Fresh off a thrilling home opener win over Guelph this past Monday the Western Mustangs will return to the road this weekend when they head to Hamilton's Ron Joyce Stadium to take on the McMaster Marauders on Saturday at 1 p.m.
 
It was already slated to be a short week for the purple and white, but the week got even shorter after the start of Monday's home opener was delayed by more than two hours due to lightning and didn't finish until around 12:30 a.m. on Tuesday morning.
 
The wait was worth it though, as the Mustangs and Gryphons squared off in the most exciting game of the young OUA season in a contest that featured five lead changes, three tied scores, and needed overtime to decide a winner.
 
Western's offence continued to top the charts with 596 total yards on Monday night, including a career-high 378 yards passing from Chris Merchant. The Calgary native threw one touchdown pass in the win and added another two on the ground, along with 92 yards rushing.
 
The Mustangs defence had a strong game as well, recording five sacks – including three straight in overtime to shut down the Gryphons and secure the win for Western – while also limiting the Gryphons to just 119 yards on the ground.
 
This week the Mustangs will be taking on a McMaster squad that is coming off a dominant defensive performance against the Carleton Ravens last week.
 
McMaster forced an impressive six turnovers in the 23-9 win, recovering four fumbles and recording two interceptions, and also limited the Ravens to under 300 yards of total offence on Sunday night.
 
Leading the way for the Marauders was defensive back Robbie Yochim who registered eight tackles, a half-sack, and a 55-yard interception return against the Ravens. Yochim won't be the only member of the defensive secondary that the Mustangs will need to keep an eye on though, as fellow defensive back Noah Hallett made five tackles, two sacks, and one interception of his own in week two.
 
While the Marauders defence looked strong in their regular season opener, the new look McMaster offence struggled to get into a rhythm against the Ravens. The Marauders lost their leading passer, rusher, and receiver in the off-season with the departures of Asher Hastings, Chris Pezzetta, and Danny Vandervoort, and will need time for the new starting lineup to find it's footing. Look for the Marauders offence to rely on their veteran offensive line as well as receivers Mitch O'Connor and OUA All-Star Dan Petermann as they look to move the ball early in the season.
 
Coach Marshall on the Marauders
 
"It's a good rivalry. Seems like a long time ago that I was at Mac, but there are a lot of familiar faces there, certainly we have a few coaches that were here that are [now] coaching there.
 
They're a good football team, they play really good defence. They're young at quarterback, but they have some outstanding weapons on offence. We're going to have to pay close attention to Dan Petermann, Mitch O'Connor, and they've got a couple guys that can run the football. Their offence looks a lot like ours so we'll know what to expect."
 
By the Numbers
 
2 hours and 25 minutes – the time that kickoff for the Mustangs home opener was delayed due to lightning, leading to a game that didn't finish until early Tuesday morning
 
6 rushing TDs by the Mustangs through two games, with two each from Merchant, Cedric Joseph, and Stevenson Bone.
 
15 receptions so far this season for Malik Besseghieur who leads the Mustangs in both receptions and receiving yards with 248
 
53.5 points-per-game that the Mustangs are averaging through their first two contests, the most in the OUA
 
614.5 yards of offence that Western is averaging after week two, also the most in the OUA
 
Last Meeting – McMaster 18 at Western 19 – Oct. 22, 2016
 
The Mustangs defence and special teams stole the show the last time the Mustangs and Marauders faced off, with Western taking down McMaster 19-18 in a Homecoming showdown at TD Stadium.
 
Western's defence held the Marauders to 283 yards of offence in the win, their lowest total of the season.
 
With both teams deadlocked at 18-18 late in the fourth quarter, the Mustangs special teams unit secured the victory in impressive fashion in the final frame. After blocking a McMaster punt to give Western excellent field position, John Biewald recorded the game's final point, hustling down the field following a missed field goal to keep the Marauders returner in the end zone and record one final point for the purple and white.