WINDSOR, ON – Labour Day weekend produced some shocking results around OUA football. Unfortunately for the No. 6-ranked Guelph Gryphons, they were on the wrong end of one of those shocking results.
 
Monday afternoon in Windsor, the defending Yates Cup champion Gryphons suffered a 33-29 loss at the hands of the Windsor Lancers. Both teams now sit at 1-1 on the season.
 
Fresh off of an impressive Week 1 win over Toronto, the Gryphons traveled to Windsor having won five straight and eight of their last nine head-to-head meetings with the Lancers. The Lancers meanwhile were coming off of a humiliating Week 1 loss in London where the Western Mustangs handed them a 78-6 defeat.
 
What a difference a week can make.
 
The No. 4-ranked Mustangs were upset by the Carleton Ravens on Sunday night in Ottawa. And on Monday, there was another upset brewing in the OUA as the upstart Lancers were giving the Gryphons all they could handle.
 
The game started off on a good note for the Gryphons with quarterback James Roberts marching the offence 66 yards in seven plays, with the drive being capped off by a 22-yard touchdown pass to Colton Jones (Port Colborne, ON). For Roberts, it marked his first touchdown pass of the 2016 season. For Jones, it marked his first receiving touchdown at the university level as the second year receiver was dressing for just the second time in his career. It was also the lone touchdown of the first quarter as the Gryphons led 7-6 after 15 minutes of play.
 
In the second quarter, the Lancers would get a lift from their defence as they were twice able to intercept Roberts, with one of those INT's coming in the form of a 62-yard pick-six by Windsor defensive back Lekan Idowu (Houston, TX). His defensive touchdown gave the Lancers a 13-7 lead. The Lancers led 17-10 late in the opening half and were threatening to push their lead to double digits before the Gryphon defence came up with a big play of their own. With 1:53 left to go before halftime, third year Gryphon linebacker Luke Korol came up with an interception, picking off Lancers rookie quarterback Jalen Brady deep in Guelph territory. Korol also finished the day as the team's leading tackler with 10.5 tackles to go along with his interception. Thanks in part to some strong play by the Gryphon 'D', the deficit was just four heading into the half.
 
An exciting second half of action started with an unsuccessful onside attempt from the Lancers. The Gryphons would take advantage of the good field position by putting together a solid drive that ended with a Gabe Ferraro field goal. On Guelph's second possession of the third quarter, they would march 54-yards on six plays, with second year running back Jamal Hooker finishing off the drive with a 4-yard TD run. The major was Hooker's first as a Gryphon and Guelph led 20-17. But the lead would not last long.
 
Windsor was able to go back in front at the end of the third quarter when their star running back, Tarrence Crawford, capped off a long 75-yard drive by punching it in from two yards out on third and goal as the Lancers led 24-21 heading to the fourth. Crawford finished the day with 122 yards rushing on 20 carries (6.1 avg).
 
The biggest play of the game came with 6:41 remaining in regulation when Windsor receiver Noah Akharoh (Brampton, ON) hauled in a 54-yard touchdown pass to give the Lancers a 33-21 lead. While the upset alert was now on full blast, the defending Yates Cup champions showed tremendous character by fighting to the very end.
 
With 2:30 remaining, James Roberts connected with receiver Thomas Bresciani for a 20-yard touchdown strike to once again make it a one-score game at 33-27. The Gryphons followed that up with a successful onside kick attempt, giving them the ball and the momentum.
 
With 1:20 left in the final quarter, the Gryphons appeared to score the go-ahead touchdown, but Daniel Palmer-Salmon's 13-yard TD run was called back due to a holding. Palmer-Salmon led the Gryphons on the ground with 24 carries for 113 yards.
 
With just over a minute to go, Jamal Hooker would take a handoff from Roberts and plow his way down to the Windsor 11-yard line. However, Hooker would have the ball stripped by a Windsor tackler and the Lancers would jump on the loose ball to take over deep in their own end. It was one of two fumbles on the day by the Gryphons who were playing the game without the services of All-Star running back Johnny Augustine who suffered a lower body injury in Week 1 versus Toronto.
 
The Lancers would essentially run the clock out from there before conceding a late safety to make the final 33-29 in Windsor's favour.
 
In the loss, the Gryphons received several terrific individual efforts. Senior receiver Ryan Nieuwesteeg set career-highs with 12 catches for 139 yards. Quarterback James Roberts set career-highs in completions and attempts, finishing the day 31-for-47, 362 yards, 2 TD & 2 INT. The Gryphons out-gained the Lancers 533 to 389 in total offence.

The Gryphons were also whistled for 9 penalties for 100 yards, something interim head coach Kevin MacNeill addressed after the game, "We had a lack of discipline and focus today, and that falls on me. We can't be taking unnecessary penalties and still expect to win. We need to be better."
 
The Gryphons will now return home to take on the Queen's Gaels (0-1) on Saturday, September 10. The Gaels are coming off a bye week after suffering a loss to Laurier back in Week 1. Kickoff versus the Gaels at Alumni Stadium is set for 1pm on Saturday and will be televised live on Rogers Cable 20 for viewers in the Guelph area. The game will also be streamed live online at www.oua.tv.