Tony LeZotte has a lot to learn in a very short time, but he wasn't expecting a pop quiz over the phone.

Does he speak any French?

"LeZotte is French, but that's about all I know," he said.

Has he ever been to Montreal?

"No, but I've heard it's a great city and has great food."

What does the Canadian Football League call its Super Bowl?

"Is it the Grey Bowl?"

Grey Cup, actually. What is an Alouette?

"I'm pretty sure it's some type of bird," he said. "I've seen their mascot and it's a bird."

Montreal's CFL team is nicknamed the Alouettes, which is French for a bird known as a skylark. Most people might be familiar with the word from the catchy little children's song -- Alouette, gentille Alouette; Alouette, je te plumerai . It sounds sweet in French until you read the translation and realize it sings of plucking the nice skylark's head, beak, neck, back, wings and feet.

LeZotte will need to start plucking footballs out of the Canadian sky if he's going to make it as a professional free safety. The former Westside star and four-time All-American at James Madison signed a contract Tuesday to play for Montreal -- two weeks after he was passed over in the draft and free-agent signing by the NFL.

That setback did not deter LeZotte any more than the numerous collegiate injuries that couldn't stop him from starting in every single game.

"It's another chance to play football," LeZotte said. "It's definitely an exciting opportunity."

LeZotte reportedly signed a one-year contract worth $65,000, which will activate if he makes the roster. Until then he'll report to rookie camp at the end of May, with his transportation, room and board paid for until he starts earning a salary. LeZotte has never visited Canada and just received his passport in the mail the same day he signed with Montreal.

"He's out nothing," said his mother, Patty. "I told him that even if he had to do it for free, it would be an adventure."

It certainly will be for a defensive back accustomed to playing only the American version of the game. The CFL has rules and dimensions that will take some getting used to.

"I've known a couple of guys who have played there," LeZotte said. "I don't know a ton about it but I've seen it on TV a few times and been interested in it. It's a lot more wide open."

Offenses get three downs instead of four, but everything else tends to be a disadvantage for the defense. The playing field is 10 yards longer and 11.5 yards wider, with end zones that are 20 yards deep instead of 10.

"That's a big difference when you think about it," LeZotte said. "All that just makes it hard to cover people."

If covering that much more ground (there are 12 starters per side instead of 11) isn't tough enough, receivers are allowed to move toward the line of scrimmage before the snap, giving them a running start.

"I would think there's more pressure just because you know that about 90 percent of the time the ball is being thrown," he said. "So that's difficult when the field is that big and the receivers are running at you and they know where they're going and you're back-pedaling."

LeZotte expects to get a crash course in everything CFL when he reports to camp in two weeks.

He'll learn that Montreal actually lays claim to being the first place where football was played in North America back in 1868; that the Alouettes have reached the Grey Cup four of the past six years, winning for the fifth time in 2002; and that Montreal plays host to this year's Grey Cup in November.

For LeZotte, it's the opportunity he's interested in and the chance to prove he's healthy and can play well enough to get a look from the NFL.

Another injury hurt his chances of vying for an NFL job this year. LeZotte tore his hamstring while preparing this spring, and he was unable to compete for scouts in the pro day at his college. Consequently he wasn't surprised when his name wasn't called during the draft, but not getting a free-agent call did rattle him.

"It's just one of those things where nobody would give me a clear answer to why it happened," he said. "It's just one of those things and I'm just lucky enough to be able to keep on playing in the CFL. Hopefully I play well enough up there so that I do get a shot in the NFL."

His CFL shot came from knowing the general manager of the Alouettes, Jim Popp, for several years from scouting visits he made to James Madison.

"I actually talked to him before the draft and he said that if the NFL didn't work out he'd like to sign me in Montreal," LeZotte said. "So I knew him and knew the franchise was great and thought this was the next best thing."

The Allouettes will be breaking in a new defensive coordinator and lost their top two safeties (Etienne Boulay and Donovan Alexander) to the NFL, giving LeZotte an opportunity to step in and impress in a scheme that will allow him to roam around and make plays.

"That opens up a spot for me to go in and compete," he said.

It will give LeZotte and his family a chance to experience something a little different when the two-game preseason starts June 12 and the 19-game regular season ends Oct. 31.

"It's going to be a long trip but somehow we'll manage to follow him," his mother said.