London, ON – The excitement is ramping up as another season of Western Mustangs Football is upon us. In one of the earliest starts in recent memory, the Mustangs are on the road to take on the rival Queen's Gaels to open the 2025 campaign.

There are plenty of familiar faces on the roster this season, especially on the offence, but there are also some exciting young talents joining the purple and white this season. In this season preview, we take a look at each section of the team and what they look to bring to the Mustangs pursuit of a Yates & Vanier Cup.

Coach's Thoughts

"Our players are hungry, they know they were close last year but we won't look too far down the road this year, we'll take it week by week as we always do and never look past any opponent," said Head Coach Greg Marshall. "We start the season with two really strong opponents in Queen's & Guelph. We've got a fairly veteran team coming back and they know how we play football and how we approach the game which is start with week one and that's our sole focus to start the year,"



Quarterback
Evan Hillock returns for his final year of eligibility. The Hamilton, ON native is looking to finish out his university career the way he started, with a national championship. After dealing with varying upper body injuries over the last two season, Hillock says he is feeling healthy and ready to make an impact again.



"23 and 24 were tough years for me, especially last summer. I wasn't really able to throw the ball until the end of May, usually I'm throwing all winter," said Hillock. "I think people may have forgotten what I can do on the field when I'm healthy, and I'm excited to remind everyone what I can do."

Hillock is joined by fellow veteran Jérôme Rancourt who steps into the Mustangs lineup for his fourth season. The engineering student was used in a variety of fashions last season. Rancourt utilized his power and size in a big way last season, scoring nine TD's on the ground, while also running for 248 yards. He also contributed through the air with five completions for 78 yards and one throwing TD.



Hillock and Rancourt provide two different looks under center for the Mustangs and will keep the opposition on their toes all year long.

Running Back
It will be a year of change in the Mustangs run game; that being said, this isn't an area of concern. Keon Edwards and Keanu Yazbeck have graduated from the program, but in steps, a few backs we got a few glimpses of last season in Ethan Dolby, Marcell Phillips & Ben Cottrell. Dolby & Cottrell dealt with injuries during the season in 2024 but showed impressive talent. Dolby had 39 carries for 324 yards, while also scoring three touchdowns. He looks to be among the leaders in the running back room this year. Phillips came into three games last year, recording 15 carries and 100 yards. He also scored two touchdowns.



Another name that several members of the coaching staff and roster mention when you ask them about running backs is Jack Kelly. He has shown some very impressive speed in training camp and looks to be in the mix in 2025.

Receivers
A trio of members of the 2024 roster return to the Mustangs roster this season and will be the core of the receiving game in 2025. Seth Robertson & Brayden Misseri are playing out their fifth year of eligibility and are laser-focused on finishing their careers with the best results possible. Robertson had 9 touchdowns last season while picking up 593 yards in the regular season, Misseri had 379 yards receiving and a highlight reel touchdown late in the season. The two veterans are joined by a standout addition from 2024, Dasani McIntosh. He had 11 receptions and 268 yards with a pair of touchdowns.



The Mustangs receivers should also see some contributions coming from veteran Zavier Allan, as well as some youthful energy coming from Roman Campanaro, who impressed in 2024 when he returned a kickoff 101 yards against Carleton, and Sherwood Park, AB native Nik Shewchuk.

Offensive Line
Simply put, this might be the strongest O-Line the Mustangs have seen in many years. Western will see the return of CFL draftee Erik Andersen, who was picked by the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the summer. He is joined by Keegan O'Neil, who sat out last season following a lower-body injury he suffered late in the 2023 season. Another big return, both in impact and size, is Victoria, BC native Sebastian Sibbald. The 6'8, 330-pounder has utilized his downtime recovering from surgery to not only heal but also get in impeccable shape.



After Alex Berwick was drafted to the BC Lions and has stayed to play on the west coast, a new man will take the spot in the middle of the O-Line, and that will be Phil Cote. The youthful addition to the Western front will see Brady Hitchen step into a more consistent role in his second year with the Mustangs.

Defensive Line
The defensive front side will see a mix of veteran presence and fresh additions. The group is led by Calgary Stampeders draft pick Max von Muehldorfer and fifth-year vet Soren Hallschmid. Von Muehldorfer had 19 tackles in 2024 and 1.5 sacks while Hallschmid had 17 tackles and 4.5 sacks last year.



The line will see Angelo Longo take a big step forward this season, he had five tackles in five games played last season, the same can be said for Conner Franzisi and Marcus Robinson who will be in the mix this season.

