GUELPH, Ont. – A brand new university football season is upon us, with the Guelph Gryphons football team set to kick off the 2026 OUA football season on the road in Waterloo on Saturday night (6pm - August 29) when they play the Laurier Golden Hawks. Ahead of Saturday evening's season opener, we get you set for the season ahead with a look at the 2026 edition of the University of Guelph football program.
Season Opener - Guelph Gryphons at Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
Date: Saturday, August 29, 2026
Time: 6pm kickoff
Broadcast info: Online at
www.oua.tv
Gryphons head coach
Mark Surya enters his third season in charge of the University of Guelph football program after leading his side to a pair of OUA semifinal appearances in his first two seasons at Guelph. The Gryphons finished the 2025 regular season with a 3-5 record and qualified for the OUA playoffs for a second consecutive season. The Gryphons became the first No. 7-seed in OUA history to eliminate the No. 2-seed in the playoffs,
defeating the Western Mustangs in the OUA quarterfinals before seeing their second
comeback attempt against the Laurier Golden Hawks come up short in the OUA semifinals. Eleven varsity football programs from across the province will do battle over an eight-game, nine-week OUA regular season (one bye week per school) with the top seven teams in the conference earning a spot in the playoffs. The top team in the conference will earn a first round bye into the OUA semifinals, while the remaining six playoff-bound teams will meet up in the OUA quarterfinal stage on October 31. The OUA semifinals will take place on November 7, before the OUA season wraps up on November 14 with the playing of the 118th Yates Cup. The OUA champion will host the 2026 Mitchell Bowl, playing the AUS Champion, with the winner earning a spot in the national championship game, with the 61st Vanier Cup set to take place on November 28, 2026 from TELUS-Université Laval Stadium in Quebec City, Quebec. The Gryphons will head into the 2026 season looking for their fifth Yates Cup in program history (2015, 1996, 1992 & 1984) and second national title in program history (with the lone Vanier Cup victory for the program coming in 1984).
"There's a high degree of expectations heading into this season with a veteran squad," says Gryphons head coach
Mark Surya. "I'm excited to see to product on the field with all the hard work being put in the last few seasons."
Quarterbacks
Tristan Aboud and
Marshall McCray return for their fourth season to lead the QB room at the University of Guelph.
Tristan Aboud will look to continue to build upon his first three seasons in Guelph as one of the top quarterbacks in the conference. The 6-foot-4 quarterback from Montreal, QC posted a career-best 2,117 passing yards (6th in OUA) in the 2025 season, completing 64.7% of his passes, helping lead his team a second consecutive OUA semifinal appearance. The management economics and finance major also showcased his ability in the run game, rushing for 326 yards on 39 attempts while finding the end zone three times. Aboud is coming into the 2026 on a high following an impressive showing at the U SPORTS East-West Bowl, completing 14 of his 20 pass attempts for 280 yards with 1 touchdown and 0 interceptions, earning 'Offensive Player of the Game' honours at the all-star showpiece. Aboud continued to his development in the offseason while attending Toronto Argos training camp as part of the CFL's 'QB internship' program with U SPORTS. For Aboud, it marked his third time taking part in the CFL's QB Internship Program, making him just the second U SPORTS QB to attend three different CFL camps (former Laurier QB Taylor Elgersma being the other).
Joining Aboud at the QB position for the Gryphons in 2026 is the dynamic
Marshall McCray, who is now heading into his fourth season as a Gryphon. McCray has proven himself to be one of the most explosive dual-threat quarterbacks in the country. Last season, the human kinetics major from Niagara Falls led the Gryphons with 10 rushing touchdowns (3rd in OUA) to go along with his 381 rushing yards on 54 attempts. McCray had one of his best performances coming in relief against the Laurier Golden Hawks in the OUA semifinals last season, completing 17 of his 26 passes for 272 yards and 3 touchdowns to go along with his 108 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown to spark a memorable second half comeback. Like Aboud, McCray also impressed at the 2026 U SPORTS East-West Bowl, where he suited up at receiver, hauling in a 41-yard touchdown pass from his Gryphon teammate, while also adding a one-yard touchdown run in the game. During his Gryphon career, McCray has rushed for 24 touchdowns in 24 games played in his three seasons in Guelph.
Running Backs
Donavin Milloy is set to return to the Gryphons backfield for his senior season after injuries limited him in 2025. The two-time OUA Second Team All-Star has rushed for 1,930 yards over his first four years at Guelph and has found the end zone 10 times. In 2023, Milloy put together one of the greatest single-seasons in program history, rushing for 1,044 yards, marking the second-most rushing yards in a single season in program history, with Milloy finishing just 87 yards shy of matching Gerrit Stam's single-season rushing record of 1,131 yards (set in 1998). Fourth-year running back Caleb Sargaent also battled injuries during the 2025 season after an outstanding 2024 season where he rushed for 367 yards on 44 carries, averaging 8.3 yards-per-carry to go along with his two rushing touchdowns.
Kanye Nethersole returns for his third season with the team where his role within the offence is poised to continue to grow after appearing in all 10 games for the team in 2025.
Receivers
The Gryphons head into the new season with a deep receiving core led by fourth-year receiver,
Willem Arseneau. The fourth-year marketing major from Calgary, Alberta led the team last season with 381 receiving yards and three touchdown receptions. Arseneau provides the team with a big play threat, averaging 25.4 yards per catch and was named an OUA Second Team All-Star in 2024.
