THE LOW-DOWN 

The 117th Yates Cup promises to be a heavy weight clash between the #1-ranked Golden Hawks and #6 Queen's Gaels. 

Laurier enters the game undefeated and fought off a second half rally from the Guelph Gryphons last weekend. On the other side, Queen's easily handled McMaster and had a comeback of their own against the #9 Windsor Lancers.  

HEAD-TO-HEAD 

This will be the eighth all-time playoff match between the two, and Queen's has the slight upper hand with a 4-3 record. Their first meeting dates back to the 1968 College Bowl that Queen's won 42-14, but last season when they met in the semifinals, the Golden Hawks won a tight contest 29-21.  

The teams put on a show in week three that turned out to be a scoring frenzy with eight touchdowns, four rouges, three field goals, and two safeties as Laurier came out on top 47-32.  

Shockingly, this will be the first Yates Cup between the Golden Hawks and Gaels as Laurier makes their third straight championship appearance and Queen's makes their third appearance in the last five years.  

SATURDAY STORYLINES 

Laurier Golden Hawks 

The Golden Hawks left Hamilton Stadium on Thursday with plenty of hardware, but not the one they look to win this weekend. The purple and gold had 15 OUA All-Stars and three major award winners, taking home the Larry Haylor MVP Award, President's Trophy, and David "Tuffy" Knight Award.  

The Gaels are up against a stacked Golden Hawks team that ranked first in the conference in offense and were one of the top defenses. Last weekend, Laurier went 4-4 in the red zone putting up 369-yards of total offense and had four defensive sacks.  

This Saturday, the Golden Hawks cannot afford a second half slip-up like they did last weekend as the Gaels can string together offensive scoring plays, and they have a potent defense that creates turnovers and limits big gains.   

The Golden Hawks are looking to defend their championship title on home field and secure their first back-to-back Yates Cup wins since the 2004 and 2005 seasons.  

Queen's Gaels 

The Gaels are going to put everything on the line on Saturday as they chase their first OUA championship since 2009, and look to avenge the loss they suffered to the Golden Hawks earlier this season.  

Queen's has a championship calibre team. Their defense allowed the fewest total and passing yards per game, and were tied for the most defensive interceptions in the regular season. The Gaels also have a balanced offense between the pass and the rush, sitting second in touchdowns in both categories.  

Last weekend against Windsor, the Lancers put up good second and third quarters, but the Gaels shut the doors in the fourth and booked their ticket to the championship game with a 16-point final frame.  

PLAYERS TO WATCH 

Laurier Golden Hawks 

OFFENSE 

#3 – Ryan Hughes and #23 – Tayshaun Jackson 

Hughes continues to shine in the postseason. Against Guelph, he had 161 receiving yards and two touchdowns. He came up big in last year's Yates Cup with 113-yards and a touchdown. The second-team All-Star was held to only 34-yards against Queen's earlier this season, but in last year's playoff game, he had 83 all-purpose yards and a touchdown.  

Jackson ranked third in total rushing yards and yards per game this season and tallied five touchdowns. He had 36 rushing yards and a touchdown against Guelph along with 94 return yards. He showed the Gaels why he was a first-team All-Star returner as he had a 98-yard punt return touchdown along with 68 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown.  

DEFENSE 

#2 – Jessie Wilkins and #57 – Joseph Edlington 

Wilkins, the President's Trophy winner and All-Star, had a career and team high 40.5 total tackles and ranked first in fumble recoveries with four. He had four tackles against Guelph last week, but he likes playing the Gaels, having eight tackles earlier in the year, and five tackles plus a sack in last year's playoff game.  

Edlington has been a huge part of Laurier's defensive line and their success in stopping the run, allowing the least amount of rushing yards this season. He also has found success in bringing quarterbacks down, having 3.5 sacks during the regular season and one last weekend. The Gaels' offensive line has given up 14 sacks and allowed two last weekend.  

Queen's Gaels 

OFFENSE 

#29 – Jared Chisari and #16 – Nathan Falconi 

Both Chisari and Falconi were OUA All-Stars this season and are two of the top choices on offense for Queen's. Chisari was second in rushing yards and yards per game this season, while Falconi was fourth in receiving yards per game and fifth in total yards.  

Against Windsor, Chisari had 176 rushing yards and two touchdowns, and Falconi had 64-yards and a touchdown. Both were limited to well below their averages against the Golden Hawks earlier this season, but with the championship up for grabs, look for the duo to try and break through.  

DEFENSE 

#22 – John Corscadden and #24 – Ashton Miller-Melancon 

Corscadden and Miller-Melancon were named OUA All-Stars this year. They are both threats to quarterbacks as they had seven interceptions combined during the regular season, and both had interceptions last week against Windsor.  

Against Laurier, they both had five total tackles and Miller-Melancon had two pass breakups.