The Montreal Alouettes have signed five Americans to their 2024 roster, including former Ohio State running back Mike Weber Jr.
The five-foot-11, 210-pound ball carrier replaced NFL star Ezekiel Elliott as the Buckeyes’ starting tailback in 2016 and was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year, though he eventually fell behind fellow NFL back J.K. Dobbins on the depth chart. He played 38 games in that role, amassing 2,676 yards and 24 majors on 455 carries while adding 54 catches for 297 yards and another score.
Weber was selected in the seventh round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys and spent the season on the team’s practice roster. The following year, he won a Super Bowl while on the Kansas City Chiefs practice roster before stints with the Green Bay Packers and New York Giants, dressing for just two NFL games. He joined the USFL’s New Jersey Generals in 2022 but had his tenure derailed by injury.
The East Orange, N.J. native was previously on the negotiation list of the Saskatchewan Roughriders and was in active discussions with the team ahead of the 2022 season, though the two sides never reached a deal.
Also joining the Alouettes are running back Marcus Williams Jr., receivers Kameron Brown and Ramaud Chiaokhiao-Bowman, and defensive lineman Kivon Bennett.
Williams wrapped up his collegiate career in 2021 at Louisiana Tech University, rushing for 792 yards and eight touchdowns while adding 20 receptions for 202 yards and a score. The five-foot-10, 204-pound back began his career at Appalachian State, where he amassed 2,216 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns in four seasons.
Brown played 25 games for Coastal Carolina from 2020 to 2021, catching 56 passes for 911 yards and eight touchdowns while earning honourable mention All-Sun Belt status as a senior. He previously spent four seasons at Charleston Southern and was twice named second-team all-conference, recording 98 catches for 1,656 yards and 18 touchdowns in 34 games. The six-foot-three, 210-pound target spent time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in 2022 before a stint with the XFL’s Arlington Renegades. He spent time on the Alouettes’ practice roster in 2023.
Chiaokhiao-Bowman played four seasons at Northwestern University from 2017 to 2020, catching 82 passes for 968 yards and six touchdowns in 47 games. The six-foot-two, 203-pound target most recently played for the Northern Arizona Wranglers of the Indoor Football League and was named second-team All-IFL in 2023, catching 69 pass for 967 yards and a league-leading 26 touchdowns in 15 games.
Bennett, the son of three-time NFL All-Pro linebacker Cornelius Bennett, began his collegiate career at the University of Tennessee. He played 28 games over four seasons, collecting 52 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss, and 6.5 sacks, but was dismissed from the program following an arrest in December 2020. Bennett later plead guilty to simple possession and unlawful possession of a firearm, serving probation.
The six-foot-two, 241-pound pass rusher transferred to Arkansas State and would go on to play two successful seasons with the team. In 23 games, he amassed 108 tackles, 26 tackles for loss, 13.5 sacks, and four forced fumbles, earning second-team All-Sun Belt honours in 2021 and third-team in 2022. He played one preseason game with the Alouettes in 2023 and spent time on the practice roster.
The Alouettes will open their 2024 campaign on Thursday, June 6 when they travel to Winnipeg for a matchup with the Bombers in a rematch of the 110th Grey Cup.
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