Community Sports

Davis Alexander’s game translates well in Canada

It was on the red turf at Eastern Washington University with a few ticks left on the first half clock. Big Sky Conference rival Portland State had the ball near midfield. Hail Mary time.

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Vikings quarterback and Gig Harbor High School alum Davis Alexander took the snap and rolled right to buy time … nothing open. Under formidable pressure, Alexander scrambled to the opposite side of the field … still nothing open. Scrambling like an early-’60s Fran Tarkenton (Look him up, kids. YouTube is amazing.), Alexander scampered back to the right sideline and, from his own 45 yard line, heaved a rainbow into the land of six that teammate De’Sean Parsons pulled out of the sky.

Six points, truly the hard way.

Doing his finest Yosemite Sam impression with steam spewing out of both ears (YouTube it kids, it’s worth it), EWU head coach Aaron Best took off sprinting, Jesse Owens-style, to the Eagles’ locker room. One can only imagine the tongue-lashing Best delivered on his defense.

Hey Davis. Do you remember that play?

“Oh yeah! I definitely remember that play. De’Sean had come over from the basketball team for one year of football just to make that play. And he did it.”

Right there, one could see that Davis Alexander has a big arm.

And these days he needs every bit of it.

Gig Harbor High School alum Davis Alexander, now of the Montreal Alouettes, avoids pressure from Toronto Argonauts defenders during a recent game. Photo courtesy of the Montreal Alouettes

Next man up

The American football playing surface is 120 yards long (including the end zones) and 53.3 yards wide. In the Canadian Football League, where Davis currently competes for the Montreal Alouettes, the playing surface is 30 yards longer and about 12 yards wider. It’s a pass-happy league where teams have three downs rather than four with 12 players allowed on each side. Pre-snap forward motion is not just allowed by receivers and running backs, but practically required.

Almost overnight, Alexander went from third string to a legitimate star and the toast of Montreal’s sports scene. In a game against Saskatchewan on July 25, with starter Cody Fajardo injured, Alexander came off the bench in relief of struggling Caleb Evans. Alexander completed 15-of-18 passes for 178 yards and two touchdowns in an epic 20-16 comeback win.

On camera, post-game, Alexander offered an emotional shout-out and dedication to his father, Matt, who is battling cancer at his home in Arizona. In three more winning starts against Hamilton (twice) and Saskatchewan, Alexander completed 73-of-102 passes (73 percent) for 972 yards with six touchdowns and one interception. On Aug. 16 against Saskatchewan, Alexander’s 15-yard scoring scamper with 30 seconds left was the difference in a 27-24 victory.

Following last night’s @MTLAlouettes win, Davis Alexander took time to dedicate his win to his father, who is battling cancer. ❤️#CFL | @MTLAlouettes pic.twitter.com/39gbfih462

— CFL (@CFL) July 26, 2024

Honoring the football creed that a starter doesn’t lose a spot due to injury, Fajardo returned to the lineup on Aug. 25 to guide the league-leading Alouettes to a 21-17 win over Edmonton.

To say the least, Montreal (10-1), the CFL’s defending Grey Cup champ, knows it has a dynamic and proven winner with Alexander.

An arm for all corners

Not shy, Alexander knows he has a big arm and he’s not afraid to use it to reach all corners of the larger playing surface in the CFL. Former Portland State head coach Bruce Barnum once said Alexander could hit a target 40 yards away within two and a half inches, and do it 12 straight times.

How was the transition to the CFL?

“It was definitely different with twelve guys and three downs,” Alexander said recently. “The hardest thing is having that 12th defender out there and how that changes the pre-snap look. You’ve got to know where that guy’s at all the time.”

“Now when I step on an American football field, it just feels super small compared to the CFL game.”

How about the other transition: Living and working in a city where French is the predominant language?

“We (the players) try to be respectful. Around the team everything is presented to us in English. We learn to say certain phrases in French. Our coach (Jason Maas) is always encouraging us to learn French phrases to take that step with the city and the fans,” said Alexander, a 2017 graduate of Gig Harbor High School. “I think I can understand what’s being said in French easier than I can speak it. But there are plenty of guys on the team who speak French. I can always ask one of those guys what’s going on.”

During a recent stint as the starting quarterback of the Montreal Alouttes, Gig Harbor grad Davis Alexander completed 73-of-102 passes for 972 yards with six touchdowns and one interception. Photo courtesy of the Montreal Alouttes

‘Toughest kid I’ve ever coached’

Prior to landing in Gig Harbor as a lad, Alexander lived with his parents, Matt and Natalie, and brother Dillon, in Denver, South Africa, Scottsdale, and the Bay Area. Locally, his academic trail took him to Voyager Elementary (shoutout to his favorite teacher Mrs. Neal) to Kopachuck Middle School (nods to Miss Crabtree) and onward to Gig Harbor High School (thank yous to Miss Janske and Coach Chantler).

While the Alouettes roster lists Alexander at 6-0 and 190 pounds, former teachers might say the 6-feet-tall thing may be a stretch. But that hardly matters. Twice at Gig Harbor he earned Narrows League MVP honors. His 2,825 passing yards in high school (34 touchdowns with just two interceptions) grabbed the attention of several Big Sky Conference programs before he settled in at PSU, where Barnum once called him “The toughest kid I’ve ever coached.”

