Tale of the Tape: Western Mustangs vs. Guelph Gryphons
 
All-time head to head:
Western leads 43-11-2
Last meeting:
Western 33, Guelph 29 (Oct. 8, 2011)
Series Streak: Western has won 6 in a row
Last 10: Western 9-1
Next Games:
Western: vs. Laurier, Oct. 13, 1pm
Guelph: vs. Queen’s, Oct 13, 1pm

The Western Mustangs look to rebound from a close loss to McMaster as they travel to Guelph to take on the Gryphons this Thanksgiving weekend. The ‘Stangs took Mac to the wire, losing 33-27 despite losing quarterback Donnie Marshall and defensive backs Aaron Handsor and Kalvin Johnson to injuries. Western faces a 4-1 Guelph team who defeated Wilfrid Laurier 22-19 last week on a last second field goal to spoil the Golden Hawk’s homecoming. This game will have an impact on the OUA standing with the winner having the inside track for a home playoff game in the OUA quarterfinals.

For Western this marks an opportunity to beat another rival on their home soil and play a consistent sixty minutes of football. Last year Western defeated Guelph 33-29 in what was a sloppy game for the Mustangs during the middle of an injury plagued stretch that ultimately caught up to them in the playoffs. Guelph traditionally plays Western tough at home with their last two matchups at Alumni Field being decided by one score including a classic in 2009 when Western drove down the field in the last seconds and won it on a last second field goal by Darryl Wheeler by a count of 41-39.

Offensively look for it to be a battle between Guelph's passing game and Western's ground attack. Guelph is led by sophomore Jazz Lindsey who has amassed 1039 passing yards. Look for his older brother Saxon Lindsey to be one of his favourite targets come Saturday. On the ground 1^st year running back Ryan Farquharson leads the Gryphon attack with 588 yards which is near the top of the OUA leader boards. For the ‘Stangs, look for Garret Sanvido, the CIS’s leading rusher to continue to get his fair share of touches, with first-year back Yannick Harou also getting into the action as well.

Defensively Guelph is led by sophomore linebacker John Rush. Rush a Niagara native leads the Gryphons with 41 tackles and 4.5 sacks being all over the field no matter the opponent. Look for the matchup between him and running back Garret Sanvido to be a key. For the Mustangs,  look for the front seven who is third in the CIS with 21 sacks to apply continued pressure on Lindsey. The sack parade is led by Vancouver native Dylan Ainsworth who has 5.5 already on the season.

On special teams look for both teams to continue to excel in the kicking game. Guelph’s Daniel Ferraro is carrying the momentum of kicking a game winning field goal into Saturday’s game and Lirim Harjullahu is kicking at an accuracy of 75% in the field goal department giving Western plenty of options on 3^rd down near the scoring zone. The team who can win the special teams battle on Saturday will most likely come out the winner after the final whistle blows. With playoff positioning on the line and Western looking to get the bad taste of a defeat out of their mouths look for a physical affair at Alumni Field. 

Game time is set for 1:00 p.m. at Guelph's Alumni Field. Mustangs fans can catch the game on CJBK with Tom McConnell and Mustangs legend Larry Haylor calling all the action. Fans can also listen to the game on CHRW and watch the webcast on SSN Canada.