Friday night.
Give newcomer Marco Dubois credit. The Canadian fullback has played the better part of a decade in the CFL and has never really been featured on offence. Once Spieker went down, Dubois filled in and did a nice job hauling in two passes. He played so well that the team decided to have him start Friday night’s game in Spieker’s spot.
On top of those three injuries on offence, expect strong-side linebacker Najee Murray to also miss the game because of a foot injury. The veteran had four tackles in last week’s game.
Alexander – Snead connection:
Quarterback Davis Alexander and receiver Tyler Snead have a special connection both on and off the field. The two are roommates in Montreal during the season and it seems like that’s helped them on the field, too.
“We left some (yards) out there,” Alexander said on Thursday. “We left some more numbers out there. I wasn’t particularly sharp in some points in the game. As far as Snead and I’s relationship, I think he just sees the field really well. He understands how to find zones and teams in the CFL run 80 to 90 percent zone. It’s great to have a guy that can navigate in zones. If teams want to play us in zone, we can pick them apart.”
In Week 1, Alexander led all quarterbacks with 336 passing yards, and he was the only pivot to throw more than one touchdown pass (he had two). 163 of those yards were to Snead, who was the only receiver to go over 100 yards last week.
Snead also leads the CFL in receptions so far, with nine.
The Argos:
The Argos will look a lot different than they did last year.
Quarterback Chad Kelly is expected to make his return to the lineup. He didn’t play in 2025 after suffering a gruesome leg injury in the 2024 East Division Final at Molson Stadium.
The Argonauts also overhauled most of their coaching staff, as former Als offensive coordinator Mike Miller was named head coach over the winter.
Greg Quick, who served as the Alouettes’ linebacker coach from 2021 through 2025, was named defensive coordinator in Toronto earlier this year.
“It’s tough because there’s no film on them from Week 1,” middle linebacker Geoff Cantin-Arku said. “I know Greg Quick. I think he’ll be a defensive coordinator that will be aggressive but smart. I’m looking forward to seeing him and playing against him.”
