CFL.ca Staff
VANCOUVER — They met three months ago in miserable conditions with nothing on the line. Four days from now, the Laval Rouge et Or and McMaster Marauders will meet again, this time for CIS football supremacy in the comfort of newly-renovated B.C. Place Stadium.
The 47th Vanier Cup championship, Friday at 6 p.m. Pacific Time (TSN & RDS), doesn’t lack storylines.
In the red corner, usual suspect Laval. In only their 16th year of existence, the defending national champion Rouge et Or hope to set a new record on Friday with a seventh Vanier Cup title, one more than Western Ontario. Their 29-2 triumph against Calgary a year ago in Quebec City improved their all-time record in the CIS final to 6-0, and helped Glen Constantin become the first sideline boss in history to capture five Vanier Cups as a head coach.
A win on Friday would also give the Rouge et Or a third CIS title in four seasons. Only two programs have accomplished the feat in the past, Western (1974, 1976, 1977) and Laval (2003, 2004, 2006).
In the maroon corner, new kid on the block McMaster. Thanks to a 45-21 win over Acadia in the Uteck Bowl, the Marauders advanced to the CIS championship game for only the second time in school history and for the first time since 1967. In that lone previous Vanier Cup appearance, they dropped a heartbreaking 10-9 decision to Alberta. Since then, Mac had gone 0-4 in CIS Bowl games, losing four straight national semifinals from 2000 to 2003.
The 47th Vanier Cup also promises to be a classic battle between one of the most explosive offences in the country and one of the stingiest defensive units.
After leading CIS in total offensive yards (530.5) and passing yards (329.9) per game in the regular season, while placing fifth in points (34.6 ppg), the OUA champion Marauders have scored at least 40 points in each of their three playoff matches and in six of their last seven games overall.
For their part, the Rouge et Or finished first in the country in least points allowed (12.0 ppg) for the fourth consecutive year and for the sixth time in the past eight campaigns. They had the best run defence in the nation (53.7) in conference play and proved their worth once again in a 41-10 Mitchell Bowl win over Calgary, holding the three-headed monster of Steven Lumbala, Matt Walter and Anthony Woodson to 33 yards combined on the ground. Laval has allowed 24 points (17 on defence) in three post-season duels and only once in 12 overall games have their opponents managed to score more than 15 points.
Laval and McMaster have met twice in the past in official competition, with the Rouge et Or claiming both matchups in Hamilton. Both victories, 49-6 in interlock play in 1999 and 36-32 in the Mitchell Bowl in 2003, were followed a few weeks later by Vanier Cup triumphs.
The two teams squared off for the third time three months ago, on August 28, with Laval prevailing 24-10 in hurricane-like conditions in Quebec City. Friday’s rematch will mark the third time in their last four Vanier Cup appearances that the Rouge et Or competes for the CIS title against the opponent they hosted in the pre-season. They ended up hoisting the coveted trophy the previous two times, in 2006 against Saskatchewan and in 2008 versus Western.
-With files from the CIS
