The Guelph Gryphons (3-0) look to continue their hot streak in the 2010-2011 season, as they host their rivals, the Western Mustangs (3-1), on Saturday (Sept. 25) in Guelph's homecoming at 1:00pm in Alumni Stadium. Currently, the two teams are tied for second place in the OUA standings.
Starting with their best record in years, the 3-0 Gryphons have been a force under new head coach Stu Lang. Outscoring their opponents, 62-30, Guelph has shown great strength on both sides of the ball. On offence, veteran running back, Nick FitzGibbon (Puslinch, Ont.), is making sure to end his career with an exclamation point, rushing for 487 yards and picking up 37 receiving yards as well. The threat Fitzgibbon poses has also kept defences honest, opening up the field for quarterback Chris Rossetti (Mississauga, Ont.) to work through the air. In three games as Guelph's new starter, Rossetti has gone 38-69 for 459 yards, including two touchdowns and only one interception. Rossetti is also a threat on the ground, picking up 124 yards of rushing with a touchdown. Fourth-year veteran, Jedd Gardener (Niagra Falls, Ont.), has been the primary target to this point with 10 receptions for 103 yards, followed closely by Dave Honig (Sarnia, Ont.) who has pulled in eight receptions for 101 yards. Sophomore, Dillon Dimitroff (Burlington, Ont.) leads the receiving corps in yards with 118 on six catches.
Experience has been a major contribution to the unstoppable Gryphons defence of 2010-2011. Allowing their first touchdown of the season last weekend against Queen's (1-2), Guelph's defence has caused major problems for every offence they have faced. Fifth-year veteran and Guelph native, Adam Dunk, leads the squad with 28 tackles, 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble, while Scott Eggleton (Belleville, Ont.), another fifth-year veteran, has kept quarterbacks on their toes, picking up a team leading three sacks. In the secondary, the number one on Mark Durigon's (Rockwood, Ont.) jersey has haunted quarterbacks, as he has snatched a CIS-leading (tied with Craig Butler of Western), four interceptions and tallied 6 broken-up plays. It will be interesting to see if Guelph's defence can once again rise to the occasion, as they face the countries second highest scoring team.
The Western Mustangs have also had a great start to their season going 3-1, with their only loss coming at the hands of the OUA first-place Ottawa Geegee's (4-0). Donnie Marshall (London, Ont.), son of coach Greg Marshall, has stepped in as the team's starter this season and has been impressive thus far. Throwing for 710 yards, with four touchdowns, on 48 completions, the junior has helped rack up the points against opponents. Unfortunately, Marshall has also thrown five interceptions and has been sacked eight times, which does not bode well coming in to play one the OUA's best defences. This being said, Marshall has also shown he is not afraid to keep the ball and pick up yards on the ground, tallying a whopping, team-leading, 339 yards rushing. The duplicity of Marshall's game will force Guelph to play highly disciplined on defense otherwise, should they slip up, it could cost them greatly.
Other major contributors on the Mustangs' offence include veteran running back Jerimy Hipperson (St. Catherines, Ont.), who has contributed 318 yards of rushing, with five touchdowns and 51 receiving yards on three catches. Zach Bull (Port Colborne, Ont.) has been the primary receiver for the Mustangs tallying 17 receptions, amassing 273 yards and three touchdowns, followed by Nick Trevail (London, Ont.) with 138 yards on 11 receptions.
Craig Butler (London, Ont.) has been the defensive leader for Western. With the second most tackles in the CIS at 35, Butler is also tied for the most interceptions, with four, and has picked up half a sack, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, as well as 4 broken up plays. John Surla (Niagra Falls, Ont.) and Jason Kosec (Tecumseh, Ont.), a pair of Mustang linebackers, have also displayed a degree of dominance on the field, each with 32 tackles, while Kosec also has 1 sack and 2 interceptions. On the frontline, defensive end, Rob Hennessey (Lindsay, Ont.) leads the team with four sacks.
The Gryphons and Mustangs have a long history and in the last fifteen meetings Western has had the advantage in fourteen. The one loss dealt to the Mustangs came in 2007, when the Gryphons came out with a 31-17 win in front of an enormous crowd at Homecoming and you can bet they are hoping for a similar outcome this weekend. Last year, Western just snuck past the Gryphons with a 41-39 victory in the regular season and then followed up by defeating the Gryphons 37-18 in the first round of playoff action.
This season, Guelph will be looking to send Western home with the sour taste of a loss, hoping to add to their three-game win streak before spending the next two weeks on the road. The game will be a battle to the last minute, as both teams showcase their extraordinary talent on both sides of the ball and the intensity will certainly cause excitement to boil up in the packed stands of Alumni Stadium.
Kickoff for the Homecoming tilt is Saturday (Sept. 25) at 1:00pm at Alumni Stadium. Tickets are sold out for the game, but you can watch LIVE coverage on THE SCORE television network.
Click here for more information on homecoming activities and the game day insider.
