Brian Decker

Executive Editor

The McMaster Marauders are off to their first Yates Cup since 2004.

McMaster beat the Queen’s Gaels 40-13 in the OUA semi-final on Saturday, running all over the nation’s top-ranked defence and earning the right to take on the Western Mustangs next weekend in London with the title of OUA Champions on the line.

Joey Cupido picked off Queen’s quarterback Ryan Mitchell four times in the first half alone – his four picks tied a CIS record – and Kyle Quinlan and the Marauders did what no other team had done all year: score a rushing touchdown against the Gaels.

“Our defence attacked and played outstanding. They jumped all over a young quarterback and made plays,” said McMaster coach Stefan Ptaszek.

For McMaster, that first touchdown was just the beginning. The Marauders got things started with a 60-yard drive that took just 2:34 to find the end zone, ending with a 6-yard Quinlan rushing TD. Cupido followed that with his first pick, leading to a Teddy Peters field goal. Then, Cupido picked off Mitchell once again, and Chris Pezzetta ran it in from 9 yards, giving Mac a 17-0 lead and giving McMaster all the separation they would need.

Pezzetta ran for 101 yards on the day, which would have been by far the largest total against Queen’s this season if Quinlan didn’t run for 96 yards – on just nine attempts – himself.

It was an impressive and unexpected display against a Queen’s defence that has hardly allowed any teams to run the ball against them this season. Queen’s came into the game allowing a paltry average of 68 rushing yards against per game, but the Marauders quickly turned the ground game in the favour, rushing for over 150 yards before halftime and 280 total.

“Joey Cupido deciding he was going to intercept every ball in the air gave us a short field and a lead and we thought we could run the ball more than teams had,” said Ptaszek. “We certainly weren’t going to try to go strength against strength and jam it down their throat, but it kind of played out a little bit that way.”

The Marauders would intercept Mitchell six times in the game, including a 58-yard touchdown return by rookie linebacker Aram Eisho.

“[Cupido]’s a competitor and tough as nails. You’re taking your chances when you throw it near him,” said Ptaszek. Despite Cupido’s early interceptions, the Gaels continued to the throw the ball in his direction – and Cupido made them pay for it.

“The fact that they kept throwing it to him, well, they kept taking chances,” said Ptaszek with a grin.

“We figured that our front four would shut down the run and they’d have to put the ball in the air and give us an opportunity to make plays,” said Cupido.

Five Marauders, including Pezzetta, Quinlan, Matt Peressini, Mike DiCroce and Joey Nemet got multiple touches running the ball.

“[Queen’s has] a good front seven, man. You can keep them off balance but we certainly weren’t going to make a living trying to jam it down their throats,” said Ptaszek.

Quinlan finished with just 214 yards passing on the day, but it was hardly necessary given the way the Marauders ran the ball. Backup pivot Marshall Ferguson, who took over punting duties from ill starter Tyler Crapigna, also completed a 13-yard pass to Tyler Loveday on a fake punt.

DiCroce led all receivers with 103 yards on the day, including a 38-yard touchdown pass where he danced around nearly the entire Queen’s secondary into the end zone.

Eisho led Mac with 7 tackles, while Frank Pankewich had 8 and a sack for the Gaels.

Gaels running back Ryan Granberg, the CIS rushing leader in the regular season, was held in check in the first half before finishing with 128 yards in the game. He was carried off the field in the fourth quarter after suffering a left leg injury.

“I think that we have a good team and we can shut down the run or the pass,” said fifth-year linebacker Ryan Chmielewski.

The win gives Mac its first Yates Cup berth since 2004. Ptaszek said there will be distractions for his players, but was confident in his ability to prepare them over the coming week.

“What I have to be careful of is that it’s a bit of a gong show now with press and media and these kids are gonna be rock stars for a little while, and you can’t distract them from the task at hand,” he said. “Given how hard it’s been for us to get to this game – we haven’t been there since ’04 – I don’t think anyone’s getting distracted.”

Western has been without their starting quarterback Donnie Marshall since he suffered a sprained ankle against York on Oct. 1.

“[Marshall] has been out four or five weeks and he’s the kind of guy who can change the game, so we have to know if he’s playing and gameplan around that,” said Cupido.

The winner of the Yates Cup will play in the Uteck Bowl against the AUS champion, with a chance to play in the Vanier Cup on the line. Chmielewski said he expects the Marauders to make it that far, but that the preparations for the Yates Cup start right away.

“We play like it’s not our last game. All of us expect to play three more weeks.

“Tomorrow we’ll be here in the morning, we’ll be running and looking at film,” said Chmielewski.