Linebackers
This group will see quite a bit of changeover. Riley Macleod, who was drafted, signed and is now playing with the Montreal Alouettes and Max Nixon has graduated. That is a couple of big losses for the Mustangs this season, but that is how things operate in university sports, and Defensive Coordinator Paul Gleason has some different weapons at his disposal this year. Jude Buchanan appeared in all eight regular-season games last year and all three playoff games and should be an impact player for the Mustangs this year. Veteran Josh Gillan takes another step ahead this year and will be a leader. A bit of a surprise addition to the group this year will be a London native who spent four seasons wearing the Yellow, Blue and Red of Queen's, Ethan Martin. The former three-time Bob Gooder Award winner as London's senior high school player of the year, is attending the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry and had a year of eligibility remaining and will bring a veteran presence.

Defensive Backs
Jackson Findlay is playing with the BC Lions, while it wasn't a surprise to anyone that the star DB moved on to the next level, it still means there is a big gap in the backfield.

The Mustangs will get some major production from returning 5^th year Richard Aduboffour. After being selected in the 2024 CFL Draft by Saskatchewan, he returned to Western last year, he was named an OUA First Team All-Star after posting 14 tackles, 2 interceptions and .5 sacks. Other contributors will be Chris Cameron-Kogler, who will bring experience to the group, while 2024 OUA All-Rookie team member Thomson Silcox will contribute in a big way. He appeared in 8 regular-season games last year with 3.5 tackles.



There should also be some youthful impact coming from TVRA MVP and 1st Team All-Star Jackson Mackay. While he played both sides of the ball in high school at Banting S.S. He will focus on the defensive side of the ball at Western. He had 48 tackles, 2 interceptions, a defensive touchdown and 2 sacks last season. His athleticism is not only on the football field; he is a star in the track & field world after winning his second straight men's under-20 decathlon title with a record 7,652 points at the Canadian track and field championships this summer.

Special Teams
The kicking combo of Brian Garrity and Oliver Griffiths is back this season. Garrity finishes his five years of eligibility; he has 350 points scored through his four seasons so far. He was 18 for 23 in field goals in 2024 while also converting a perfect 45 for 45 in extra points.



Griffiths steps into the lineup for his second season. He had 36 punts last season with a total of 1512 yards. His longest punt last year was 60 yards, with an average of 42 yards per punt. He was solid in 2024 and will look to do the same this year.



Coaching
The sideline leadership remains in tact with the legendary Greg Marshall at the helm for his seventeenth season. He is joined by long time defensive coordinator Paul Gleason and one of the most talented Offensive Coordinators in the country in Gaetan Richard.



There are some new additions to the Mustangs coaching staff this year, but they aren't exactly unfamiliar faces. Former Montreal Alouette Sean Jamieson moves into the role of Football Operations and Offensive Line coach. Keon Edwards goes from star running back to the leader of the group as the running backs coach. Myles Manalo spent a couple of seasons with the Hamilton Tiger Cats after playing with the Mustangs, he will now step into the Special Teams Coordinator role. After spending time assisting the team in 2024, Daniel Valente Jr. returns to the coaching staff this season as a defensive backs coach.



Schedule

The 2025 will see a mix of some stiff competition early on, while also including a late season matchup with a familiar foe from the last couple of season.

The season opener is on the road to Kingston to take on Queen's for a 3 pm start on August 23. The Mustangs hold a 14-game win streak over the Gaels, dating back to 2013.

Western returns home in week 2 for the 2025 home opener against Guelph on Aug. 31. The Gryphons have been on the rise the last few seasons, finishing 3^rd in the OUA standings in 2024. Western took a 30-19 win over Guelph in the playoffs last year.

The Mustangs stay at home for a Sept. 6 matchup against the Ottawa Gee-Gees. Western has gotten the better of the garnet and grey for the last dozen matchups, most recently taking a 38-11 win in the 2024 season opener in the nation's capital.

The week four matchup for the Mustangs is back on the road, this time making the long road trip to Ottawa to take on the Carleton Ravens on Sept. 13. Western has taken the last seven games against the Ravens, including a 52-21 win in 2024.

The Mustangs are off for their bye week on Sept. 20 and are back home on the 27^th against McMaster. The two sides met twice in 2024, first in early October when Western won 61-26 and then again in the OUA quarterfinal when the Mustangs took the win at 46-10.

The next two matchups for Western are on the road, starting with an October 4^th trip to Windsor and Oct. 10^th meeting at York. Windsor has always played the Mustangs tough but Western has had the upper hand for many years. The two sides finished the 2024 season with a game at Western Alumni Stadium, in which the Mustangs took a 46-5 win. After not meeting in 2024, the Mustangs and Lions met to open the 2023 season, and Western won 83-0. The Lions have been building over the last couple seasons and are looking to move up the standings this season.

Full 2025 schedule details can be found HERE.

2025 Season tickets and single game tickets are on sale now at WesternMustangs.ca/Tickets, and fans can watch all the action on OUA.tv.