IN THE HUDDLE: Bringing the stones

For the third year running, IN THE HUDDLE is Mike Hogan’s weekly take on OUA Football. From standout performances, to the hard honest truth, check back weekly as Hogan breaks down the season until the 105th Yates Cup is awarded.

November 7, 2012 - Bringing the stones

It's several days after the Guelph/Queen's game and it's still hard to believe that it happened.

Almost five minutes into the fourth quarter the Gaels had a seemingly insurmountable 36-14 lead. Then, one of the most improbable comebacks in CIS history began. Taylor Palmer blocked a punt; Jake Reinhart recovered it and ran it into the end zone, 36-21. Jazz Lindsey ran 80 yards down the sideline, 36-28. Zach Androschuk intercepted a ball that hit two other players, then to complete the ensuing drive short-yardage QB Luke Nangle hit Saxon Lindsey for a touchdown, 36-34. To complete to comeback Carl Trivieri hauled in a pass for a two point conversion, 36-36.

Guelph scored 22 points in less than ten minutes. Then in overtime, after a Dillon Wamsley FG gave Queen's the lead, Jazz Lindsey hit Mike Fortino in tight coverage and he ran into the end zone for an incredible win and a trip to McMaster for the 105^th Yates Cup final.

Not to rain on a glorious parade, but one has to wonder if Queen's would have been able to run out the clock if Ryan Granberg was in the lineup. The country's second-leading rusher was injured on a meaningless play in the dying seconds of the season finale against Toronto. It would prove to be his final play of the year.

Again, that's not to take anything away from the comeback that Gryphons Head Coach Stu Lang and his charges provided for the fans at Alumni Stadium. Lang was a receiver with the Gaels when they were still Golden. He went on to a CFL career where he won five Grey Cups with the Edmonton Eskimos. Did it make Saturday's comeback win even sweeter since it was against Queen's?

"Um....yes.”

That reply was followed by some laughter and a mention that his team was well aware of that fact.

Here are a couple of facts from the game that you likely didn't know.

Jazz Lindsey wears number 2, just as his favourite player Cam Newton did when he played at Auburn. Lindsey even dons a Superman t-shirt during the week. Before the drive that Lindsey ran for the 80-yard TD, Lang admitted that he turned to Jazz and said, “now's the time for a Cam Newton comeback.”

As for the coach's view of the winning TD, “he was obviously well covered and I thought it would be knocked down. If you see the game film you can see the whole team move out on the field to see if he made the catch, then run along the field with him to the end zone.”

With the Queen's game now in the rear view mirror, the focus has shifted to this Saturday's game at McMaster. You know, the Marauders? The team that is 9-0 this year, has been ranked No. 1 in the country since the pre-season poll, the team that has won this year by an average score of 45-17 and humbled Guelph 50-9 in the season opener?

Oh ya, those guys.

“It's arguably the best collection of athletes to play in the OUA, although Neil Lumsden may disagree,” said Lang. Lumsden, now the Gryphons RB Coach, played for the '75 Ottawa Gee Gees, considered by many to be the best OUA team ever. A total of 11 players from that team played at least three seasons in the CFL, including Lumsden, Hall of Famer Rocky DiPietro and current CHML radio broadcaster Miles Gorrell, who covers the Marauders.

So how do you upset a team like Mac, where there is a considerable difference in talent?

“We initially had to just calm down and refocus,” said Lang. “This was a fantastic win for the players and the students who celebrated on the field, but we now have to focus on what we do well. We're more of a lunch-bucket group that likes to work hard.”

Despite the obvious work ethic of the Gryphons, facing McMaster makes one think of other underdogs who ended up being successful. One that springs to mind is David, who according to the Bible killed a nine foot tall giant named Goliath with a slingshot.

Lang admits to being a man of faith and when asked by 'In The Huddle' if he plans to bring up any religious parables this week he said he would and that the story of David and Goliath would be one of them. He added a warning for the Marauders.

"We're bringing the stones.”

Lang has a philosophy about playoff games and it's all about execution, an area in which his team will have to be nearly perfect on Saturday if they're to pull off the upset.

"I believe that in playoff games, teams tend to lose games not win them.” Lang was also philosophical when asked point blank if he thinks they can win this game.

"Of course, that's why we play.”

The 'O' Zone: It's nice to see CFL players who keep tabs on their alma mater. This week at Argo practice former McMaster lineman Chris Van Zeyl saw me and immediately made the "M" sign with his fingers. Meanwhile, former Guelph LB Mike O'Shea, now the Argos Special Teams Coordinator, was beaming about the win and said that he was able to watch the last ten minutes of the game after his daily coaching duties were done. When that was relayed to Coach Lang he responded by laughing and adding, "That's different. I wish I had a loonie for everyone who has told me that they turned the game off with ten minutes left."...Last season Michael DiCroce was the OUA Player of the Year, but was injured in training camp and missed the entire regular season. How did he fare in his return? How about five catches for 139 yards and a pair of TDs, including a 103 yarder in the third quarter that gave McMaster a lead it never relinquished...Tanner Forsythe was the latest RB to start for the Marauders. He carried the ball 17 times for 97 yards and a pair of majors...This is the final 'In The Huddle' of the season. My thanks goes out to Ward Dilse and Jessica Barrett at the OUA, to the coaches who were regular contributors to the column and to those who took the time to drop me an e-mail to talk OUA football. Good luck to whoever survives Saturday's game, here's hoping they make it to the Vanier Cup.
 
Mike Hogan is the play-by-play voice of the Argos, host of ‘Argos All Access’, and the hit weekend program ‘TSN 1050 Game-Day’ airing weekends on TSN Radio 1050 (tsn1050.ca). No stranger to OUA football, Hogan has provided the radio play-by-play of 13 Vanier Cup games and is a member of the CIS Football Top-10 Committee. Follow Mike on Twitter @tsnmikehogan, or email him at mike.hogan@oua.ca.

---

October 31, 2012 - The final four

For a more detailed breakdown of Western and Queen's just scroll down and check out last week's column.

No. 8 Western (6-3) at No. 1 McMaster (8-0)

The toughest part about previewing the Marauders is trying to figure out where to start. Every element of the team is playing very well right now, so let’s start with the man almost unanimously hailed as this year's Hec Crighton winner as the country's top player.

The Marauders have not lost a game since losing to Western in week two last season and Kyle Quinlan is the biggest reason why. Quinlan was suspended for three games after that loss and has come back with a new sense of focus. He's simply the best passer in the country and he's become an incredibly dangerous threat to run. His 19 TD passes led the country and remarkably he threw only two INTs against the 19 majors, an absolutely frightening stat.

What's even scarier is that the Marauders have been this dominant without their starting RB and the OUA's top player of a year ago, both of whom were injured within about five minutes of each other in training camp. Chris Pezzetta was entering his second season at RB, but hurt his knee and needed surgery. Michael DiCroce had 48 catches for over 900 yards last year, but hasn't been in the lineup all season due to a foot injury. He should be in the lineup this week against Western. He'll obviously have some rust to shake off, but he knows the system inside and out and is certainly not suffering from the normal wear and tear of a season. Adding DiCroce to a group that includes Robert Babic, Brad Fochesato and Max Cameron almost seems unfair at this point.

If there is a negative right now it's that Jimmy Hill, who was supposed to be the main fill in for Pezzetta, is also out for the season. That leaves the rushing duties to Kasean Davis-Reynolds, who only carried the ball 62 times this year, but averaged a CIS-best 8.9 yards a carry.

Mac’s O-line is dominant. Matt Sewell leads the group and may get the nod as the OUA's top lineman this year. Mac’s 'hoggies' are equally adept at protecting Quinlan or opening holes for the RBs. Watching them match up with Western's veteran D-line should be fun for those who appreciate line play.

Again, the Marauders have a wealth of talent on defence, led by an aggressive group of ball hawks on the back end. They tied for the CIS lead in interceptions, averaging two per game. Steven Ventresca led the team with four picks, and Mike Daly added three.

The front seven can be a nightmare for opponents, especially the guy wearing number 52. Ben D'Aguilar has never met a QB that he didn't want to hit. He's pretty good at it too, co-leading the CIS in sacks with 12.5. It's a veteran group that probably doesn't get its proper recognition because of the bevy of talent on the other side of the football.