“Tomorrow it’s all about the Yates.”

Brandon Meawasige

Assistant Sports Editor

 

The McMaster Marauders are one game away from the Yates Cup, thanks to a six game winning streak that has Mac ranked third in the CIS top ten .

On Saturday, Mac will host the Queen’s university Golden Gaels at Ron Joyce Stadium for the OUA semifinal game. The contest kicks off at 4:30 pm and will be broadcast on The Score.

Quarterback Kyle Quinlan and the McMaster offense, nine weeks removed from their 26- 2 victory over the Gaels in the season’s first game, lead the country in yards per game with an average of 530.5.

Saturday will surely have a different look than the first time these two teams played; Gael’s running back Ryan Granberg, who carried the ball nine times for 27 yards in that game, finished the season as the nations leading with 1068 yards, averaging 152.6 each game, also chipping in the winning touchdown against Laurier in the OUA quarterfinal game.

In addition,

The Gaels boast the stingiest brand of defense in the OUA allowing a conference low 308.9 yards per game with 14 interceptions and 19 quarterback sacks.

Quite the suitor for McMaster’s offensive unit ranked #1 in Canada, moving the ball for 530.5 yards per game, over 300 of them coming through the air.

Both teams come into the contest on six game winning streaks, poised for a chance to hoist the Yates Cup, which the Gaels got a chance to do in 2009 and McMaster has not been able to do since 2003.

A true clash of the titans, Saturday’s game will feature many key matchups including Michael Dicroce, the nation’s top receiver lining up across from a Gaels secondary who shut down a juggernaut Laurier receiving core last week,

Ryan Granberg will also have a tough test facing a stout McMaster run defense that has conceded only two 100 yard rushing performances this entire season.

It will be interesting to see the winner of each match up this game will offer.

By the time the final whistle blows,

a variety of strategic moves from the coaching staff of each team and highlight real plays by the many OUA all-stars on both sides will ultimately determine who will play in the Yates Cup championship game. ‘

The winner of this game will face the winner of Windsor and Western which will also be broadcast on The Score at 1 pm.

Benjamin Deans

Queen’s Journal

 

The Gaels’ season isn’t the only thing on the line at Saturday’s OUA semi-final at McMaster. Given the Gaels’ 26-2 home opener loss to the Marauders, there’s a good deal of pride at stake as well.

“We got embarrassed at home in front of a big crowd, so we need to rectify that,” CIS-leading running back Ryan Granberg said. “We want a little revenge.”

The Gaels beat the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks 14-10 at Richardson Stadium in the OUA quarter-final last Saturday, Oct. 29.

The game will be the Gaels’ first OUA semifinal since 2009. They also faced the Marauders in the semi-final that season, pounding them 32-6 en route to winning the Vanier Cup.

Following the 2009 playoffs blowout, the Gaels traveled to McMaster for the school’s 2010 home opener. With their championship players lost to graduation, the Gaels lost 18-23.

The two teams faced off again in the first round of the 2010 playoffs and the Marauders ended the Gaels’ season with a 40-19 defeat in Hamilton.

The game that still stings is that Queen’s 2011 home opener. In quarterback Billy McPhee’s first start, an offence straight out of training camp failed to score a touchdown, but was missing leading receiver Giovanni Aprile. The loss seemed to forecast another disappointing season for the Gaels.

Two weeks later, they turned it around.

Head coach Pat Sheahan focused the offence on Granberg. The defence stopped allowing points and started catching interceptions. The team started winning and hasn’t stopped for seven straight games.

But the Marauders have some stories of their own.

Two weeks after his 349-yard performance at Queen’s, McMaster quarterback Kyle Quinlan was suspended from his team for three games after a fight at campus bar.

He returned as good as ever and leads the CIS in passing yards per game.

The Marauders will be coming off two weeks of rest on Saturday. They finished the regular season second in the OUA with a 7-1 record the Gaels were third with 6-2 and earned a bye week.

The Gaels have struggled with injuries late in the season.

McPhee was on the sidelines last weekend with an undisclosed injury.

Backup Ryan Mitchell wasn’t at McPhee’s level, but was good enough to lead the Gaels to a win over the Golden Hawks.

 

Brandon Meawasige

Assistant Sports Editor
It’s been nearly a decade since McMaster last hosted the penultimate round of the OUA playoffs, but that drought has officially come to an end.

The seemingly unstoppable Marauders earned the right to host the conference semifinal on Nov. 5 after clinching second place in the province and the accompanying first round playoff bye with a victory over the Ottawa Gee-Gees on Oct. 22.

