Former NCAA star Leak ready for first start as Alouettes QB

MONTREAL - The third-string quarterback who will start for the Montreal Alouettes against the B.C. Lions on Friday night is not just another new arm in the Canadian Football League.

Chris Leak was one of the most highly touted high school players in the United States before he went on to lead the University of Florida Gators to a national championship in 2006.

The 25-year-old doesn't fret over the fact that he wasn't drafted by an NFL team, or that he was cut by the Chicago Bears after signing as a free agent, or that he has spent the last three seasons as one of Anthony Calvillo's understudies in Montreal.

"I've always believed that things happen for a reason,'' Leak said after practice Monday. ''When I look back at it, I wouldn't change a thing."

Leak became the Alouettes' quarterback when Calvillo left a game Aug. 19 against Winnipeg with a bruised sternum. He looked poised playing the entire second half of a 39-17 victory. He had tossed his first touchdown pass two weeks earlier in a brief appearance against Saskatchewan.

The usual second-stringer, Adrian McPherson, was injured in training camp and won't come off the nine-game injured list until next week.

That will leave Leak and fourth-stringer Ricky Santos as the team's only quarterbacks against the Lions, although coach Marc Trestman said kick returner Tim Maypray can play quarterback in an emergency.

Calvillo, who missed practice Monday to have his injury checked by a doctor, is not expected to sit out more than one game.

Because of that, Leak gets his first start as a pro, and his performance could determine whether he will pass McPherson as the back-up.

''When you're out there with your teammates and the coaches believe in you, there is no pressure,'' Leak said. ''You just have fun playing the game you love.

''I've been blessed to play this game. Being as young as I am, I've been a part of a lot of championships.''

They include state high school championships back home in Charlotte, N.C., plus his role as the starter in Florida's 41-14 upset of Ohio State in the 2006 BCS national championship game.

Although he didn't play, he was also part of Montreal's Grey Cup championship last November.

''Coming in as the starter is a little different than coming in as the back-up — everybody's looking to you,'' said Alouettes offensive co-ordinator Scott Milanovich. ''Chris knows he's not in it by himself, but the key is how he handles the spotlight.

''One of the plusses is that Chris has been on probably a bigger stage than he'll be on Friday night, so it should not overwhelm him.''

Leak is considered mostly a drop-back quarterback with a rifle arm, much like the 37-year-old Calvillo, except that he has younger legs to scramble in the backfield or take off with the ball when needed.

General manager Jim Popp said NFL clubs may have been put off by Leak's height — not quite six feet — which didn't suit the drop-back style common in the league at the time. He added that some teams may not have wanted a "system quarterback" from Florida.

"If you watched the pre-season NFL games he played in, he was outstanding," said Popp. "That kind of deflates the knocks against him, but they didn't want to keep him."

Leak signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 2008 but couldn't attend camp due to an injury. The Ticats released him and Popp put in a claim the next day.

"He's an unbelievable student of the game," said Popp, who gave Leak's older brother C.J. a try-out in 2005. "Leak wants to be a coach when he stops playing, he told us that, but he says he wants to play first.

"He does a great job as a back-up. He's super-positive. He's a great guy but in the huddle, he gets everyone's attention."

Popp is also from the Charlotte area and, although he didn't know Leak before, he couldn't miss hearing about one of the state's most gifted athletes.

"He's a legend in this area," Popp said. "He's like Michael Jordan."

The Alouettes are coming off a bye week, and Leak went to his new home in Orlando, Fla., where he visited his old team.

In Leak's final season as a Gator, his understudy was Tim Tebow, the 250-pound Heisman Trophy winner who was drafted in the first round this year by the Denver Broncos.

Tebow is expected to be the back-up in Denver this season.

Leak's NFL dreams are by no means over, but his career for now is in the CFL.

"You try to prepare for this moment the best you can," he said. "You never know when it's going to come but at one point your number's going to be called to help your team win.

"This is a special moment. I'll try to make all these moments into memories."