Also lost in the shuffle is PK Tyler Crapigna. Remember his missed FG attempt in the dying seconds of the fourth quarter at the Vanier Cup? It was his last miss. After kicking the Vanier Cup winner in double overtime, Crapigna went 18/18 this season in that category. He had a 46 yarder that was the fourth longest in the country this year.

Head Coach Stefan Ptaszek is joined by coordinators Jon Behie and Greg Knox. Mac is the best team in the country, but as they say, strange things can happen on any given Saturday.

Western's win over Windsor last week was more than just a little impressive. In the first half the Mustangs rolled up 44 points en route to a 56-35 win in a game that was never in doubt. QB Will Finch was in command from the opening series and ended up completing 20 of 29 passes for 334 yards, no INTs and four TDs, all to Matt Uren, who totaled eight catches for 166 yards. He was named the OUA's top offensive player for the week as a result. Uren also provided those who braved rainy conditions in London with the game's most exciting play, a 71-yard punt return that was stopped just shy of the end zone.

Garret Sanvido led the CIS in rushing, but missed last week's game. IN THE HUDDLE anticipated prior to last week that if he wasn't able to go, Yannick Harou would be more than an adequate fill in. He was. The freshman got the rock 22 times and finished with 133 yards and a pair of majors. Sanvido's status for this week is unknown.

It was Pawel Kruba who sparked the team last week with a 60-yard INT return for a TD to open the scoring. It was one of three INTs in the game for the Mustangs, who have a total of seven INTs this season with six of them coming against Windsor. The pick may have pumped up Kruba even more than usual. He led Western with nine tackles.

Lirim Hajrullahu hit both of his FG attempts, though the 'Stangs did have a conversion attempt blocked.

Previous meeting: It was the game that changed Western's season. In the fourth quarter Donnie Marshall would leave the game with an ankle injury, paving the way for Finch to enter the game and change the look of the Mustang offence for the rest of the season. With just 2:05 on the clock and the score 33-18, Finch got in for two series and went 6/8 for 142 yards and a TD, the 'Stangs scored nine points making the final score a respectable 33-27. The best of the three QBs that day was Quinlan, who passed for 247 yards and rushed for 145 more. Sanvido led Western with 109 yards rushing and a pair of TDs. MAC's defence had nine sacks on the afternoon. Over 10,000 watched the game at TD Waterhouse and it should be another big crowd at McMaster this time around.
 
No. 6 Queen's (7-2) at No. 5 Guelph (7-1)

At the beginning of the season the Guelph Gryphons were the biggest question mark in the OUA. They had talent, but they were still pretty young. They should make the playoffs, but would they be good enough to get a home game? Who was going to be their top running back?

With so many questions you'd be hard pressed to find a Gryphon fan who realistically thought they'd finish 7-1 and be hosting a semifinal game, but that's exactly what happened.

One of the biggest questions that plagued Head Coach Stu Lang heading into the season was who was going to get the most carries. Corey Davidson was the odds-on favourite entering camp, but a 5'9', 210 pound, third-year player from Niagara Falls emerged as the top back. Not only did Rob Farquharson win the job, he became the Gryphon’s top offensive threat, finishing with 936 yards rushing, the third-highest total in the country.

Jazz Lindsey has become a very good quarterback, not great, but very good. The most impressive part of his game has been the way he's cut down on picks. Last year he threw six INTs in 157 attempts. This season he threw 71 more passes and two fewer interceptions. He has a very talented receiving corps and knows how to use it.

You won't find any Guelph receivers anywhere near the CIS leaders statistically, mainly because there isn't one or even two 'go to' guys. Carl Trivieri, Dillon Dimitroff, A'dre Fraser, Michael Fortino and the QB's brother Saxon Lindsey are all equal parts of the offence. It's a hard group to game plan against.

Much like the receiving corps, the defence is an 'all for one, one for all' type of group. Led by LBs John Rush, Jake Reinhart and Jarryd Baines, it's a disruptive gang that hits very hard. Guelph averages three sacks per game and tied for the lead in the CIS with 16 interceptions, with Bryan Dunjko leading the Gryphs with three.

Julian Tropea handles the kicking and his longest FG of the season was from 42 yards. The Gryphons are aggressive on specials and blocked four punts this season.

Queen's didn't look great in the early going against Laurier, but a rouge on the game's opening kickoff would prove to be enough in the 34-0 win.

Dillon Wamsley's single would be the only point of the first ten minutes, before OUA special teams player of the week Chris Patrician returned a punt 94 yards for a TD and after that you got the sense the game wasn't in doubt.

The Gaels were without Ryan Granberg in the game. The country's second-leading rusher was injured late in the regular season finale against Toronto. Second-year RB Jesse Andrews filled in and looked very good, carrying the ball 22 times for 135 yards against a defence that held Granberg to his lowest rushing total of the season back in week two. Granberg's status for Saturday is unknown at the time this column was filed on Wednesday.

Billy McPhee was calm, cool and collected. The QB had a very efficient afternoon, passing for 225 yards and a TD, but most importantly no INTs. That, however, was against a Laurier team that had the fewest picks in the CIS. This week he faces an interception-happy secondary at Guelph.

Giovanni Aprile and Justin Chapdelaine were relatively quiet against Laurier, combining for just eight catches for 69 yards. It was Scott Macdonell who had the big day for the Tricolour, catching nine passes for 101 yards.

Derek Wiggan seemed to be in Laurier's backfield more than the Golden Hawk QBs. He had a pair of sacks and three more tackles behind the line of scrimmage. The Gaels simply dominated their young opponents and the Gaels 'D' is getting hot at exactly the right time. It did lead the OUA with 33 sacks in the regular season.

They say in football the two most telling stats are turnovers and penalties. This week something will have to give. Guelph was the top team in the +/- takeaway department, finishing the regular season with a +12, while Queen's at -10 was last in the OUA. Conversely Queen's was flagged for an OUA-low 477 penalty yards, while Guelph took over twice that many at 970. Those categories will be interesting to check out after the game is over.

Previous meeting: October 13th wasn't a lucky day for the Gaels. They travelled to Alumni Stadium and at the mid-way point of the second quarter had a 28-3 lead, but then the luck started to change. Jazz Lindsey ran for a pair of TDs before the half ended. MacKenzie Myers returned an INT 76 yards for a TD, then Rob Farquharson rushed for a major. The Gryphons added a rouge for the fourth quarter's only point and the home side walked away with a stunning come from behind 33-28 win. The comeback gave them home field advantage for Saturday's game. Neither Farquharson or Granberg had a great day by their standards, rushing for 89 and 88 yards respectively. McPhee had a big day throwing for 335 yards, but four INTs were costly, particularly the pick six. Lindsey threw for a more conservative total of 183 yards but did not throw a pick. Aprile had the best day of any receiver, catching six passes for 138 yards and a TD. One of the most surprising numbers of the day was seeing the usually disciplined Gaels taking a dozen penalties for 114 yards. Only 500 people were on hand to see the upset. I'm hopeful there will be a lot more in attendance on Saturday.

The 'O' Zone: After a disappointing and very frustrating season there was a small part of me that thought Gary Jeffries might resign as the Head Coach at Laurier. At a fund raiser last year he said he almost hung up the headset for good after last year's playoff loss at Queen's. What I didn't expect was that the decision would be made for him, but sadly that's the case. Athletic Director Peter Baxter told IN THE HUDDLE on Monday that the coach has some options, but remaining on as Head Coach doesn't appear to be one of them. "Gary drove up to (his home in) Southampton (to make his decision). I am respecting Gary and his time up there after this tough season. He is considering options and I will wait to hear from him later this week.” Jeffries first arrived at the campus in 1970 and has played football and coached both football and basketball. In his 10 seasons as the Head Coach of the football team he has been the OUA Coach of the Year four times and won the CIS Coach of the Year once. Most impressively, he led the Hawks to the 2005 Vanier Cup. I've been a part of CIS, CFL, NHL, OHL and MLB broadcasts over the last 30 years and there is nobody I have more respect for than 'Coach Jeff'. I called Hawk games for four seasons and never felt more connected with a group than the coaches and players there and he's the number one reason why. If you want to find out the respect level for Jeffries, just ask another OUA coach about him, but be prepared for a long, ringing endorsement. If he decides that 42 years at WLU is enough, the OUA will greatly miss one of its truest gentlemen.

