LONDON, Ontario — The Mustangs Football team paired a standout opening half from the offence with a stifling defensive second half to secure a 32-25 win over McMaster on Saturday afternoon.
In front of a capacity crowd of 14,232, the Mustangs' defence intercepted three passes, recorded four sacks and held McMaster to 17 rushing yards.
Head Coach Michael Faulds framed the Mustangs' win over McMaster as one the team could build from while still needing cleaner execution, saying, "We just can't be careless with the football." He credited the supporting phases for helping secure the result: "Our defence stood strong, and that's what you look for, right? Not always are you going to play well in all three phases. So when one of the three phases is stalling a little bit, the other two phases have to step it up, and today it was the defense and the special teams."
Faulds also pointed to the setting around the homecoming matchup, saying, "it was a special atmosphere, right? And you could see there were a little bit of nerves on both teams in that first quarter, kind of feeling each other out."
The Mustangs' defense supplied the late-game sequence that framed the finish, denying McMaster a touchdown from the goal line in the final two minutes. Rory Litt was part of that stand with a sack in crunch time, and the late stop fit a broader defensive performance that included four sacks, three interceptions and 10 pass breakups.
"We knew they weren't committed to the run game, they used kind of short, quick passes, RPOs on 1st and 10s and 2nd and shorts as their run game." said Litt "I knew I wasn't going too far up field, tried getting in the quarterback's window for those outs and those drags, I felt like I would get a few breakups out of that, that was kind of the mindset going in."
McMaster moved the ball through the air with 347 passing yards and held the ball for 34:53, but the Mustangs limited the visitors to 17 rushing yards on 14 carries. The Mustangs' offense paired 271 passing yards and three touchdowns with 155 rushing yards and another score. Emmett Charles finished with nine catches for 206 yards and three touchdowns, while Ethan Dolby added 131 rushing yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. The Mustangs also got field-position help from their kicking game, placing four of seven punts inside the 20.
GAME RECAP
The Mustangs' points in the first quarter came from their defense, which recorded a safety on a McMaster rush from the MAC12 to make it 3-2. McMaster had opened the scoring on Michael Horvat's 40-yard field goal at 6:20, while the Mustangs moved the ball with Dolby runs and an 18-yard Jerome Rancourt completion to Dasani McIntosh but did not reach the end zone. The Mustangs finished the quarter trailing 3-2.
The second quarter was built around Charles, who caught touchdown passes of 6, 23 and 29 yards as the Mustangs outscored McMaster 21-5 in the quarter. Cyrus McGarrell's interception and 20-yard return to the McMaster 25 set up the first touchdown, and Ben Casselman later found Charles for a 23-yard score. Alex Figen added a 55-yard interception return in the final seconds before the quarter ended with McMaster intercepting the Mustangs on the last play.
"I felt great. It was a tough game for sure. It was a battle, but our offense, what I loved the most, our offense just stayed in it, kept pushing no matter what." said Charles. "Jerome (Rancourt) played great. Shout out to the O line. The defense held us in there,"
The Mustangs opened the third quarter with defensive points, with Litt recording a sack on McMaster's first series before a team safety at 13:44 put the Mustangs ahead 25-8. Noah Hopkinson ended one McMaster red-zone possession with an interception at the goal line, and McMaster later recovered a Mustangs fumble. The Mustangs reached McMaster territory on their next series behind a 26-yard Rancourt completion to Charles, but Mateo Pasquini's 51-yard field-goal attempt was returned and the third quarter's scoring left the Mustangs ahead 25-14.
"I've been saying it since I arrived. He (Emmett Charles) has potential to be the best receiver in the country, and that was for a guy that never dressed up until that point." said Faulds of Charles. "He's 6'4. He's 200 pounds. He's a 400 m track athlete. So I knew with his work ethic, with his mind, and with how much he cares about his teammates and playing well, that this was all possible. So it's great for our fan base, the country, to see it because he has crazy potential in this sport."
The Mustangs' key fourth quarter score came with 2:05 remaining, when RB Ethan Dolby rushed 26 yards for a touchdown on the first play after the Mustangs took possession at the McMaster 26, and Pasquini added the kick. On McMaster's preceding series, Nathan Summers and Owen Jackson broke up passes before the Mustangs began that scoring possession in plus territory. McMaster scored with 24 seconds left, but the Mustangs ran out the remaining time to finish the win.
KEY STATS
WR Emmett Charles
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- 9 receptions
- 206 receiving yards
- 3 receiving touchdowns
RB Ethan Dolby
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- 131 rushing yards on 17 carries
- 1 rushing touchdown
QB Jerome Rancourt
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- 248 passing yards
- 2 passing touchdowns
LB Dylan Tharby
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- 13 tackles
DB Cyrus McGarrell
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- 7 tackles
- 1 interception
- 1 forced fumble
NEXT GAME
The Mustangs host the rival Queen's Gaels on Saturday, Oct. 3. Game time is set for 1:00 pm at Western Alumni Stadium. Fans can buy their tickets at WesternMustangs.ca/Tickets. Western and affiliate students get FREE admission with valid ONECard.