Jarod Tessier emerged last season as a key target in the passing game for the team. The 6-foot-3 receiver from Welland, led the team with 28 receptions and was second with 368 receiving yards.
Matthew Stam,
Ethan Garwe and
Trenten Dobson are all poised to take big steps forward within the group, as each return for their sophomore seasons after gaining valuable experience a season ago as rookies.
Offensive Line
The Gryphon offensive line will see plenty of new faces up front with offensive team captain
Mitchel Schechinger leading the group. Schechinger moved from guard to centre for the 2025 season and had another outstanding season, being named an OUA All-Star for a third consecutive season. The mechanical engineering major from Sarnia is in his final season with the Gryphons and was drafted by the Calgary Stampeders in the 2026 CFL Draft.
Gavin Speers, a 6-foot-7 lineman from Okotoks, Alberta takes over at left tackle with tremendous upside in just his second-year. Another second-year lineman,
Carson McKie, is expected to start at guard for the team. McKie is a 6-foot-4 geography major from Otterville, Ontario.
Defensive Line
Andre Thompson had an outstanding rookie season in 2025 will look to build on it heading into his second season in Guelph in 2026. Thompson, a 6-foot-5 defensive lineman, blossomed into his role on the defensive line finishing his first season with 18.0 total tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks to go along with an interception. The impressive season from the Arts major saw him earn the Scott Yanchus Men's Rookie of the Year at 2025-26 Gryphons awards ceremony as the top University of Guelph men's athlete across all Gryphon sports. Thompson was named to the 2025 OUA All-Rookie Team, and is one of the most athletic defensive lineman in the country. Game-wrecker
Robert Keyes-Wilson is back for his final season with the team. The criminal justice and public policy major led the team with 3.5 sacks a season ago and had 14.0 total tackles. Nathan Kashama-Aguerye is back in the fold for the 2026 season for Guelph after missing all last season with an injury. The 6-foot-4 defensive lineman has had a strong training camp and comes from a strong football lineage with three of his uncles playing professionally in the NFL and CFL. Max Macerello walked on to the program two years ago and is now pushing for a spot at defensive end. The management economics and finance major is a special teams demon for the team and is also a former OHL draft pick.
Linebackers
Jeavaun Jacobsen returns to Guelph as one of the leaders of a deep linebackers group and the Gryphon defence. The fourth-year linebacker was an integral part of the defence in the run and pass game last season. The psychology major from Burnaby, BC native was third on the team with 27.5 total tackles, led the team with 21 solo tackles to go along with his four tackles for loss and three sacks, earning him a spot on the OUA Second Team All-Star team. Nicolas Metron takes over as starter at middle linebacker for this upcoming season. The fourth-year marketing management major was the team's fifth-leading tackler in 2025, finishing with 24.0 total tackles.
Defensive Backs
An experienced group of defensive backs will help lead the Gryphon defence in 2026, led by defensive team captain
Nathaniel Slawter. The fourth-year defensive back posted 29.0 total tackles (2nd on team) a season ago.
Kyle Simon-Guerin is also back for his fourth-year with the Gryphons. The sociology major recorded 12.5 tackles last season and was named an OUA Second Team All-Star in 2024 as one of the top cornerbacks in the conference. After impressing at the 2026 CFL combine,
Gianni Green is back in Guelph for his fifth season. Green last season tied a U SPORTS record by recording a four interceptions in a single game (Sept. 27, 2025 at Carleton). The arts major is a ball hawk for the Gryphon defence as he has 7 career interceptions to go along with a pair of pick-sixes.
Special Teams
Trey Thompson returns to Guelph as the team's kicker for the 2026 season. The second-year kicker in his team's OUA quarterfinal matchup against Western, made a career-long 44-yard field goal helping them the Gryphons advance to the semifinals. Dynamic punt returner
Anakin Guthrie returns to the Gryphons for his senior season to help lead the return unit. Guthrie showed off his return prowess last season, averaging 17.2 yards per punt return including a career-best 128-yard punt return for a touchdown against York.
Matthew Stam returns as one of the team's main returners handling both punts and kickoffs. Stam averaged 26.4 yards per kick return last season, including taking the opening kickoff 103-yards for a touchdown against Ottawa.
Trenten Dobson will help contribute to the kickoff return game alongside speedy second-year running back,
Kymarri Smith.
2026 Rookie Class
33 new faces join the 2026 Guelph Gryphons football program for the upcoming season with 19 offensive, 11 defensive and 3 kickers making up the rookie class.
Bright Rukundo is a defensive back from Montreal and is regarded as one of top CEGEP DBs (Andre Grasset).
Massimo Ferrone-Byrd is a first year running back from Woodbridge, studying criminal justice and public policy at U of G.
Nathan Vander Meer is a linebacker from St. Catharines who also played basketball at Governor Simcoe where he helped his side to OFSAA provincials. Local product
Samuel Shoniker transfers in from Waterloo as a defensive back.
Kickoff for the Gryphons 2026 football season opener is set for 6pm on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026, with the Gryphons taking on the Laurier Golden Hawks in Waterloo with kickoff set for 6pm. The Gryphons home opener takes place the following weekend on Sunday, September 6 when they host the McMaster Marauders at Alumni Stadium with kickoff set for 1pm. All Gryphons football games in 2026 will be streamed live, online at
www.oua.tv.