Mike Hogan is the play-by-play voice of the Argos, host of ‘Argos All Access’, and the hit weekend program ‘TSN 1050 Game-Day’ airing weekends on TSN Radio 1050 (tsn1050.ca). No stranger to OUA football, Hogan has provided the radio play-by-play of 13 Vanier Cup games and is a member of the CIS Football Top-10 Committee. Follow Mike on Twitter @tsnmikehogan, or email him at mike.hogan@oua.ca.

---

October 24, 2012 - Round one

Windsor (3-5) at Western (5-3)

As they head into the playoffs, the Western Mustangs may be the most enigmatic of the qualifying teams.

Two weeks ago they pounded Laurier, and then last week needed a last second FG to defeat the Ottawa Gee-Gees. Is Laurier that bad? Was Ottawa that good at the end of the season? There's one thing for sure, there's a big drop off in experience at QB with freshman Will Finch in for injured fifth-year pivot Donnie Marshall.

There's no doubt that Finch is a better pure passer than Marshall and can certainly run with the football, evidenced by his 136 rushing yards last week. What he does not possess is the benefit of an OUA postseason and the value of experience is magnified in the playoffs. That being said, Finch has plenty of big game experience at the high school and international levels.

Garret Sanvido led the CIS in rushing this season despite missing the Ottawa game with a hip flexor issue. He should be ready, but if he can't go the Mustangs have freshman Yannick Harou behind him on the depth chart. He lit up Ottawa for 181 yards last week.

While Donnie Marshall is not in the lineup, his younger brother Brian is. He's become the go-to receiver on the 'Stangs. The offensive line is huge and experienced. Western averaged over 40 points per game this season, only McMaster and Calgary scored more.

It's somewhat shocking to think that Western only had four INTs all season and three of them came against Windsor. It's a talented group led by Dylan Ainsworth and his 9.5 sacks, Beau Landry and the hard hitting Mike Spence. The secondary will be tested all day long by Kennedy and company and will have to be assignment strong.

Lirim Hajrullahu was 19/25 in FGs and led the country in scoring.

The most shocking score of the entire season was last week's 48-29 Waterloo upset of Windsor. The Lancers entered the season as a team that many thought could finish as high as second in the OUA and they even cracked the CIS Top Ten early on.

Windsor is a threat to score at any time from any spot on the field. Austin Kennedy led the CIS is passing and Jordan Brescacin led the country in catches and receiving yards. Brescacin also broke Andy Fantuz's OUA record for career receptions, finishing with 191. His 67 catches this season also set a conference record. The problem is that if you pay too much attention to Brescacin then Evan Pszczonak will burn you. The pair combined for 14 TD catches this season.

The passing game is Windsor's bread and butter and it shows in the running statistics. Among OUA teams only Waterloo and Laurier had fewer yards rushing. Jamal Darius led the Lancers with just 320 yards, good for 32nd in the country.

Windsor has no choice but to tighten up against the run, Sanvido or no Sanvido. The Lancers allowed opponents almost 200 yards a game on the ground and that's not a good matchup to say the least. LB Brad Adams and DL Thai Pham are the key players to watch. Pham had 7.5 sacks this year.

Dan Cerino was 8/12 in FGs with a long of 35 yards and is one of the best punters in the country.

Previous meeting:  There was no question the ball was bouncing the Mustangs’ way in their week four matchup with the Lancers. Western intercepted Kennedy three times and while the 'Stangs fumbled five times on offence they recovered four of the five. Sanvido rushed for over 200 yards and scored twice. Harou rushed for two fourth quarter TDs and the Marshall boys combined for a major in a 46-23 win at TD Waterhouse Stadium. Austin Kennedy torched the home side for 364 yards and a pair of TDs, but the INTs proved to be too much. It was 29-2 after three quarters. Western took 16 penalties for 105 yards.

Laurier (3-5) at Queen's (6-2)

It made no sense then and makes even less sense now.

Leading the U-of-T Varsity Blues 35-3 and with just 27 seconds left in the game, Queen's Head Coach Pat Sheahan sent star RB Ryan Granberg back on the field for the final series. Granberg was 34 yards shy of 1,000 on the season. He got the ball, was hit hard and was injured. Here's how the Kingston Whig Standard's Claude Scilley described what happened next:

“A hushed crowd at Richardson Stadium watched while Granberg lay motionless near midfield for more than a minute. Helped to his feet, Granberg tried to come off the field under his own steam but he staggered and had to be carried the rest of the way to the sideline.”

It may be a decision Sheahan regrets. Granberg finished second in the CIS in rushing and if he's not able to go Jesse Andrews should get the start. He's been listed as the backup tailback all season, but only carried the ball 15 times for 105 yards.

The good news for the Gaels is that the offence doesn't totally rely on rushing the football. Billy McPhee has become the QB everyone thought he would. His arm strength was apparent in his freshman season and he's now grown to be a solid starter. If there is one concern it's that he's been sacked 25 times. Only two CIS QBs were behind him in that category. He also threw nine picks.

McPhee also has the luxury of having two equally dangerous receivers at his disposal. Giovanni Aprile and Justin Chapdelaine each caught 36 passes this season.

Defensively, there aren't many players in the country better than Sam Sabourin. He flies to the ball and is certainly worthy of all-star recognition again this year. The key to stopping the Hawks is exploiting the young O-line and the Gaels are built to do that. Cory Dyer was third in the CIS with 10.5 sacks. One can assume defensive coordinator Pat Tracey will release the hounds all afternoon long.

Freshman Dillon Wamsley has a huge leg but was only 13/20 this year. His longest was 48 yards. The Gaels also have a dynamic return game which should allow them to win the battle of field position.
Laurier has been outscored by a mind-numbing total of 99-3 in the last two weeks.

The biggest problem Gary Jeffries has is figuring out how to get his offence to show a pulse. In their three games in October they've scored no TDs and just five FGs. The offence has been so inefficient that Travis Eman's one-yard QB sneak against York in week three was the Hawks only rushing touchdown all season. They were shutout in the first and last games of the regular season. The offensive line is young and undersized. They have a freshman quarterback and their receivers have dropped a ton of passes this season. Isaac Dell and Alex Anthony have to have big games or the Hawks could be in deep trouble.

Laurier's strength is its front four and Mitchell Bosch has been outstanding, although he looked to be a little nicked up in the McMaster game. LB Drew Galpin led the country with 59 tackles. They are capable of getting to McPhee, but the secondary will have to step it up. The Hawks had but three INTs all year, worst in the CIS.

Ronnie Pfeffer was 12/17 in FGs this year with a long kick of 44, but his punting has been inconsistent.

Previous meeting: They first met in week two and the first 28 minutes of the game were close. It was 8-2 for Queen's when the Gaels broke it open with two TDs in the final 75 seconds of the first half and ended up cruising to a 42-16 win at Knight-Newbrough Field. The Hawks did a nice job containing Granberg, who was limited to 55 yards on 18 carries, his worst rushing performance of the season. Laurier's offence was ineffective all night with both Eman and Steve Fantham taking snaps. Eman was 9/12 for 87 yards, 1 TD and 2 INTs.

The 'O' Zone: Many people thought that McGill moving to the OUA next season was a done deal. This week McGill's request was denied. OUA executive director Ward Dilse told 'In The Huddle' why. "The Ontario University Athletics Board of Directors denied McGill's request for playing privileges for the sole reason that they already have a viable league to compete in CIS football and the opportunity to compete for the Vanier Cup. OUA offers playing privileges in circumstances where teams do not have access to sports in their own Regional Association, which included McGill in men's hockey, women's field hockey and men's and women's rowing"...I'd like to thank the OUA coaches who are now watching the postseason from the outside looking in. Coaches Craney, Gary and Paopao have been nothing but a joy to deal with. While I have yet to speak to Coach McDiarmid since his appointment, there is no doubt the Gee-Gees responded to him, falling a last-second field goal shy of a playoff spot. Happy recruiting gentlemen!...It was announced last week that TSN Radio will be broadcasting this year's Vanier Cup. I'll be calling the game with Sandy Annunziata, who was a member of the '89 Vanier Cup winning team from Western and also won Grey Cups in Toronto and Edmonton. This will be my 13th Vanier Cup play-by-play assignment and it was certainly a thrill to get the news...The OUA dominated statistically with the following players leading the country in the following categories: Western's Sanvido in rushing, Windsor's Kennedy in passing yards, McMaster's Kyle Quinlan in TD passes, Windsor's Brescacin in receptions and yards, Laurier's Galpin in tackles, Waterloo's Christian Mahler in interceptions, Mac’s Ben D'Aguilar in sacks, kicker Tyler Crapigna of McMaster was a perfect 18/18 in FGs with a long of 46 yards, while Matt Falvo of Ottawa kicked a 51 yarder, the longest in the CIS this year.

