Nate Beauchemin starts at safety for Montreal Alouettes in Week 1 against Tiger-Cats

Photo: Pascal Ratthe/Montreal Alouettes

The Montreal Alouettes have chosen their replacement at safety for the retired Marc-Antoine Dequoy: Nate Beauchemin. The Calgary native was listed as the starter on Montreal’s official depth chart, which was released on Wednesday morning.

The 23-year-old was a second-round pick in the 2025 CFL Draft and played 10 regular-season games as a rookie, making one defensive tackle and eight special teams tackles. Beauchemin played collegiately for his hometown Dinos, earning a first-team U Sports All-Canadian selection in 2024 as well as the Presidents’ Trophy, which is awarded annually to the top upright defender in the country.

Jonathan Sutherland, who signed with the team after a three-year stint in the NFL, has been listed as Beauchemin’s backup, while Arthur Hamlin, who started three games at safety in place of Dequoy last year, is the backup at strong-side linebacker.

The rest of Montreal’s defence is mostly unchanged from last season, including the return of perennial All-CFL weak-side linebacker Tyrice Beverette, two-time Most Outstanding Canadian nominee Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund, and defensive tackle Mustafa Johnson, who missed most of 2025 due to injury.

Robert Kennedy III has taken over at field-side halfback in place of Ciante Evans, while Geoffrey Cantin-Arku is now the starting middle linebacker, replacing Darnell Sankey. Joshua Archibald has also been listed as a starter at defensive end over Lwal Uguak, though both are expected to rotate throughout the game.

On offence, Travis Theis has been given the start at running back with Stevie Scott III out with a hamstring injury. Theis played 12 regular-season games as a CFL rookie in 2025, rushing for 365 yards, catching 19 passes for 162 yards, and returning 32 kicks for 539 yards and one touchdown.

Alexander Hollins will start at boundary wideout in place of Charleston Rambo, while Jerreth Sterns will start at slotback in place of Austin Mack. Rambo remains a free agent, while Mack signed with the Edmonton Elks following his release from Montreal.

The rest of Montreal’s starting offence is the same, including franchise quarterback Davis Alexander, start receivers Jalen Philpot and Tyler Snead, as well as the entire offensive line.

The team’s special teams trio of José Maltos Díaz, Joseph Zema, and Louis-Philippe Bourassa is the same from last year, though the new return specialist is Phillip Brooks.

The 26-year-old has had stints with the Kansas City Chiefs, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, and B.C. Lions, dressing for two regular-season games with B.C. in 2025. Veteran return specialist DeVonte Dedmon, who joined the team in free agency, has been placed on the six-game injured list due to a hamstring issue.

Others who have joined Dedmon on the six-game injured list include Canadian fullback David Dallaire, American offensive lineman Des Holmes, Canadian receiver Hakeem Harris, and Canadian linebacker Gabriel Lessard.

The Montreal Alouettes (0-0) will visit the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (0-0) at Hamilton Stadium on Thursday, June 4 with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EDT. The Alouettes are coming off a Grey Cup loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders, while the Tiger-Cats lost last year’s East Final to Montreal.

The weather forecast in Hamilton calls for a high of 26 degrees and a mix of sun and cloud. The game will be broadcast on TSN and RDS in Canada, CBS Sports Network in the United States, and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune-in on TSN 690 in Montreal and Ticats Audio Network in Hamilton.