WATERLOO, Ont. - It was billed as a battle between two of the OUA's top teams, sure to be a hard-fought, close game.
And while the #7 Windsor Lancers have put together an incredible season and are legitimate Yates Cup Contenders, Saturday's meeting with the #4 Golden Hawks revealed just how dominant this Laurier team really is. Going up against the top-ranked defence in the OUA, the purple and gold scored 40 points and allowed only seven to improve to 7-0 for the first time since 2005.
"We knew we were playing a really good team. They're a well-coached team – and it was going to be a physical game," said Laurier's manager of football operations and head coach
Michael Faulds. "And it was a battle. Windsor played well, and we just played better."
It started with the defence. After halting Windsor's advance a yard short of the line to gain on their second play of the game, The Golden Hawks fought off a gutsy rush on third down by the Lancers. Starting from the Windsor 35, Laurier took a couple shots at a big play before turning to
Dawson Hodge, who nailed a 42-yard field goal to take the early lead. He'd score another later in the quarter to extend the lead to 6-0.
It would keep growing. Pinned back near their own endzone, Windsor was forced to concede a safety early in the second quarter.
Their next drive started with a punt return touchdown from Javonni Cunningham that would have been his second in as many games, but was called back due to a holding penalty. With the ball on the Lancers 15, a
Chisanem Nsitem tackle for loss and an
Ethan Bayfield pass deflection lead to another conceded safety by Windsor.
The Lancers' defensive line was dominant all game as they've been all season, and forced a fumble on Laurier's next drive to get the ball back. The Golden Hawks were able to force yet another two-and-out, however, before
Sebastian Parsalidis got through to block and recover the punt attempt.
Facing a short field against a tired defence, Laurier found the endzone after just three plays, as
Taylor Elgersma called his own number for a 21-yard touchdown run.
The onslaught didn't end there. A punt to the Windsor two-yard line by Hodge lead to yet another conceded safety. With just over two minutes left in the half, the Golden Hawks then drove down the field to score another touchdown, this time a pass to
Jaxon Stebbings.
It would go down as a 20-point second quarter to give Laurier a 26-0 lead at the break.
When asked what the key to his team's offensive outburst was, Elgersma gave credit to his offensive line.
"We know they have a really good front seven. We know they've got really good pass rushers. We were able to hang in there and give enough time to throw and create some holes for our backs to run. We know that if we can get the ball to our playmakers, good things are going to happen."
The offence slowed somewhat in the third quarter, but the Golden Hawks' defence remained virtually flawless, coming up with big plays including
Ife Onyemenam's third interception of the season.
The score remained the same heading into the fourth quarter, but Windsor finally broke the shutout just under two minutes in on a 22-yard strike from Danny Skelton to Cunningham.
Elgersma responded with a few nice throws of his own, including a bullet to
Raidan Thorne along the sideline which set up a 43-yard touchdown run from
Quentin Scott on the following play.
Laurier kept looking for more. Receiver
Ethan Jordan nearly recorded a touchdown pass on a 36-yard attempt which
Layomi Ojutalayo couldn't hold on to. They'd eventually score when Elgersma found Stebbings for his second of the game.
Neither the quarterback nor coach seemed surprised at how decisively the game went in the Golden Hawks direction, despite the pedigree of their opponent.
"We know Windsor's a good group, but we know what we can do, and we know the only people that can stop us when we're clicking is us," said Elgersma.
"We just had a good balance," added Faulds. "We were able to run it when we needed to. Obviously, we're bullish that Taylor is the best quarterback in the country. He threw the ball well and he's got so many targets, our offensive line played well."
"And then I can't say enough about our defense. They took a shutout deep into the third quarter. That's outstanding."
Despite all this, Faulds is reluctant to call today's game a statement win.
"I don't think there are any statements unless you're lifting the last trophy of the year."
The Golden Hawks are among the teams looking to do just that, as they sit tied with the #1 Western Mustangs for the OUA lead at 7-0 heading into the final week of the regular season.
Windsor, meanwhile, drops to 5-2, and can secure third place in the conference with a win in week 9 against York.
TOP PERFORMERS
Laurier Golden Hawks
#13 –
Taylor Elgersma
Faulds isn't exaggerating about Elgersma's standing among the nation's pivots. The London, Ont. native had another outstanding performance, throwing for 332 yards on 27-36 passing with three total touchdowns and no interceptions.
He surpassed the 2,000 yard milestone for the first time in his career, and now has an OUA leading 2,272. He also leads the conference in completion rate (75.6%), sits second in passing touchdowns (14), and fifth in rushing touchdowns (6).
With one game remaining on the schedule, Elgersma is among the favourites not only for OUA MVP, but the Hec Crighton trophy as well. The last and only Laurier player to win that award is the man whose record Elgersma tied earlier this season – Bill Kubas.
Windsor Lancers
#6 – Kolade Amusan
Speaking of records, Amusan added two sacks to bring his total to an OUA-leading 10.5 this season. He'll look to break the OUA record of 12 in next week's meeting with York.
Amusan, and the rest of Windsor's defensive line, caused headaches for Laurier all game. His impact in this game goes far beyond the stat sheet, as he influenced Elgersma on countless plays.
SO LONG, SENIORS
Before the game, the Golden Hawks sixteen graduating players were honoured as part of the senior day celebrations. They are:
DL
Luke Brubacher
DB
Zach Harvey
DB
Daniel Loggale
DB
Joel Gilmour
DB
Ethan Bayfield
DB
Duncan Naudie
DB Chris Haggart
DB
Nico McCarthy
LB
Brady Loenhart
LB
Ife Onyemenam
DL
Abraham Odiase
DL
Chisanem Nsitem
DL
Brandon Omonuwa
FB
Nathan Brooks
RB
Tanner Nelmes
OL
Cooper Hamilton
UP NEXT
The schedule could not have lined up more perfectly, as the 7-0 Golden Hawks will travel to London to face the 7-0 Mustangs at 1 p.m. next Saturday, October 21.
The winner will finish undefeated and earn themselves first place, a first-round bye, and home field advantage through the OUA playoffs. If you can't make the trip to support the Golden Hawks, follow @WLUAthletics for live updates and catch all the action on OUA.tv.
