Donnie Marshall quietly confident entering Uteck Bowl against Laval

LONDON, Ont. – With the anticipation of what may be the biggest game of his athletic career building, Western Mustangs junior quarterback Donnie Marshall is fairly calm and optimistic about the Uteck Bowl matchup with the No. 1 seed Laval Rouge et Or.

Donnie, son of head coach Greg Marshall and brother to slotback Brian Marshall, said he was happy with the preparation for the big game (Saturday, Nov. 20, noon TSN and Radio-Canada).
He said is excited for the opportunity to play against one of the nation’s best defences and said the Mustangs offence will be up for the challenge.

“They have a really good defence, and their run defence is solid,” the London, Ont., native said. “They have a great defensive line, some really fast DBs (defensive backs). We cannot turn the ball over.”

Western has been preparing for dealing with the noise all week and are going to use hand signals and cues to help to combat the noise if it gets too loud.

“We know it’s going to be a loud, hostile environment, and we’re ready for it,” Donnie said. “We’ve been in some hostile environments this year and are used to it. We’ve been working on how to handle the noise and we’ll be using lots of signals.”

Through the regular season, though, Marshall showed his dangerous ability on the ground with 10 touchdowns, and 635 yards (79.4 yards per game).

Donnie is excited for the next challenge.

“This might be up there with the most important game I’ve ever played, it’s what every quarterback dreams of,” Donnie said. “I hope to be ready.”

After a shaky start against the Ottawa Gee-Gees only a week ago in the Nov. 13, 26-25 win to win the school’s record 29th Yates Cup, Donnie recovered and guided the Mustangs to a game-winning drive that set up Lirim Hajrullahu’s 34-yard field goal with 2.1 seconds left.
Head coach Greg Marshall praised his son for his poise following the Yates Cup win for his ability to lead the offence on the game-winning drive.

Donnie knows the expected success associated with the Mustangs and has moved into the starting pivot role quickly and now has nine wins under his belt in 10 starts.
“I think as a quarterback, you have to have a short memory,” Donnie said. “If you make a mistake, especially one that is not completely your fault, you just have to put it behind you and get back into your groove.”

“(Brad) Sinopoli had the same thing with a poor start and almost had two picks against him,” Donnie said. “We started nervous, but we got back. One thing we had not been accustomed to doing was coming back and we had to do that with Ottawa. It was good because it showed us we can do it.”

Donnie, the eldest of three brothers, said the team has “done a lot of good work in practice and that gives us confidence.”

In what is expected to be a battle between Laval’s defensive front seven and Western’s offensive line, Donnie believes his front five are prepared for their size and speed.
“Our offensive line is the best. They have done a great job this season,” Donnie said. “Matt Norman and Josh Buttrill are leaders and teaching our younger guys Eric Armitage and Brendan Dunn.”

“They’ve gained confidence. I’m confident in them,” he added. “If we control the line of scrimmage we will win.”

In the two playoff games, Marshall is averaging 218 passing yards and a touchdown per game, along with 35 rushing yards per game.

Averaging over seven yards per rush through 10 starts in 2010, Marshall is going to force the Laval defence to spy him, which opens up other options for the Mustangs and their mobile offensive line.

Donnie’s first bowl game in his career as a starter. Yet he has shown the poise of a veteran throughout the week, and he leads his team and offence into battle with confidence.
“We’re ready for them. We’re healthy, and being the underdogs is not such a bad thing,” he said. “They have constant pressure on them to win this game.”

Donnie Marshall stats – 1 exhibition, 8 regular season, 2 playoffs

90 rushes 704 yards 3 touchdowns 40 yard long run
122-217-13 (comp-att-int)
1964 yards
12 touchdwons
64 long pass

Nov. 20: UTECK BOWL – Western at Laval, 12 p.m.

By Andy Watson