Mustangs host Ottawa Saturday afternoon at TD Stadium

The Mustangs will take to TD Stadium on Saturday, September 14, for their second home game of the season when they face off against the Ottawa Gee-Gees in week four of OUA action.

After cruising through the first two games of the season against Toronto (50-14) and Carleton (71-4) the Mustangs faced their toughest task of the season this past Saturday against McMaster and proved they were for real, defeating the defending Yates Cup champions 58-15. Second-year receiver George Johnson broke out for the Mustangs with a 224-yard performance, highlighted by 42-yard and 79-yard touchdown receptions.

Ottawa was unable to put up a similar result against McMaster in their home opener on August 25, falling to the Marauders 51-24 to open the 2013 season. Despite the slow start to the season, the Gee-Gees enter Saturday’s game with a solid 2-1 record after defeating Waterloo 44-32 in week two and Toronto 34-10 in week three, meaning that both teams will enter Saturday’s game on a winning streak.

The Gee-Gees entered the 2013 season with 18 returning starters from their 2012 team, highlighted by OUA all-stars Brendan Gillanders and Ettore Lattanzio at running back and defensive end, respectively. Gillanders rushed for 768 yards on 123 opportunities and recorded the ninth highest touchdown total in the league last season with nine while Lattanzio registered 8 sacks.

Will Finch has been a big reason for the Mustangs’ rise since opening day as the second-year quarterback has compiled 1,164 yards and thrown 10 touchdown passes while rushing for another two TDs. The Burlington native leads the CIS in completion percentage hitting 75.8% (75-for-99) of his passes with only one interception. Aaron Colborn guides the Gee-Gees offence and so far this season the fifth-year quarterback has put up similar numbers to Finch, throwing for 1,310 yards and ten touchdowns on 96-139 passing along with two rushing TDs. With two of the OUA’s top pivots going head-to-head expect both teams to focus on the passing game to try and come out with the win on Saturday.

Finch isn’t the only reason for the Mustangs’ offensive performance this season, as running back Garret Sanvido and receivers Brian Marshall and Johnson have all been on fire to start the season. Sanvido is second in the CIS in rushing with 291 yards, including running for 88 yards and scoring one touchdown in the Mustangs victory over McMaster last weekend. Marshall and Johnson both caught seven passes against McMaster, running for 160 yards and 98, respectively. Johnson sits alone at the top of the CIS with 489 receiving yards while Marshall is sixth with 327 on the season.

Last week’s matchup against McMaster proved that the Mustangs are going to be a force to be reckoned with this season and the team will look to add to their perfect record when they face-off against Ottawa. The Gee-Gees will be looking to continue their streak as well and avenge their loss against McMaster with a victory against one of the two teams that have been able to beat them.

Photo credit:  Corey Stanford

Source: David Conlin, Western Mustangs Sports Information

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Below via Jen Elliot, Ottawa Gee Gees

The Gee-Gees football team travels to London, Ont. this week for a duel against the no. 3 ranked Western Mustangs on September 14. They are headed to TD Waterhouse Stadium with a skip in their step following the 34-10 win last week against Toronto, and their previous 44-32 victory in Waterloo.

Although it has been a couple of seasons since uOttawa has beaten out the Mustangs, with the last win coming in 2010, last year’s 32-29 Western victory required a last minute field goal by Liam Hajrullahu to secure the win.

This year, the two teams are neck and neck in offensive statistics. For instance, Ottawa averages 449.7 passing yards per game, whereas Western is a mere yard ahead at 450.7. Additionally, Ottawa holds the best pass completion record of the current season with 100 completed, 143 attempted, and 3 intercepted passes. In comparison, Western trails slightly behind  at 85-117-2.

Both quarterbacks put up impressive performances last week, though Ottawa’s Aaron Colbon has a leg up on Western’s Will Finch in passing yards average per game thus far. Colbon is leading the CIS with an outstanding average of 436.7 yards per game, and runner up Finch is coasting at 388.0.

However, head coach Jamie Barresi, though happy with his starting quarterback’s performance, is depending on a tremendous team wide effort on Saturday. “We have to do better in terms of managing the game. And I say that because we had 21 penalties, we had 13 the week before, and that’s way, way too many.”

Defensively, Ottawa native Ettore Lattanzio is a brooding lineman whose sacking ability gives him a number two rank in the OUA. Preston Huggins is the Westerner who comes closest to Lattanzio and takes the twelfth spot on the list. In 2012, Lattanzio scored the eighth spot for sack totals, completing eight in the season.

There is no doubt this game will be a challenge considering the opponents are front runners in the league with a sparkling 3-0 record.

Barresi’s advice for his Gee-Gees is to practice and to prepare. “Western presents a lot of challenges. They are a very good offensive group. They’ve got some really explosive weapons. They run the ball very well,” he admits. “We have to be able to handle their formations. They are a formidable group, so we have to be ready for that.”

Ottawa fans can listen live on CHRW radio from London when the game kicks off at 1 p.m. Saturday.

Photo credit:  Bill Blackstone