Mike Hogan is the play-by-play voice of the Argos, host of ‘Argos All Access’, and the hit weekend program ‘TSN 1050 Game-Day’ airing weekends on TSN Radio 1050 (tsn1050.ca). No stranger to OUA football, Hogan has provided the radio play-by-play of 13 Vanier Cup games and is a member of the CIS Football Top-10 Committee. Follow Mike on Twitter @tsnmikehogan, or email him at mike.hogan@oua.ca.
 

---

October 17, 2012 - El perfecto

“It's not an agenda item.”

There are but a few head football coaches who could make the prospect of a perfect football season sound clinical, but Stefan Ptaszek is not your typical head coach. While the man who heads McMaster's program is more than capable of showing emotion and firing up his players with a paint peeling pregame speech, Ptaszek has always come across as professorial tactician first and rah-rah guy second.

That doesn't mean he's above evoking emotional recall as incentive, hearkening back to last year's 48-21 blowout at the hands of the Western Mustangs, their only loss of the season.

“Because we didn't have a perfect record last year we talk about the (butt) kicking we took against Western. We didn't work hard enough that day and that scares us to death. OUA teams have outplayed us in spurts this year and we are vulnerable.”

They are? If a 7-0 record, an average score of 46-18 and just one close game, again to Western, means that a team is vulnerable, one would hate to see a team that fancies itself as invincible.

That perceived vulnerability is something that suits Ptaszek just fine. At the beginning of the season ‘In The Huddle' asked the coach if he was going to do something to make sure that the team didn't become too full of itself coming off a Vanier Cup championship and having most of the roster back in place. He said he didn't have to.

“If I felt a sense of entitlement I may have done something, but we've done nothing formal. I've watched our captains all year long and there's been a sense of grumpiness with them. They've had a few team discussions about being outworked.”

Even if they've been lackadaisical at times, they have not been in a situation where their opponent has had more talent. This underscores how deep the team is, as the Marauders lost receiver Michael DiCroce and RB Chris Pezzetta in training camp, not surprisingly something the coach remembers vividly.

“We're helping Pezzetta down the stairs and we see DiCroce limping off the field. In five minutes we lost the OUA player of the year and one of last year's top rookies in the CIS.”

Pezzetta is gone for the season and had knee surgery a couple of weeks ago. DiCroce broke a bone in his foot and the coach says the injury has been frustrating for all involved.

“The initial diagnosis was that the break needed four weeks minimum and six to eight weeks max. He's having soft tissue issues right now and we're being very cautious. If there's any soreness at all we're going to play it safe, but Mike is chomping at the bit and going crazy.”

The mental anguish may be about to end for the fourth-year receiver. In fact, Ptaszek says he may play this week against Laurier and if that's the case he should be able to help the Marauders in the playoffs despite missing the entire regular season to date.

“I'm putting him on our 55-man roster and he'll be a game-time decision. Mike is a senior and if anyone can step in and contribute right away it's him.”

Jimmy Hill and Kasean Davis-Reynolds have picked up Pezzetta's carries quite nicely, while Robert Babic has been a real eye-opener as QB Kyle Quinlan's top target. With 49 catches in the first seven games Babic is just four shy of MAC's single-season record of 53 held by current Toronto Argonaut Mike Bradwell.

"In the past, Babic was never the top receiver," said Ptaszek. “Now teams are game planning to stop Robert. He runs crisp routes, he catches everything thrown at him and he's tough as nails. He's that good.”

The Marauders as a whole are also that good and it's not the first time Ptaszek has been on a team with that kind of talent. As a player he won a Vanier Cup with Laurier in 1991. He'd also lift that trophy in 2005 as the Hawks Offensive Coordinator before winning it a third time last year at McMaster. He's also been a part of talented teams that have not won a title. He points to two specific commonalities that link the three national championship teams.

"Seniors ended their careers playing their best football in the playoffs,” singling out players like Andy Cecchini and current McMaster Defensive Coordinator Greg Knox in '91, Ryan Pyear and Ian Logan in '05 and Ryan Chmielewski and Matt Peressini last year.

The other common thread?

“Each staff had a sense of family. They would do anything to make everyone better.”

Is that something he specifically learned from Laurier's head coach Gary Jeffries, the man who will lead the team McMaster hosts this week?

“Absolutely. Jeff has always said there's no shame in getting knocked down if you get up again every single time,” which is something Jeffries has been doing as a football coach for 30 years, something Ptaszek joked he can't begin to fathom.

“At 40 this is killing me. Every one year as a head coach feels like seven years so I feel like I've been a head coach for 49 years.”

A lengthy coaching career at McMaster is something Marauder fans are hoping appears on Ptaszek's agenda.

The "O" Zone: Windsor beat Laurier 65-8 in the 1975 Yates Cup final. The Hawks hadn't lost a game that badly until Saturday's 56-3 loss at Western. Laurier actually scored first in the game and proceeded to give up 56 straight points. Believe it or not Laurier had possession for almost 11 more minutes than the Mustangs. Will Finch and Brian Marshall hooked up for four TD passes, including a pair in the first quarter from 69 and 55 yards out. Marshall was the OUA's and CIS’s offensive player of the week. Things aren't any rosier for Laurier this week as they travel to McMaster...U-of-T could have forced Laurier to upset Mac if the Blues had defeated York last week, but the Lions scored 23 second-quarter points in their 36-24 Red & Blue Bowl win. If York, Toronto or Ottawa want to get into the playoff discussion they have to beat Guelph, Queen's and/or Western respectively, Here's a link to the full playoff scenario http://www.oua.ca/news/2012/10/16/FB_1016122909.aspx ...Queen's should be in a nasty mood after blowing a 28-3 lead at Guelph. The Gryphons put up 30 consecutive points to clinch second place in the conference and a quarter-final bye. They'll also host Queen's in the playoffs, should the Gaels advance to the second round. Guelph held Ryan Granberg to just 88 yards rushing, only the second time he's been under 100 yards this year. The Gaels did a nice job on the Gryphs’ Rob Farquharson, limiting him to 93 yards. The usually disciplined Gaels took an uncharacteristic 12 penalties for 114 yards...Do you think Ottawa misses the double-wing offence? The Gee-Gees lit up Waterloo for 61 points. Brendan Gillanders rushed for 246 yards and four TDs, while Mack Tommy also went over the 100-yard mark on the ground. Here's a weird stat: Waterloo had 142 net yards on offence, yet receiver Nick Anapolsky had 166 yards in receptions...Stat update: Windsor's Austin Kennedy leads McMaster's Kyle Quinlan by 144 yards atop the CIS passing parade. Garret Sanvido needs one yard for 1,000 on the season and has a 131-yard lead on Granberg. Farquharson is another 54 yards back as the OUA boasts the top three rushers in the country. Windsor's Jordan Brescacin has five more catches and 93 more receiving yards than Anapolsky as they're 1-2 in the CIS in both categories. Mac’s Tyler Crapigna is a remarkable 17/17 in FG attempts this year, his longest coming from 46 yards...Teammate Ben D'Aguilar set the CIS single-season record against Windsor by recording a sack to give him 12.5 on the season. Current Queen's assistant coach Leroy Blugh had a dozen for Bishop's in 1988.

Mike Hogan is the play-by-play voice of the Argos, host of ‘Argos All Access’, and the hit weekend program ‘TSN 1050 Game-Day’ airing weekends on TSN Radio 1050 (tsn1050.ca). No stranger to OUA football, Hogan has provided the radio play-by-play of 13 Vanier Cup games and is a member of the CIS Football Top-10 Committee. Follow Mike on Twitter @tsnmikehogan, or email him at mike.hogan@oua.ca.

---

October 10, 2012 - Pigskin parenthood

"I heard him scream and I knew it was bad.”

Not the words you ever want to hear from a parent talking about their child, but that's what Western head coach Greg Marshall went through with his son, Donnie.

Donnie was the Mustangs QB and unquestionably their team leader. While rolling out in a game against McMaster two weeks ago, he was hit from behind and the defensive player came down with all his weight on Marshall's ankle. It was evident to anyone who watched that it was not a minor injury. The vocal reaction from the QB emphasized how bad it was and it led the coach to leave the sidelines to see his boy.

