CFL.ca Staff
HAMILTON — Ontario University Athletics (OUA) is back on The Score Television Network this Saturday at 1 p.m. ET as the No. 2 nationally-ranked Western Mustangs (3-0) visit the No. 10 Guelph Gryphons (2-1) in a key mid-season match-up.
On centre stage will be two fifth-year quarterbacks chasing OUA and Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) history, as both Justin Dunk (Guelph, Ont.) of the Gryphons and Michael Faulds (Eden Mills, Ont.) of the Mustangs are on pace to break the 10,000-passing yard barrier. Dunk leads OUA with 1,091 yards, an average of 364 yards per game. He currently has 8,758 career yards, good for third in OUA history and seventh on the all-time CIS list. The OUA record of 9,974 was set by McMaster pivot Ben Chapdelaine in 2001.
But right on Dunk’s heels is Faulds. The CIS-leading passer in 2008 is currently second in OUA with 932 yards, good for 311 yards per game. With 8,722 career yards, he is currently fourth on the all-time OUA list, and eighth in CIS history. Only 36 yards separate Dunk and Faulds entering play on Saturday.
“If we get a good dry day, I would expect there will be scoring,” predicted Western head coach Greg Marshall.
Both teams lead OUA in scoring, with Guelph averaging 56 points per game in its first three games. Although two wins have come against winless York and Toronto, the Gryphons scored 49 points against No. 5 Queen’s (3-0) in a 52-49 loss on Labour Day, proving they can also post big numbers against the elite teams. Western has averaged 40.7 points in its first three games.
To add to the intrigue, Faulds is also on track to break the all-time OUA completions record, needing to hit his receivers another 22 times. Josh Sacobie established the record of 637 last season, but with Faulds entering the game with 616 completions with five games to play, the record is on shaky ground.
But as great as these prolific passers are, the running game grabbed the headlines for both teams last weekend. Mustangs running back Nathan Riva (LaSalle, Ont.) scored five times in a 60-7 rout of the Windsor Lancers last Saturday. Four of those majors came on the ground.
“He accelerates as quickly as anyone we have, and I think this year he got a little more physical,” said Marshall about his running back. “He’s fearless.”
While Riva was honoured as OUA offensive player of the week as well as Pioneer Petroleums male athlete of the week, he overshadowed the performance of Gryphons running back Nick FitzGibbon (Puslinch, Ont.), who scored four touchdowns in a 53-25 win over the Toronto Varsity Blues on Sept. 18.
“Nick’s versatility is what makes him the big playmaker on our team,” said Guelph head coach Kyle Walters. “He catches as many balls as the receivers do.”
“He doesn’t have the flat out speed like Riva, but he’s very patient, and let’s his blocks set up. He moves laterally very well, and makes a lot of people miss in the open field.”
Guelph receiver Jedd Gardner (Niagara Falls, Ont.) leads OUA in receiving yards with 319 yards on 17 catches.
The Gryphons are nationally ranked for the first time since 2004, and will certainly move up the charts if they can pull off a win in front of a large homecoming crowd at Alumni Stadium in Guelph, Ont.
