LONDON, Ont. – Saturday afternoon at Western Alumni Stadium in London, the Guelph Gryphons football team suffered a 34-11 loss to the defending Vanier Cup champion, Western Mustangs, in their 2022 OUA regular season opener. The Gryphons (0-1) went toe-to-toe with the defending national champions for the opening half, with Western (1-0) taking a slim 10-6 lead into the half, before an experienced Mustangs team pulled away in the second half, with Western outscoring Guelph 24-5 over the final two quarters.
Saturday's meeting marked the third time the two teams have faced off in just over 11 months. After Guelph opened last season with a memorable 23-21 victory over the then No. 1-ranked Mustangs, the Gryphons 2021 season would come to an end in London with Western winning 33-12 in last year's OUA semifinal matchup.
The Gryphon defence, who were among the top defensive units in the country a season ago, picked up right where they left off, with Guelph forcing the Mustangs to punt on four consecutive possessions to begin the game. The Gryphon defence kept Western off the scoreboard for the majority of the opening half, with the Mustangs finally getting on the scoreboard late in the 2nd quarter when a 2-yard touchdown run by Mustangs running back Keon Edwards capped a 75-yard drive, giving Western a 7-3 lead. Both teams would add late field goals, and the Mustangs took a 10-6 lead into the locker room at halftime.
Guelph's Fourth-year running back,
Juwan Jeffrey, was a bright spot for the Gryphon offence, with Jeffrey finishing the day as the team's leading rusher (13 carries, 52 yards, 3.8 yard per carry). Jeffrey helped put the Gryphons in position to take a shot downfield during the 1st quarter, with Gryphon quarterback
Shawn Lal seemingly connecting with receiver
Vyshonne Janusas on a long touchdown pass, only for the play to be brought back on an offensive interference call.
After trading field goals to open the second half, the Mustangs would extend their lead to 20-9 thanks to a 27-yard touchdown pass from Evan Hillock to running back Edouard Wanadi. The Gryphons responded with a promising drive deep into Western territory, but would come away empty-handed after a
Shawn Lal pass was intercepted near the goal line. Lal, a 6'6" quarterback from Abbotsford, BC currently in his second season as a Gryphon, would finish the day 13-of-25 for 107 yards and 3 interceptions against a talented and experienced Western defence.
The Mustangs defence would come up with another important turnover in the 4th quarter, their fourth of the day, with this one coming off of Gryphon quarterback
Tommy Yanchuk. Yanchuk, a transfer from UBC currently who made his Gryphon debut, had a pass picked off and returned to the Guelph 25-yard line. The long scoring on the day for the Gryphons came on the leg of U SPORTS All-Canadian kicker,
Eric Stranz, with the Ayr, Ontario native going 3-for-4 on field goal attempts, with a long of 50-yards.
The Gryphons defence limited Western quarterback Evan Hillock to a modest day, with Hillock going 13-of-23 for 155 yards. Guelph also managed to find themselves in the backfield on 3 occasions with Gryphon linebacker
Scott Murray leading the way with a pair of sacks. Offensively, six different Gryphon receivers made receptions on the day, with fourth-year running back
Juwan Jeffrey leading the way for Guelph on the ground (13 carries, 52 yards as well as 27 yards receiving).
The Gryphons (0-1) will now look to rebound on Labour Day Monday (September 5) as they head home to U of G's Alumni Stadium to host the Windsor Lancers. Kickoff is set for 1pm with tickets now available online at gryphons.ca/tickets.