"I did run out. It's hard with all of these kids, but I know Donnie's pretty tough. Whether he's three or 23 he's your kid and it's hard. I was thinking I should have got him into golf.”

It's easy to joke about it now. Donnie is still on crutches dealing with a high ankle sprain to the same ankle that required surgery last year. He'll hopefully be back on his feet next week without the need for support.

Papa Greg is in a unique situation because not only is Donnie on the team, his other sons Brian and Tom are also on the Mustangs. The coach said it was obvious on the sidelines that they were taking the injury hard as well.

“They know how hard Donnie has worked. Growing up he had asthma and was allergic to everything. If you saw him between the ages of five and eight you'd never think he'd become an athlete, but he's got that fight in him. He'd run cross country and carry a puffer with him in one hand. In hockey he was a house league goalie but made the rep team as a forward because he just worked so hard.”

From a parenting position, seeing the starting QB injured was tough. From a coaching perspective, the elder Marshall knew he had a capable replacement in highly recruited freshman Will Finch, but just two days after Donnie's injury another twist of fate occurred. Finch underwent an emergency appendectomy. Blake Huggins, who was playing with the OFC's London Beefeaters, was now up.

“On the Monday we decided not to dress Blake as Will's backup for the Guelph game because the Beefeaters had a playoff game,” Marshall told 'In The Huddle'. “But then I got the call from Will's dad about the surgery. I walked back to the Beefeaters practice and told them there had been a change in plans; you'd better get someone else ready.”

The Beefeaters run the same offence as Western, so Huggins was prepared, but Marshall said that Finch wasn't about to give up his opportunity to start without a fight.

“Will had the appendectomy on Monday night and watched practice Tuesday and Wednesday. He threw lightly on Thursday and then gave it everything on Friday. We met with Will, his dad, team doctors and orthopedic surgeons and the doctors said that if he feels okay than he's good to go and that the risk is really, really, really small. In hindsight would we have done the same thing again? Probably.”

Finch threw four interceptions in the game against Guelph and found himself on the bench. Huggins played very well when he got in, going 12-18 for 121 yards. The Beefeaters were able to win their semifinal last week and will play their championship game this week without Huggins, who lost his OFC eligibility due to his appearance with Western, so he's now with the 'Stangs for good.

So Coach, who gets the start Saturday when the Mustangs host Laurier?

“We met on Monday and Will took 98% of the snaps on Tuesday, if that's any indication.”

Finch's start adds another story line to a game that is important for both teams, but particularly crucial for the Golden Hawks. It will be incredibly interesting to see what Laurier Defensive Coordinator Ron VanMoerkerke draws up for the rookie.

The "O" Zone: The "battle royale" in the Western/Laurier game will be between the Mustangs O-line and the Hawks D-line. That will be worth the price of admission...I was at Knight-Newbrough Field for the Laurier/Waterloo game. It was so ugly that I pray all copies of the game have been destroyed to protect those who didn't have to watch it. Laurier ended up rotating QBs Travis Eman and Steve Fantham...McMaster is like a machine at this stage. It will take an incredible effort by an opponent to beat the Marauders in the playoffs...New coach, new attitude. Ottawa won its first game by pounding Toronto last week. RB Brendan Gillanders rushed for over 100 yards and three TDs...Cory Dyer from tiny Gananoque, Ont. had an incredible first half against Windsor, recording 4.5 sacks. Ryan Granberg rushed for 193 yards in the game. He's 125 behind Western's Garret Sanvido as he tries to defend his CIS rushing title. Sanvido needs 95 for 1,000 after a 210-yard performance against Guelph. Windsor's Jordan Brescacin leads the CIS in receiving yards and needs 243 in the next two games to hit the 1,000 yard mark...The Guelph/Western game was wild. The Gryphons were up 33-7, gave up 29-straight points to trail 36-33, then won it on Julian Tropea's 27-yard FG in the dying seconds...I've now watched U-Montreal play both Laval and Sherbrooke on television this year. Based on those two games the Carabins would be no better than fifth in the OUA.

Mike Hogan is the play-by-play voice of the Argos, host of ‘Argos All Access’, and the hit weekend program ‘TSN 1050 Game-Day’ airing weekends on TSN Radio 1050 (tsn1050.ca). No stranger to OUA football, Hogan has provided the radio play-by-play of 13 Vanier Cup games and is a member of the CIS Football Top-10 Committee. Follow Mike on Twitter @tsnmikehogan, or email him at mike.hogan@oua.ca.

---

October 3, 2012 - Garnet and gone

The season began with a great deal of optimism. The Gee-Gees were blessed with a quarterback coming off a successful first year as a starter, a dynamic running back, an aggressive defence and a brand new head coach with loads of CFL experience.

Oops.

To say the Ottawa Gee-Gees have had a disappointing season to date would be a disservice to the art of understatement. Five games, five losses. The most recent defeat came Saturday in Kingston as Queen's held on for a 32-25 win. Yes, the Gee-Gees showed signs of life, but on Sunday the Athletic Department pulled the plug on the head coach.

Gary Etcheverry leaves Ottawa with a lifetime 0-5 record as a CIS head coach. It didn't take Colin Timm, U-of-O's assistant director of programs with Sports Services, five games to know there was a problem.

"When we got to 0-3 the morale of the entire team was bad,” Timm told ‘In The Huddle’. "That's when you start looking at what you can do. Zero and five was a point where we made a move forward. As an overall program we hadn't made enough of a change.”

Morale was so bad that Timm met last week with team captains who voiced their concerns, a meeting that at least played a role in the decision to release the man known as "Etch".

"That was a factor, but not a determinant. Everyone was in a situation they hadn't been in before. Everyone was used to being in a winning program. This was unusual.”

So the decision was made to relieve Etcheverry of his duties. There will not be a head coach named before season's end, not even on an interim basis. Defensive Coordinator Cory McDiarmid has also been the Assistant Head Coach. He'll retain both titles and will make any game-day decisions usually made by a head coach.

Corey Goff will remain as the Offensive Coordinator. There has been a shuffle within the coaching staff, but four familiar faces have been added as former Gee-Gees Kyle Kirkwood, Cyril Adjeitey, Matt Edgeworth and Tyler Aldercotte are back with the garnet and grey.

Creative mathematics are all that separate the Gee=Gees from being eliminated from playoff contention. It's a tough realization for players in their final season with Ottawa that this will be the way they'll end their OUA careers. For those who will be back there's reason for optimism. A new head coach will be hired when the season concludes and Timm says there's a lot to entice a great coach to the National Capital Region.

"He'll be walking into a really good situation. We're opening an $8,000,000 facility with a dome. Our infrastructure is in place and the breadth of our programs is second to none. The fact that we're a bilingual university allows us to successfully recruit from CEGEP programs. We also lead the OUA in scholarships, which we offer on both on an in-coming and on-going basis.”

And what is the number-one characteristic they'll be looking for in a new head coach?

"He has to be a strong communicator. He has to be the general, the band leader. His role will be to bring the team together in a single focus.”

With the upcoming search for a head coach and the rebirth of the Carleton Ravens next year, OUA fans in the capital will have no shortage of story lines to follow.
 
The "O" Zone: The Gee-Gees almost pulled one out against Queen's. Down by seven they had the ball at the Queen's 36 yard line in the final minute, but QB Aaron Colbon fumbled and the Gaels recovered. Ottawa's Matt Falvo nailed a 51-yard FG, the longest in U-of-O history...He threw for 247 yards and a pair of TDs while rushing for 145 and another major. No, that's not the stat line on Michael Vick from a recent Madden game; those are the numbers Kyle Quinlan posted against Western. Mac’s only problem now would be looking ahead to Calgary. Just fewer than 11,000 fans were at the game. There's nothing worse than seeing someone leaving the field in a vehicle and that's the way Western QB Donnie Marshall saw his game, and possibly his career end. If the ankle injury is indeed a career ender it's worth noting how much fun it was to watch him play the sport. Highly-touted backup Will Finch is also out after having an emergency appendectomy Monday. QB3 is second-year 'Stang Blake Huggins...Injuries also forced U-of-T to start its third-string QB last week against Waterloo. How did Simon Nassar respond? He hit 22 of 29 passes for 291 yards and a pair of TD passes. Alex Pierzchalski was his primary target as he caught 11 passes for 147 yards and a touchdown. Blues freshman Ashton Nelson had his fourth 100-yard rushing game. This week's tilt against Ottawa is the Blues biggest of the year as a win would go a long way in helping their playoff chances. They'd be in no worse than a tie with Laurier and they beat the Hawks opening day to win a head-to-head tie breaker. The Hawks finish with games at Western and McMaster...Homecoming at Laurier attracted over 9,200 fans, most of whom went home disappointed. Guelph's Rob Farquharson was in beast mode with over 100 yards rushing in the first half, finishing with 178 total...York gave Windsor a scare but the Lancers held on for the win. Austin Kennedy and Myles Gibbon combined for 683 yards passing...Ending with a pet peeve: It looks horrible when teams have players wearing socks at different heights. I'd love to see the league implement a rule, much like pro ball, where the entire leg must be covered. Image is important when tying to grow a brand and uniformity would be a major step forward.

