GUELPH, Ont. – On a cool Friday night, in front of 876 fans under the lights at the University of Guelph's Alumni Stadium, the Gryphon football team was unable to overcome turnover issues in a matchup against their rivals from Hamilton, the McMaster Marauders. The inaugural edition of the "Highway 6 Bowl" saw the Marauders take advantage of six Gryphon turnovers (5 INT, 1 fumble), with McMaster leaving Alumni Stadium with a decisive 41-12 victory. With the loss, the Gryphons fall to 1-5 on the season, while the Marauders improve to 2-4.
The Gryphons entered Friday night's matchup fresh off of their bye week, but were unable to create much offence against a tough McMaster defence. Gryphon quarterbacks
Jake Helfrich (Charlotte, North Carolina) and
Tommy Yanchuk (Lloydminster, Saskatchewan), both in their first seasons at the University of Guelph, split the reps at QB in the Gryphon backfield, but both pivots struggled on the night, with the two combining for just 73 yards passing and 5 interceptions. Things were not much easier on the ground for the Gryphons, who rushed for just 60 yards on the night, with U of G rookie running back,
Isaiah Smith, held in check, finishing the night with 15 carries for 53 yards (3.5 per carry).
On the other side of the ball, the Gryphons had several standout performances from their defensive unit, including third-year Gryphon linebacker,
Scott Murray, who lined up at defensive end on Friday night and once again showcased his tremendous ability to get into the backfield. The Mississauga native accounted for 2.5 of Guelph's 4 sacks on the night, including a sack that led to a safety in the 2nd quarter. Murray now has 6 sacks on the season, ranking him 3rd in the country in that category with only Regina's Anthony Bennett (6.5) and Montreal's Nickey Farinaccio (8.5) having more sacks than Murray on the season. Other defensive bright spots for the Gryphons on Friday night included
Kole Watson, a second-year linebacker from Ardrossan, Alberta, who finished the game as Guelph's leading-tackler with 8 tackles on the night. Rookie defensive back,
Gianni Green, also recorded the first interception of his OUA career, while defensive end
Yusuf Al-Khaldi recorded 1.5 sacks. But it was a long night for the Gryphon defence, who were on the field for the majority of play, with McMaster winning the time-of-possession battle, 37:01 to 22:56. McMaster's senior quarterback, Andreas Dueck, a Yates Cup MVP back in 2019 and the OUA's passing leader in 2022, was held to a season-low 165 yards passing on Friday night by the Gryphon secondary. The Marauders were led by third-year running back, Daniel Bosett (Brantford, ON), who finished the day with 105 yards rushing on just 11 carries (9.5 per carry). The Gryphons (1-5) will now look to keep their playoff hopes alive, with just two games remaining in their 2022 regular season schedule. The Gryphons return to action next week on the road, when they travel to Waterloo for an October 15 matchup versus the No. 9-ranked in the country in the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks (4-2). Kickoff at University Stadium in Waterloo is set for 1pm and can be seen live online at www.oua.tv.