The win, which extended McMaster’s streak to six games, featured stellar play from the Marauder defence, a unit that has been responsible for picking off opposing quarterbacks more times than any other team in the country with 15 interceptions in 2011.

However it was the offence carrying the team to victory on Saturday, utterly dominating an Ottawa secondary that appeared unprepared to face a McMaster group that leads the CIS with an average of 530.5 yards per game.

By half-time the score was 45-10 thanks in part to a spectacular performance from the duo of quarterback Kyle Quinlan – who threw for 367 yards and four touchdowns – and CIS receiving yardage leader Michael Dicroce who caught six passes for 124 yards, including one a touchdown.

Never looking back after their offensive showcase in the first half, the Marauders would rest some starters for the second half en route to an eventual result of 51-24. The game, loaded with playoff ramifications, was part of an interesting day across the OUA.

In Kingston, the Queen’s Gaels laid a beating on the Western Mustangs, who were the top-ranked team in the country entering play on Oct. 22. The final score of 37-0 in favour of the home team was not only Western’s first loss of the season but it marked the first time the Mustangs have been shut out by an opponent in 38 years.

Before the game, having clinched first place in the OUA, Mustangs’ coach Greg Marshall decided to sit 11 regular starters. That decision, in combination with a Gaels’ defence ranked first in the OUA, played a significant role in the contest’s shocking score line.

Although the game had no impact on the Mustangs’ playoff standing, it certainly impacted their national ranking. In the CIS top ten rankings of Oct. 25, Western fell to no. 4 behind undefeated Calgary, defending Vanier Cup champion Laval and McMaster.

The quarterfinal match-ups will take place on Oct. 29 with the sixth-seeded Laurier Golden Hawks visiting Kingston to take on three-seed Queens, and fifth-seeded Windsor travelling across the province to face Ottawa.

Both games will kick off at 1 p.m. and will have an audience from across the province as the winner will move on to face either McMaster or Western in the following week.

A bye week traditionally involves the resting of key playmakers, the installment of new blitz packages and offensive running schemes. However, for McMaster this weekend will be the first since Sept. 10 where they do not win a football game.

Since that loss against Western in the second game of the season, the Marauders have overcome a plethora of obstacles. The campaign saw several key playmakers miss time on the playing field including running back Joey Nemet, quarterback Kyle Quinlan, defensive back Joey Cupido and receiver Jarred Jones.

The resilience and depth demonstrated by the Maroon and Grey this season make them ideal contenders. But they will have to wait another week to resume that contention.

The Nov. 5 contest at Ron Joyce will be the first time McMaster will host a semifinal since 2002. When that season was said and done, the Marauders were Yates Cup Champions.

 

Brandon Meawasige

Assistant Sports Editor

Passes wobbled through the air, receivers dropped footballs that would normally be caught and special teams play was interesting to say the least as the Marauders looked to continue their win streak in Waterloo on Oct. 15.

Touted as the matchup of the two premier passing offences in the OUA, the Saturday contest against the Laurier Golden Hawks was supposed to feature highlight reel performances from the quarterbacks and receivers on both teams.

However, rain, wind and frigid temperatures created less-than-ideal conditions for either team to develop any sort of aerial attack. With both squads also struggling to make any headway on the ground, the promised offensive matchup quickly turned into a gritty battle against both opponents and the elements – a battle Mac would prevail in, defeating Laurier 25-6 and moving to 6-1 on the season.

Kyle Quinlan led the Mac offence with 230 passing and a touchdown. Mike DiCroce’s fifth touchdown of the year gave Mac a 10-point lead late in the third quarter they would not relinquish, and Chris Pezzetta put the icing on the cake with a one-yard TD run with less than a minute left.

DiCroce’s catch was the only touchdown reception of the quasi-apocalyptic day, of note considering the game featured the CIS total passing yards leader in Hawks QB Shane Kelly and the yards per game leader in Quinlan.

The Mac defence, which once again showcased its talent in the secondary, picked off Kelly twice, including a massive snag in the end zone by Mike Daly, his CIS-leading fifth of the year. The other pick was nabbed by Joey Cupido, playing in his first game after returning from injury.

Holding an opposing team to less than ten points for the second time this season, Coach Stefan Ptaszek’s defensive unit can attribute their big game to shutting down the Laurier receiving core.

Combined, Shamawd Chambers and Dillon Heap, two of the conference’s top receivers, managed only 10 receptions for 94 yards and no touchdowns, a result that was far less dominant than that of the expected passing clinic.