Mike Hogan is the play-by-play voice of the Argos, host of ‘Argos All Access’, and the hit weekend program ‘TSN 1050 Game-Day’ airing weekends on TSN Radio 1050 (tsn1050.ca). No stranger to OUA football, Hogan has provided the radio play-by-play of 13 Vanier Cup games and is a member of the CIS Football Top-10 Committee. Follow Mike on Twitter @tsnmikehogan, or email him at mike.hogan@oua.ca.

---

September 26, 2012 - The first playoff game of 2012

We've hit the mid-way point in the OUA schedule and some things have become clear.

McMaster is the elite team in the conference with Queen's and Western a step behind. Windsor and Guelph are good, but are not there with the big boys yet. Toronto has improved and will compete for a playoff spot. York and Waterloo still need some work, while Ottawa at a surprising 0-4 may be the biggest disappointment in the entire CIS.

But what about Laurier?

In the preseason e-mag, OUA Uncovered, Hawks head coach Gary Jeffries said, "We will be solid on 'D' and we hope that can hold us up until the offence catches up."

Those words have proven to be prophetic. On opening day as the defence played well, the offence struggled mightily in a 19-0 loss at Toronto. The next week the defence was solid for the first half against Queen's while the offence once again looked lost. Against York the offence finally seemed to find its groove in the first half, but sputtered after that, needing a late TD to beat the Lions.

Last week against Ottawa, the D gave up a 106-yard TD pass on the first offensive play of the game. Things settled down and what ensued was a highly-entertaining affair against the Gee-Gees that featured big plays by both teams.

The Golden Hawks are now preparing for an incredibly important game against Guelph, a game that may determine whether or not Laurier makes the playoffs. Two things may help them a great deal. Not only is the team gaining much needed experience and confidence, but it's Homecoming. All of the advance sale tickets for the game are gone. There will be some available Saturday but the line-up for those remaining seats will form very early in the morning. Will a sold out Knight-Newbrough Field help the Hawks take flight? Jeffries thinks so.

"The 13^th man is tremendously important. Seven hundred is not a big 13^th man.”

The Hawks head honcho was referring to the last home game when the attendance was just 874, incredibly low by Laurier standards. This week will be different as over 9,000 fans will find their way into the stadium. While they may not be seeing a team as talented as the '05 Vanier Cup winners, Jeffries says fans will be witnessing a squad that has one major commonality with that championship group...desire.

"Our two wins have all been about guts. We were down with five minutes to go against York and it was the same thing against Ottawa after we kept giving it away. We're small, we have no experience, and the kids are basically playing their guts out. Our defensive front is as good as any front in the league. Our secondary is young and inexperienced and as a result we're giving up big plays. We have to limit the number of errors we're making both physically and mentally. We're doing more good things than we were in week one.”

There was some added experience last week as Steve Fantham found himself playing quarterback. Highly-touted freshman Travis Eman missed the game with a lower body injury and Fantham, in his fourth-year with the program but making his first OUA start, stepped in. He tossed four TD passes against one interception and totaled 218 yards through the air in Laurier's 35-27 win at Beckwith Park in Carleton Place. It automatically led to speculation about who would get Saturday's start against Guelph.

"I don't know if Travis will be healthy," said Jeffries.

"Right now Fantham has earned the right to start after his game against Ottawa and the last five minutes against York. He reads the play well and gets rid of the ball quickly. Travis Eman is going to be a good QB, but again, there's no experience there.”

With the constant references to youth and playing through mistakes, it's apparent that the team is searching for its personality. ‘In The Huddle’ asked Jeffries if his team has an identity yet.

"Probably not. If we do it's that we're a gutsy team that will play a complete 60 minutes and compete, compete, compete, but I hope that's always been the way we've done that at Laurier."

The Hawks entertain Waterloo the following week before closing out their schedule with killer games at Western and McMaster. One would think that gives this week's game a playoff-like feel. Jeffries agrees about the game's importance, but says that the urgency has already been there.

"It's no more than the York game, or the Ottawa game or the (upcoming) Waterloo game. Before York I told the group that we're starting the playoffs a little early this year."

The nine thousand-plus fans going to the game are hoping that's the case.

The "O" Zone: Yes, McMaster is that good. The Marauders built up a 33-3 lead over Queen's before coasting. There's zero doubt that Kyle Quinlan is the league MVP. Don't forget Mac is doing this without the injured Chris Pezzetta and Michael DiCroce...Most people were disappointed that Mac/Queen's wasn't theScore's game of the week, but it worked out well as the U-of-T/Guelph game was incredibly entertaining. There was so much hard hitting in that game that I'm still sore from watching it from the couch. Blues head coach Greg Gary called for an onside kick after conceding a safety touch, I don't think I've ever seen that before at any level. Guelph's Carl Trivieri had the catch of the year in that game, but U-of-T's Todd Inkila came close to matching it with a one-handed juggling TD catch. The two teams have to clean things up as they combined for 29 penalties for 351 yards and Guelph lost five fumbles...Kudos to Neate Sager for calling the Laurier/Ottawa game without a colour commentator, he did a great job...Waterloo built up a 23-11 lead over York after three quarters and held on to snap an 11-game losing streak dating back to 2009. Both Warrior QBs played and Jamie Cook was a perfect 6-for-6. It was York's Homecoming game...Western's ground game was big time evident in its win over Windsor. The Mustangs rushed for 279 yards on the afternoon including 209 by Garret Sanvido, who now leads the CIS in rushing by over 100 yards. They'll need a big game from him Saturday when they host McMaster...The top four rushers in the CIS are all from OUA.

Mike Hogan is the play-by-play voice of the Argos, host of ‘Argos All Access’, and the hit weekend program ‘TSN 1050 Game-Day’ airing weekends on TSN Radio 1050 (tsn1050.ca). No stranger to OUA football, Hogan has provided the radio play-by-play of 13 Vanier Cup games and is a member of the CIS Football Top-10 Committee. Follow Mike on Twitter @tsnmikehogan, or email him at mike.hogan@oua.ca.

---

September 19, 2012 - Field of dreams

It started as a whisper at a golf tournament.

"Have you seen what Guelph is doing?"

As the spring and summer progressed and more OUA oriented conversations ensued, the quiet chatter became more of a constant buzz.

"Have you seen who Guelph recruited?"

The steady stream of accolades is a clue to the current state of affairs at Guelph. Over the last several seasons, the Gryphons have been the team perpetually caught in the middle of the OUA standings, but that position may be in flux as the school began a new era Saturday. The game featured the unveiling of the revamped Alumni Stadium. The playing surface is new, the scoreboard is new and according to Head Coach Stu Lang so is the attitude.

"It certainly gives us a sense of pride. I would say arguably we have the best facilities in the OUA. We built our performance centre last year and that's all ours, we don't have to share it. The field is phenomenal and when they built the scoreboard I said 'just make sure it's bigger than MAC's". It helps develop a swagger that we've got something here. It says 'we've invested in you and your end of the bargain is to win’.”

Lang noted that the stadium upgrades weren't complete until the night before the game. He said that when the team finally got on the field Friday night he had the stadium staff turn on the video screen so the players could get used to it and it wouldn't be a distraction come game time.

It apparently wasn't as the Gryphons christened the facility with a 47-17 win over Waterloo.

If Lang gets his wish the players will give fans plenty of reasons to check out replays on the scoreboard and Rob Farquharson is a player they may be watching often. There was no definitive No. 1 running back when Guelph's training camp opened, but the job is Farquharson's now. In the last two games he's ran for 142 and 160 yards and currently sits third in the CIS in rushing, but it was a play in the victory over Windsor that really caught the coach's eye.