His teammates are highly complimentary of his preparation and grit. When he took the field in real time on July 25, his teammates spoke highly of his preparation and confidence.

Gray Cups past and future

In a recent article, Alexander noted that spending time as the Al’s third-string quarterback has been pivotal in shaping his mindset. Montreal’s defense was the driving force in winning last season’s Grey Cup. (Yes! Alexander owns a Grey Cup ring and says it’s a beauty. There are pictures of it online.) And the Al’s defence (Yes! They spell defence with a “c” in the CFL) is beastly. Running the scout team in practice — where you resemble your upcoming opponent’s offense — prepared him very well when he had to step under center earlier this year.

“It’s fun to compete against those guys because our defence is really good, said Alexander, who sits in second place for most passing records at Portland State behind legend Neil Lomax. “And in practice, they come after you.”

Alexander took advantage of an extra collegiate season due to Covid. He owns a double major from PSU in social innovation and social entrepreneurship. During the off-season, Alexander credits his training routine in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Back to the Grey Cup experience. Montreal capped off a 14-7 season with a 28-24 win in the 110th Grey Cup Game. (Yes! America’s Super Bowl is a baby compared with the CFL title game.) Alexander and his teammates were the toast of the town while more than 200,000 folks rocked the streets for a post-game parade that was monumental.

The Grey Cup event is an annual celebration of all things “home-and-native-land.” True patriot love converges on the game’s host city from every CFL city. If Calgary (the Stampeders) isn’t in the game … doesn’t matter. The cowboy hats arrive and whoop it up alongside each team’s contingent.

Vancouver will host this year’s Grey Cup game. Alexander and his mates want to return. They are currently 10-1 while riding a five-game win streak.

We may call him a quarterback, but in Montreal Davis Alexander is known as a pivot. Photo courtesy of the Montreal Alouttes

Call him a ‘pivot’

The CFL has a rich history of great quarterbacks. There was often a time when pivots (Canadian for “quarterback”) shared equal success on both sides of the border.

NFL Hall of Famer Warren Moon (a former Husky and Seahawk) frequently nods to his pass-happy CFL experience — and Edmonton head coach Hugh Campbell — for refining the skills he brought to the NFL. At a time when CFL/NFL salaries were similar, quarterbacks Doug Flutie, Jeff Garcia, Joe Kapp, Joe Theismann, Vince Ferragamo, and Pete Liske moved forth and back. In the ’60s and ’70s, CFL greats Ron Lancaster (Saskatchewan), Russ Jackson (Ottawa) and Tom Wilkenson (Edmonton) would have been prized picks for any NFL team.

When asked what he knew about the long list of great CFL pivots (there’s that word again), Alexander played it smart. His first reference was Alouettes’ current head coach Jason Maas, a former CFL standout quarterback who directed the Edmonton Eskimos (now the Elks) to a pair of Grey Cup wins. Next up? Anthony Calvillo, the Al’s quarterbacks coach who enjoyed a 20-year career in the CFL (16 seasons in Montreal), including three Grey Cup titles as the starting signal-caller. Calvillo’s number 13 hangs from the rafters, retired, in Percival Molson Memorial Stadium — at historic McGill University — where the Al’s play their home games.

“The fans here are extremely supportive and they expect to win. The games are so loud,” he said.

Speaking of loud: “After we won the Grey Cup, we were invited to an on-ice parade at a Montreal Canadians hockey game and that was really crazy,” said Alexander, 25.

Did that just happen 😱

Davis Alexander calls his own number and takes it to the house!

You gotta see how this game ends ‼️#CFLGameDay LIVE on TSN, RDS, & CBSSN
📲: Stream on CFL+ pic.twitter.com/VR136KIcH0

— CFL (@CFL) August 17, 2024

Glossary

Away from the field, Alexander says he’s enjoying his stay in historic Montreal along with girlfriend Kenzie Stefanski, who brings a first-hand Canadian understanding into the fold. She hails from Kelowna, British Columbia.

Alexander says Kenzie knew the CFL scoring vernacular before he did. A touchdown? That would be a “major.” An extra-point kick? That’s a “convert.” A field goal? That would be a “tri.”

A “Waggle?” That would be when a team’s slotbacks can all charge forward behind the line of scrimmage before the snap. A “Rouge?” That would be a single point scored when the football is booted into the opponent’s end zone and not returned.

“Poutine?” That’s the Canadian delicacy of French fries smothered in gravy with cheese curds.

Food? That’s another story, but Alexander says the cuisine in Montreal is amazing, especially around the city’s “Old Port” district. Davis and Kenzie have added “Duke” to the mix. Duke is not Canadian. He’s a 130-pound Presa Canario, a pooch native to the Canary Islands.

Though Alexander sits second these days on the Al’s depth chart at quarterback, he is inches from being back under center. The CFL plays a demanding 18-game regular season (plus two pre-season contests) that gets underway in June. With a league-best mark of 10-1, Montreal is nearly assured of reaching the postseason. Should they again reach the Grey Cup (Nov. 17 in Vancouver), they will have played 21 games.

Vancouver would be special.

“I’ve worn my Grey Cup ring one time,” said Alexander. “We held a big party with my teammates. It’s big. It’s gold with a blue sapphire team logo and lots of diamonds. It has our team slogan, my name and position. I’ve won one of those. I’d like to win another.”