Marc-Antoine Dequoy is not the type to ask too many questions. When he is called upon to react, with a ball above his head or a microphone under his nose, he does it with elegance and confidence.
To access the Alouettes locker room after a match, journalists must make their way between the tables filled with food and the behemoths spinning in the shower. At the end of the hallway, in line with the front door, at the very back of the room, in the center of the last row of lockers, number 24 is still there, standing, still fully dressed, waiting for the microphones and tape recorders. In victory as in defeat, Dequoy answers questions. After three seasons, it became automatic.
The 29-year-old met with La Presse at the team’s offices at the Olympic Stadium. He was returning from practice on Sunday, the day before the Thanksgiving game. His schedule is busy and his preparation is meticulous. Lunch time was the only vacant time in his diary. So he chatted while feasting on chicken, rice and salad.
“My relationship with the Alouettes began as a fan,” begins Dequoy.
“I was a real fan when I was young,” he continues. Going from fan to player is surreal. And it’s our duty to be there for the fans. I know, because we play for them, and I was a fan for a long time. I try to be the player I would like to see if I wasn’t doing this. Or the player I would have liked to see younger. »
For him, being on all the stands is not a task. “I don’t have to do it,” he clarifies. At the end of each home game, once the media tour is over, he takes a walk in the crowd.
“When I see a hundred fans, that’s an hour of signings. “It’s definitely tougher after a defeat,” he admits. But he knows too well what it means. Once, he was one of the hundred fans desperately waiting for a smile from an Alouettes player.
“Sometimes I say it to Quebec players: we are lucky to play in Quebec and to play for the Alouettes. So take as much as you can and enjoy it. Even if it’s just three young people after a match, for these three young people, meeting an Alouettes player is huge. »
Canadian Football League players are not entitled to communications courses or lessons on how to interact with the media. However, he knows that by remaining himself, his representation work will be adequate.
After a defeat, some of his teammates or rivals may be less courteous. “But that’s not me,” he warns. And it goes back to the way I was raised. It doesn’t take any extra effort for me to be nice. I’m just being myself. Even after a defeat, if things are bad, I will say so. »
Over time, the reality of athletes has altered. Mainly because they exist outside the purely sporting framework. With the advent of social media, their faces and highlights are plastered everywhere. Long before and long after the matches.
Even though Dequoy understood the power of social networks late in life, he decided to use them wisely.
“The Instagram aspect is not my strength. Really not,” he reveals with a laugh, before taking a sip of water.
On Instagram, Dequoy has almost 10,000 followers. Enough numbers to start worrying about it.
“At first, I told myself that no one wanted to see what I put on, that no one would be interested. »
This naivety, however, caught up with him. Even if his girlfriend and fans encourage him to reveal himself more, and his status arouses curiosity and admiration, the Montrealer is incapable of realizing it. “In my head, no one is a fan of me. These are Alouettes fans who follow me because I play for the team. For me, this is a new reality. »
Even when he goes to a restaurant, the idea of being recognized still upsets him. ” It’s incredible. I find it unreal. We can’t get used to that. It’s crazy. It’s really crazy,” says the man who still feels anonymous outside Percival-Molson Stadium.
At the same time, Dequoy does what is necessary to be appreciated by the general public. He steals the show on the pitch, he is flamboyant, available and he speaks directly to the fans.
On his Instagram profile, you have to scroll for a long time to find a publication written in a language other than that of Vigneault. “I have always been aware of Quebec pride. I am proud to play for a Quebec team. And by being part of the team, I understood that this pride could come through me too. It is not difficult for me to promote the French language or Quebec. I want to do it. »
With five interceptions, two defensive touchdowns and 55 tackles in 15 games, Dequoy is having a career-best season. He is at the height of his glory.
Recall that in April 2020, he signed a contract as an undrafted player with the Green Bay Packers in the NFL. He was eventually removed.
He also confided for the first time that he had also been approached by the New Orleans Saints in 2021. However, he was already under contract with the Alouettes. So he never had the chance to show off in Louisiana.
With this breakout season, is the dream of making it to the NFL resurfacing?
“No,” he replies without thinking. If it happens, I will look into it in due time. But there, I mourned the NFL. »
If he is no longer interested in the NFL, it is also because he is at home. He can live from his passion in front of his family, perform and shine. And that’s enough. “I don’t need more right now. »
Obviously, part of him will always be curious about what kind of career he could have had with the Packers.
Dequoy therefore refuses to imagine himself elsewhere, in another uniform and in a different environment. His contract binds him to the Alouettes until 2025.
The Montrealer wants to win a Gray Cup with his childhood team. A statement to the contrary would have been surprising.
But his desire to triumph goes beyond lifting the trophy. He wants to feel that the eight million Quebecers are lifting him up with him. “There would be nothing like a Gray Cup here in Quebec. I want people in their living room to say “we won,” he says, emphasizing the “we”. Like the Canadian two years ago. People were celebrating in the streets, because we were winning. I want to bring that back. A team with Quebec talent, Quebec management. I want to win at home. »
When he hangs up his cleats, he wants to be able to look around and see proud fans in the stands, in the street or in the restaurant. His personal statistics will have no value, as long as he helps the Alouettes regain their letters of nobility.
“When I grew up, the Alouettes were a force. It was a winning team, but above all, there was pride. We were proud of our team. In recent years, it has disappeared. We saw it with the fans who left. I want to bring back that pride and bring back a championship. It would be the pinnacle of my career. »