By the final whistle, the Marauders had secured a convincing victory, extending their win streak to five games in a row and solidifying their place in the OUA standings. It was also the first victory for the team while visiting Laurier in 10 seasons.

With a record of 6-1, McMaster currently sits second in the OUA behind the undefeated Western Mustangs (7-0) who handed McMaster their first and only loss of the season thus far back on Sept. 10.

The Mustangs have established themselves not only as the front-runner for the Yates Cup, but for the Vanier Cup as well. The most recent CIS top-ten rankings feature UWO at the top spot with McMaster also receiving national attention, ranking no. 6 in the country.

Now on the doorstep of the playoffs, the Marauders have a chance to earn a first-round bye with a win against Ottawa in the season’s last game.

The Gee-gees could also earn a playoff bye with a win as they visit McMaster currently tied for third place in the OUA.

Ottawa’s squad brings with it the dazzling duo of quarterback Aaron Colbon, who is the conference’s second leading passer and Simon La Marquand, who trails only Mac’s DiCroce in receiving yardage.

However, unlike Laurier, the Gee-gees have a serious threat on the ground with running back Brian Gillanders sitting third in OUA rushing and backup Franck Ngandui also in the top ten.

McMaster’s defence appears to be up to the task of stopping these threats. The unit has held their last two opponents to 20 points while the offence scored 75 in those games.

The season-ending contest will kick off at 1 p.m. Coverage of the game can be seen on Hamilton’s Cable 14 or heard on campus radio CMFU 93.3.

Brandon Meawasige

Assistant Sports Editor

Under the lights of Ron Joyce Stadium, with his arms crossed in pride, Kyle Quinlan turned to pose triumphantly for the crowd after a powerful 12-yard run.

Seeing the playing field for the first time in three games after a suspension, Quinlan received a warm welcome from the Marauder faithful.

Although it was not his first game, his last or a contest featuring a top-ranked opponent, Oct. 6 presented the fourth year star a unique opportunity to remind the CIS why he is widely considered to be one of the best quarterbacks in the country.

By the time Quinlan was taken out of the game, with almost an entire quarter remaining, he had lit up the scoreboard for five touchdowns and 455 yards passing. The yardage was spread out with seven different receivers getting at least one catch.

"Kyle did not look even a little bit rusty, it was as good a football game as you can play, he stretched the field vertically, horizontally and that’s as good as our offense has worked in a while,” said coach Stefan Ptaszek.

Perhaps the Toronto Varsity Blues were the victims of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.             Quinlan’s return seemed to add tremendous electricity not only to the passing game, but to the entire team as well. Rallying around the all-star performance of their quarterback, McMaster won the game handily by a score of 50-14.

Once again the defence chipped in with a dominating performance, intercepting Toronto’s quarterback Andrew Gillis three times.

"The defense has come back from getting their nose bloody in the second week to playing four solid games, they've really helped carry our team through this win streak and hopefully it continues not only for the next two games but after that as well" said Ptaszek.

The victory brings the Marauders winning streak to four games after beginning the season 1-1. Not that the good news ends there, but up next on the schedule are two of the more formidable opponents in the OUA.

The Laurier Golden Hawks, whom the Marauders play on Oct. 15 in Waterloo, possess one of the strongest passing attacks in the conference. Shamawd Chambers and Dillon Heap are both having tremendous seasons receiving the ball.

Each player has also had personal success against the Marauders as well. In the two games the teams have played against each other in since 2009, Chambers has recorded 10 catches for 200 yards and a touchdown. Heap has had even more success also making 10 receptions for 226 yards while torching Mac on kick and punt returns.

The Marauders have not had good luck visiting the Tri-City area, something that pre-dates Ptaszek as head coach of the team.

“[Laurier] have athletes from top to bottom, we haven't won there since 2001, that’s a decade ago" says the coach currently in his sixth year with the team.

Ptaszek has weapons of his own to use. This week marks the return of all-star running back Joey Nemet from injury opening the possibility for the Marauders to have a triple-pronged attack in the backfield.

Running backs Jimmy Hill and rookie Chris Pezetta shared the load effectively while Nemet was out. Now the coaching staff is charged with the task of getting them the ball on Saturday.

"We’re a better football team with all three of those kids getting their fair share of touches, Joey is probably the best pass protector on the team and he’ll keep Kyle (Quinlan) off his back, while the burst and change of pace that we get from Jimmy and Chris means they will still have to touch the ball,” said Ptaszek of his running game plan for the weekend.

With such consistent play coming from both sides of the line of scrimmage, Ptaszek expects that a pair of regular players will have big games.

