Banner Season: Western, McMaster lead storied programs to the gridiron in 112th edition of Yates Cup
London, Ont. (by David DiCeznzo) – It’s the oldest piece of football hardware in all of North America. And the last two teams standing in Ontario University Athletics will compete for the honour to hoist it again. The reigning two-time champion Western Mustangs host the McMaster Marauders Saturday, November 9 in the 112th edition of the Yates Cup at London’s TD Stadium.
112th Yates Cup Football Championship Fan Guide
112th Yates Cup Media Kit
Another OUA season that began in the stifling heat of August will come to a close on the Mustangs’ home turf, where two of the conference powerhouse programs look to add to their legacies. Western leads all OUA schools with a staggering 32 Yates Cup wins, while McMaster ranks sixth in the conference with seven titles. The last of those Marauder victories came on November 12, 2011 when the pride of Hamilton defeated their London-based rival 41-19 at TD Stadium.
McMaster, the No. 3 team in U SPORTS, put together another successful campaign, going 6-2 over the course of the eight-game schedule. The Marauders started the season strong with back-to-back wins over tough Guelph and Ottawa teams, defeating the Gryphons 25-10 and the Gee-Gees 35-22. They suffered their first loss of the season against the Mustangs, who came into Ron Joyce Stadium and manufactured a solid 34-17 road win in week 3. McMaster tied the game twice at 10-10 and 17-17 but Western scored 17 unanswered points to pull away. The Marauders went on to win four of the final five games before grinding out a satisfying 19-9 victory over the Gryphons in the OUA semifinal last Saturday in Hamilton.
McMaster will need the offence to show up against a Mustang team that paced the OUA with 36.3 points per game. Much of that responsibility will be left in the capable hands of a third-year quarterback Andreas Dueck, who broke out in a big way this season by completing 200 of 301 pass attempts for 2,431 yards. That yardage total, as well as Dueck’s 15 touchdown passes, both ranked second in the OUA behind only Toronto’s Clay Sequeira. Dueck spread the ball around well this season with Tommy Nield (team-highs of 38 catches and 498 yards) leading a quartet of receivers who caught at least 25 balls. Tyson Middlemost was another prime target in an offence that can hit on big plays, racking up 442 yards and a team-leading four touchdowns. The aerial game could be an area of emphasis for the visitors, given that Western ranked 10th in passing yardage with 300.3 allowed yards per game.
Third-year running back Justice Allin was one of McMaster’s primary threats on the ground with 346 rushing yards and he enters the Yates Cup on the heels of an impressive 93-yard performance on 17 carries last week against Guelph. The issue is that the Mustangs don’t allow many holes with the league’s best unit defending the run (106.1 yards allowed per game).
The nation’s top-ranked Mustangs hope to set the offensive tone in the game, much like they have throughout their third consecutive undefeated season. The team has been utterly unstoppable in the last two championship games with lopsided wins of 75-32 over Laurier and 63-14 over Guelph.
League MVP Chris Merchant will try to make it a Yates Cup three-peat. The fifth-year star from Calgary, Alta. finished right behind Dueck with 2,378 yards though the air in addition to a career-high 77 carries for 438 yards and six rushing touchdowns. What separated Merchant from the competition this year was his ability to lead a revamped Western roster that has new faces on both the offensive line and in the back field. He was first in the conference in pass efficiency (167.7) and put up over 1,000 yards in the final three regular-season games, accounting for nine touchdowns during that stretch. Merchant didn’t have his best day of the year in last week’s tight 30-24 semifinal win over Waterloo, passing for 211 yards without a touchdown. But he ran for 113 yards on just nine carries, combining with Trey Humes (16 rushes for 121 yards and a touchdown) in a dominant ground attack when the team needed it most.
Humes had a big impact as the primary Western running back this year. The fourth-year man had a previous career-high of 48 carries, but that jumped to 136 in 2019, resulting in a team-leading 705 yards with three touchdowns. His work provided the necessary balance for the big-play offence that features a three-headed receiving threat in Brett Ellerman (team-highs with 39 catches, 621 yards, and five touchdowns), Cole Majoros (35 for 400), and Malik Besseghieur (30 for 546 yards and four touchdowns). Merchant will have to be mindful of the details on Saturday, though, as McMaster led the OUA with 14 interceptions, including four from fourth-year defensive back Noah Hallett. The Marauders also ranked first in the OUA with just 209.6 passing yard allowed per game, suggesting that Merchant will need to be precise when opportunity comes.
Big football games can always come down to last-second kicks deciding the outcome and the Yates matchup features two of the best in the conference. Western veteran Marc Liegghio hit 22 of his 24 field-goal attempts this season, leading the OUA with a 92% success rate, while also converting all 31 of his extra-point attempts. His McMaster counterpart, Adam Preocanin, made 18 of 22 field goals and also hit on 100% of his 21 point-after attempts.
It’s a championship matchup with plenty of history. Since 2000, the Marauders and Mustangs have combined to win 13 of the 19 Yates Cups played. And once the final whistle blows in the 112th edition of the historic OUA championship, one of the two OUA powers will add another to the trophy case.