"There was one play near the end of the game. Neil Lumsden (RBs coach) and I were standing on the sidelines and he ran right toward us on a pitch play. We looked at each other and both said 'I didn't know he could run that fast’.”

The Gryphons stunned most observers with a 28-9 win against the then No. 7 ranked team in the country. Lang admitted to ‘In the Huddle’ that the one-sided win surprised him too.

"It did. They may have taken us too lightly. The most encouraging part of the win was that all facets of the team played well. (QB) Jazz Lindsey's game was good. He struggled versus Windsor last year and was coming off his worst game against Mac. I said to the players after the game that the victory in Windsor gives us a chance to play a home playoff game. "

Hosting a post-season contest or earning a national top ten ranking would go a long way to helping develop what Lang craves, which is not only achieving success in the short term, but having the program remain consistently competitive at a high level. He looks to the Laval model as a guideline, but the U-of-G program certainly doesn't have the prestige, or the on-field success of the Rouge et Or.

What would change that?

"The big thing we're missing is a history of success. I looked at the OUA guide which goes back to 1971. The best record since then is 6-2. We need to create a sustained success so we can say to a recruit 'if you're here for four years you'll win a Yates Cup’."

Judging by the 50-9 loss to McMaster in the opener, the Gryphons aren't ready to compete for the Yates Cup quite yet. But as those whispers about Guelph continue to stretch beyond the boundaries of the 12th green, it's apparent that the word is spreading around the OUA that the program is being taken seriously.

Very seriously.

The "O" Zone: The much anticipated game between Western and Queen's lived up to expectations. Over 10,000 fans at Richardson Stadium watched the Gaels keep Western's offence out of the end zone. LB Sam Sabourin was all over the field for Queen's. He had 12.5 tackles and a pair of sacks. He was named OUA and CIS defensive player of the week. Both Garret Sanvido and OUA offensive player of the week Ryan Granberg had big days on the ground, but of the two only Granberg found the end zone and that ended up being the difference in the game. If it's any consolation, Sanvido leads Granberg for first place in the CIS rushing race by five yards, 377 to 372. The Gaels turned the ball over more times and lost the time of possession battle badly, yet still won the game. I sat next to former 'Stang David Lee on the flight back from Vancouver. He's had a very strong rookie season with the Argos. Former Western RB Tyler Varga rushed for 103 yards and 2 TDs in his debut for Yale as the Bulldogs beat Georgetown 24-21. He's also returning kickoffs and was named Ivy League rookie of the week...Windsor rebounded from the Guelph shocker with a 55-4 drubbing of the hometown Blues. Austin Kennedy threw for 300 yards and a pair of majors, becoming the first CIS QB to hit 1,000 passing yards this year. Windsor piled up 554 yards of offence. The highlight for U-of-T was seeing RB Ashton Nelson post another 100-yard game...It was another day at the office for QB Kyle Quinlan and the Marauders. He threw for 348 yards and three TDs while completing 81% of his passes. He rushed for two more majors. Brad Fochesato and Robert Babic each had over 100 yards receiving. Mac’s D did a remarkable job on the dangerous Brendan Gillanders, limiting him to 36 yards on 17 carries. Conversely, Declan Cross rushed for 127 yards on just nine carries for McMaster. The Marauders totaled over 600 yards of total offence. In that game Matthew Falvo kicked his 58th career FG to tie the Gee-Gees record. He'd add another one later in the game and pass the 300-point plateau in his career…Laurier took a 17-0 lead over York before the Lions roared back to take a 20-17 lead on freshman Chris States' INT return with five minutes left in the fourth quarter. The hometown Hawks won the game on 28-yard pass from Steve Fantham to Lance Freeman with just 1:11 left in the game. Fantham replaced freshman QB Travis Eman who had a rough second half. Lashane Oldacre had a big game for York, catching four passes for 157 yards, highlighted by an 81-yard TD on the final play of the third quarter. Only 874 fans were on hand to see LB Mitchell Bosch set the Hawk career record for tackles, passing current Guelph DC Kevin MacNeill. I was proud to watch my stepson suit up for the first time in his freshman season as a Hawk. Thanks to Hawk TV for allowing me to watch from Vancouver before the Argo game began...The top four teams in the OUA meet in what should be a spectacular pair of games this Saturday. Windsor is at No. 6 Western while No. 5 Queen's visits No.1 McMaster.

Mike Hogan is the play-by-play voice of the Argos, host of ‘Argos All Access’, and the hit weekend program ‘TSN 1050 Game-Day’ airing weekends on TSN Radio 1050 (tsn1050.ca). No stranger to OUA football, Hogan has provided the radio play-by-play of 13 Vanier Cup games and is a member of the CIS Football Top-10 Committee. Follow Mike on Twitter @tsnmikehogan, or email him at mike.hogan@oua.ca.

---

September 12, 2012 - A turning point

It was a strange answer to an honest question.

"Heh. Um...wow. Heh, heh, heh.”

It's an odd feeling when you can feel a smile coming through the phone, but that was the case when York Head Coach Warren Craney was asked about his recruiting class by OUA Uncovered, oua.ca's pre-season e-magazine.

"We got this kid named Myles Gibbon..."

Gibbon was heading north from the University of South Alabama to play QB for the Lions. He missed last year with a knee injury and Craney felt that his addition would allow Offensive Coordinator Michael Faulds to finally be able to run the offence he’d been wanting to since taking the job in 2010.

So far so good.

Gibbon played well in the second half of the season-opening loss at Queen's, and then earned his OUA chops on Saturday in a 47-36 win over the Ottawa Gee-Gees. He threw for 341 yards and rushed for 83 more, scoring twice. Nice numbers to be sure, but Craney says it didn't start out so well.

"He threw two interceptions on our first three possessions. I thought 'here we go again' for about 15 seconds, but our team needed to see from our leaders, including the coaches, that we believed."

The turning point in the win came after the second pick and with the Lions staring at a big deficit.

"The first possession after the second pick, it was 21-7 and we didn't flinch one iota. The offence came back to the bench and regrouped. That's when I knew we were going to be okay."

The Lions went on a 23-0 run in the second quarter and led 30-21 at the break. Craney told ‘In The Huddle’ that's when he witnessed something he hadn't seen in his two previous seasons at York.

"I don't mean to sound arrogant here, but I knew we had it won at half time. I don't know the reason why, but our half time was extended to about 20 minutes. About two minutes into it the guys started saying 'we want to go out now'. The energy in the room was unbelievable; it was something I hadn't experienced here before. Other places yes, but not here.”

It wasn't just Gibbon. The defence kept Ottawa out of the end zone in the third quarter and RB Kyle Exume kept pounding the ball. Exume played the first three years of his post-secondary career at Bishop's before trying his hand in the CFL. He was on the Ticats practice roster for the first portion of the 2011 season, but was released in time to maintain a year of CIS eligibility. He started this season as the fifth RB on the depth chart. He worked his way to second on the list by the Queen's game, and then ran well enough against the Gaels to get the start against Ottawa. Exume ended up with 31 carries on Saturday for 180 yards and three TDs including an 85-yarder. Fittingly, he was named the OUA and CIS offensive player of the week for his efforts.

There's so much optimism at York right now that Craney is thinking about a word that will immediately make you think of former NFL Head Coach Jim Mora.

Playoffs.

It's hard to imagine that a program that compiled a 3-45 record in its previous six seasons is talking about the playoffs. Does Craney honestly think the Lions can do what would seem like impossibility at the beginning of the season and qualify for post-season play?

"I really do. It's nice to be able to say that and I know it's not going to be easy, but we can start a good thing here. I'm certainly not saying we can compete for the Yates Cup or anything, but these kids now believe."

Fast forward twenty years. Craney is sitting around thinking about Saturday's game and what the victory meant to the program. What would he like to say about the game on September 8, 2012?

"It's where it all started.”