“[Kick returner Gary] Spero is due for a big return, he's been playing wonderful at receiver, he's going to have a breakout game and Joey Cupido has been resting, and he’ll have an All-Canadian receiver [in Heap] across from him.”

After a shaky start and numerous injuries to key players, the Marauders look better than ever. The return of Kyle Quinlan adds veteran leadership and championship caliber play at pivot, while the defense looks ready to take on any challenge.

The matchup with the Hawks can be seen on the Score’s University Rush. Game time for the Oct. 15 clash is 1 p.m.

 

 

 

 

Brian Decker

Sports Editor

When examining his post-graduation future, Jordan Kozina wasn’t sure what his plans would be; all he knew was that he wanted to take a bike ride to think about it.

A star running back on McMaster’s football team for four seasons, many are familiar with the Brantford native’s penchant for getting first downs and marching his team up the field. But this summer, Kozina will be covering territory in a whole different way.

The ride that was meant to help him figure life out has turned in to a major undertaking itself: this summer, Kozina will be cycling across Canada to raise money and awareness for the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada.

“I didn’t know what I was going to do. I just thought of taking a bike ride and thinking about it,” he said as if implying an afternoon stroll around town.

But once the history student starting getting some attention for his trek, the idea really got rolling.

“When I was planning it, I said to myself ‘this seems like something people might want to get behind,’ and I thought I would raise some money and do some good while I’m doing it,” said Kozina, at the campaign’s kickoff event this past Tuesday, riding a stationary bike from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the McMaster University Student Centre.

Multiple Sclerosis, commonly known as MS, is the world’s most common central nervous system disease. It’s an unpredictable disease that attacks the Myelin (protective wrapping) of the brain and spinal cord.

Victims of the disease suffer from a wide range of symptoms, notably the loss of vision, balance, mobility, hearing and memory. It’s a debilitating sickness that in most cases alters a victim’s life completely and permanently.

The disease is particularly common in Canada; an average of three Canadians per day are diagnosed with MS, and 240 in every 100,000 Canadians are diagnosed at some point, the highest rate in the world.

For Kozina, associating his trek with MS was an easy decision to make. In January, his aunt Mary passed away after a lengthy battle with the disease.

“MS is one disease that’s always been close to me. … I knew my Aunt Mar more as a kid, so I didn’t understand what she went through. It was only recently when things regressed and I started to notice it.”

Originally, he considered doing fundraising for acquired brain injury after a high school friend was severely injured in a car crash in Spain. But with his friend’s improved health and the passing of his aunt, it became clear that supporting the MS Society was the way to go.

“With my aunt passing and my friend being diagnosed, I was just like … it’s got to be MS,” said Kozina. “She was the first passing in my family, which affects people in different ways. It motivated me to do this.”

“I never knew her without it,” he adds.

As far as a cross-Canada journey, Jeff Dale, Chair of the Brantford chapter of the MS Society of Canada, says Kozina’s task is unprecedented.

“This is the first time I know of that anyone has done this for our cause. What Jordan is undertaking here is nothing short of phenomenal,” said Dale.

Flying out to British Columbia on June 12, the journey will begin in Tofino, BC and end in Cape Spear, NFLD – a total of over 9,000 km. Kozina is hoping the trek will take him “around three months,” and will consist of daily bike rides and stops at campsites.

Kozina has set a fundraising goal of $100,000, but wants to “blow that out of the water,” in terms of money and awareness raised.

While the journey is certainly a physically demanding task, Kozina’s impressive football – and rugby – resumé should put to rest any doubts about the 24-year old breaking down physically.

In four seasons with the Marauder football squad, Kozina totaled 2,439 rushing yards, including 1,191 as a rookie when he was named an OUA All-Star. Also a deft receiver, Kozina played a hybrid back position for McMaster the past two seasons, making the Marauder offence one of the most dangerous in the country.

But while he’s well known for his football career, his time as a rugby player is perhaps more impressive. A former member of Canada’s under-19 and -21 national teams, Kozina took a two-year hiatus from McMaster, enrolled at the University of Victoria and suited up for Canada at the Rugby Sevens World Cup in 2009.

“Hopefully I won’t be too skinny and lose too much weight on this trip,” joked the 210-pounder, who plans to return to the pitch with the Brantford Harlequins club team after his journey is finished.

While rugby and football have been Kozina’s passion for years, they’ll take a backseat to cycling for the next few months as the campaign gets underway. At its onset, the long journey and lofty fundraising goals are daunting. But as the launch date approaches, Kozina is simply excited to hit the road on his bike.

“I’m dreaming big with this. I feel like it’s attainable. Goals are meant to be broken.”