LONDON, Ont. - The Mustangs will return to action this weekend for their second straight contest on the road as they travel to Guelph to rehash one of the OUA's fastest growing rivalries. The matchup, which is taking place as part of Guelph's homecoming celebrations, is a rematch of the dramatic 2015 Yates Cup in which the Gryphons secured a 23-17 win for their fourth Ontario championship in school history. In fact, The Mustangs will be looking for revenge on the Gryphons for ushering the Mustangs out of the OUA playoffs the last two seasons.
 
The Mustangs are 3-1 on the season, with the week two loss to Carleton as their only blemish. Past that, the Mustangs have complied three impressive wins against Windsor, Waterloo, and as of last week, Queen's.
 
In that week four win against Queen's, feature running back Alex Taylor had a career high 32 touches for 198 yards. Cedric Joseph, the next busiest running back for Western, had only eight touches for 27 yards. The spotlight on a single back is a bit of a divergence from last season's running attack which featured an evenly balanced utilization of Taylor, Joseph and Yannick Harou, and look for Taylor to continue to get the bulk of the carries this week.
 
Quarterback Chris Merchant took all the snaps under centre for the Mustangs against Queens. In the face of heavy wind, Merchant went 6 for 13 for 65 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed nine times for 64 yards and one touchdown. 
 
Kicker Marc Liegghio also chipped in by making three field goals, one extra point, and one rouge to account for 11 points.
 
In a defensive game, the Mustangs elevated the level of their play and limited the Gaels to 324 yards of total offence. They also held Queen's quarterback Nate Hobbs to a completion percentage of just over fifty percent. Philippe Dion continues to anchor the defence and once again led the team in tackles with seven, while Malcolm Brown, Hakeem Johnson and Mackenzie Ferguson each recorded an interception.
 
After their Yates Cup season, Guelph is only 2-2 to start this season. Their victories have come against Toronto and Queen's while their defeats came at the hands of Windsor and Ottawa.
 
Their offence, largely intact from last year, is second behind the Mustangs in the OUA in terms of points scored. Quarterback James Roberts is the lynchpin of the Gryphons attack and has a 63.6 completion percentage so far this year which has helped him amass 1013 yards of offence and five touchdowns. His favourite target, also a veteran of the Yates Cup team, is receiver Ryan Nieuwesteeg. He has 19 receptions so far this year and 182 yards.
 
The Gryphons, however, did graduate perhaps their most important player on the defensive side of the ball. Linebacker John Rush, named Yates Cup MVP after recording 12 tackles, three sacks, and three tackles for loss, is missing for the Gryphons after graduating. Linebacker Lucas Korol has filled Rush's boots as the primary playmaker of defence, recording 32 tackles and two tackles for loss in four games so far this season. The Mustangs will need to be aware of where Korol is on the field to avoid suffering a similar fate as last year, when Rush helped limit the Mustangs rushing attack to 194 yards.
 
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Alumni Stadium in Guelph, with fans able to catch all the action live on City or OUA.tv. As always CHRW Radio, and Newstalk 1290 CJBK will be calling the game live.