The "O" Zone: Gee-Gees QB Aaron Colbon had a tough day passing against York. He was only 6/16 but was able to rush for 132 yards on just 13 carries, 49 of those yards came on a TD run. Ottawa had 191 yards in penalties. Simon Le Marquand caught four of the six completions...Waterloo took a 7-0 lead over No. 1 McMaster on a pass from receiver Nick Anapolsky to Paul Cecile, but it was all MAC after that. Kyle Quinlan was 20/24 for 291 yards and a pair of majors. Jimmy Hill led the ground game with 120 yards. Robert Babic was again Quinlan's top receiver, catching nine passes for 125 yards. The Marauders picked off three more passes giving them eight through two games. QB Jamie Cook had 78 yards rushing on just five carries for the Warriors...After shutting out Laurier the Blues gave up a TD on the second offensive play of the game at Western as Donnie Marshall hit Evan Buchanan for a 67-yard TD. It was 34-0 Western at the half. Garret Sanvido led the 'Stangs with 109 yards rushing while freshman Yannick Harou added 80 more. Brian Marshall was the top receiver, catching five passes for 77 yards. Brian, Donnie and brother Tommy Marshall all scored TDs. Attendance at Western was 9,500...Guelph surprised the Lancers in Windsor 28-9. The Gryphon defence kept Austin Kennedy and company out of the end zone all evening. John Rush led the "D" with nine tackles and was named OUA defensive player of the week. Rob Farquharson had a breakout game for the 'Gryphs with 142 yards on the ground...The Gaels broke open a close game at Laurier with two TDs in the final 75 seconds of the first half. The Hawk defence did a nice job of neutralizing Ryan Granberg, limiting him to 55 yards on 18 carries. LB Mitchell Bosch was particularly good against the run. Strong-armed QB Billy McPhee had a great night, torching the Hawks for 333 yards and two TDs. Queen's defence was smothering, but was helped by several dropped passes. The Gaels didn't allow a rushing TD all of last season and haven't allowed one in either game this year. It must be a frustrating thing for CFL scouts when they realize Gaels kicker Dillon Wamsley is only a freshman. He went 4/4 in FGs and had great hang time while averaging 44 yards a punt. It looks like he could play pro now. Wamsley was named OUA special teams player of the week for the second week in a row.

Mike Hogan is the play-by-play voice of the Argos, host of ‘Argos All Access’, and the hit weekend program ‘TSN 1050 Game-Day’ airing weekends on TSN Radio 1050 (tsn1050.ca). No stranger to OUA football, Hogan has provided the radio play-by-play of 13 Vanier Cup games and is a member of the CIS Football Top-10 Committee. Follow Mike on Twitter @tsnmikehogan, or email him at mike.hogan@oua.ca.

---

September 5, 2012 - The shutout

It's a regular occurrence in soccer. It happens on a fairly regular basis in hockey and baseball.

But football?

It happened three times last year in OUA, just once the year before. Queen's did it twice in 2011, including a stunning blanking of Western on the final Saturday of the regular season.

It happened again on Monday.

The University of Toronto hosted Laurier on a spectacular evening at Varsity Stadium with some 4,400 fans taking things in. Both offences were plodding along as can be expected when two young teams with first-year starting QBs were meeting in a season opener. After a scoreless first 15 minutes, the game turned on a very strange play early in the second quarter.

On a third down Laurier was about to kick the ball to the Blues, but the snap got past punter Ronnie Pfeffer. He picked up the loose pigskin at about his own 5-yard line, immediately in front of the goal posts. Instead of conceding a safety he turned and kicked toward the sidelines and the ball went out at the Hawks 2-yard line. Two plays later QB Richard Quittenton snuck it into the end zone for what turned out to be the only points the Blues would need.

That play summed up Laurier's night.

The Blues continued to play solid defence and the secondary was particularly effective playing mostly man to man. Veteran Hawks Alex Anthony and Anton Bennett would finish the night with a combined zero catches.

As the minutes ticked away and with the score out of reach, people in the stands started talking about the "s" word. Varsity Head Coach Greg Gary told "In The Huddle" those seven letters weren't mentioned on the sidelines.

"It's like baseball, you don't say it out loud. I didn't say it; (Defensive Coordinator) Donnavan (Carter) certainly didn't say it. Guys on the sidelines didn't say a word, but I knew it was on everybody's mind.”

At what point did it sink in that the shutout was a possibility?

"It was one of those games I never thought it would happen, I mean a shutout is rare. Even as it was getting late into the game I kept thinking that they'd at least get a rouge or a safety. With about six minutes left I got thinking 'we might get a shutout'.”

When Quittenton took a knee on the game's final play the 19-0 shutout was intact. How crazy did it become on the sidelines?

“Not at all,” said Gary. "We really didn't think of it as a big deal. We didn't do the Gatorade shower. We're trying to make it look like winning is what we do.”

And as for the short term and long term ramifications of a win over a program as successful as Laurier's?

"We're trying to establish a new culture here. We're at least trying to position ourselves to compete with the top teams. Wins like this give us credibility with recruits.”

Wins like that give the Blues credibility with everyone.

The "O" Zone: It was a great way to spend Labour Day. I called the Argo/Ticat game on TSN 1050 then drove to Varsity to watch the Blues and the Hawks...I guess the CFL can keep the moniker ‘Labour Day Classic’. Monday afternoon's OUA games weren't exactly ones for the ages...McMaster showed why it's the No. 1 team in the country. Kyle Quinlan passed for 248 yards and rushed for 104 more in a 50-9 drubbing of Guelph. The Marauders received horrible news when starting RB Chris Pezzetta injured his knee and is done for the season. Jimmy Hill had 17 carries Monday and totaled 77 yards. Receiver Mike DiCroce also missed the opener with an injury. Robert Babic became Quinlan's favourite target catching eight passes for 165 yards and a pair of TDs. Last year McMaster led the country with 19 regular-season INTs and had five in the opener. Joey Cupido ran one of them back for a TD. Guelph led 7-2 after the first quarter. Corey Davidson led the Gryphs with 26 yards rushing. Guelph had 144 yards in penalties. Attendance at Ron Joyce Stadium was over 6,200 which is very impressive considering over 30,000 were at the Ticat game being played at the same time...No. 5 Western scored 28 second-quarter points in its 54-10 win over Waterloo. Donnie Marshall threw for 281 yards before giving way to highly-touted Will Finch who probably didn't dream his OUA career would start the way it did. On his first pass he threw an interception that Christian Mahler returned 23 yards for a TD. Finch finished 4/11 for 38 yards. RB Garret Sanvido will be the primary replacement for Tyler Varga and Nathan Riva. He rushed for 144 yards and three TDs. Meanwhile in his OUA debut, Garret's brother Justin Sanvido added nine catches for 161 yards and two more majors. Waterloo's most productive player was receiver Nick Anapolsky who caught seven passes for 103 yards...In the Blues game Quittenton, a second-year player starting for the first time, showed off a very strong arm. He was 16/25 for 157 yards and didn't throw a pick. U-of-T freshman Ashton Nelson rushed for 119 yards on 25 carries. Laurier's new QB Travis Eman showed flashes of promise but was only 8/27 passing. He had one TD pass dropped. He also led the Hawks with 62 yards rushing...The playoff rematch between Windsor and Ottawa wasn't close. QB Austin Kennedy was named the CIS Offensive Player of the Week as he threw for 482 yards and six TDs, three of which were caught by Jordan Brescacin. Fifth-year LB Brad Adams led the way with 11 solo tackles. The Lancers led 29-0 early in the second quarter...Queen's RB Ryan Granberg led the country in rushing a year ago and started the defence of his title in fine fashion, tearing through the York defence for 149 yards and three TDs. Nine different Gaels caught passes. York's new QB showed why coach Warren Craney is so excited. Myles Gibbon threw for 241 yards and a pair of TDs including a 54-yarder to Devante Hobbs. The Gaels D sacked Gibbon 6 times. 8,200 fans were at the game...Here's my favourite OUA tidbit ever. Mike Bradley was an incredibly talented RB with Waterloo from 1997-2001. He eventually moved on to play six seasons with the Edmonton Eskimos. He always wanted to become a police officer and was eventually accepted by the OPP. He now works in Durham region and recently received commendation for saving the life of an 22-month old girl who may have choked to death if it wasn't for Bradley's actions. Congratulations Constable! (See full story here from CityTV City News Toronto)

Mike Hogan is the play-by-play voice of the Argos, host of ‘Argos All Access’, and the hit weekend program ‘TSN 1050 Game-Day’ airing weekends on TSN Radio 1050 (tsn1050.ca). No stranger to OUA football, Hogan has provided the radio play-by-play of 13 Vanier Cup games and is a member of the CIS Football Top-10 Committee. Follow Mike on Twitter @tsnmikehogan, or email him at mike.hogan@oua.ca.