KINGSTON, Ont. - The Kingston wind had no effect on the #1-ranked Golden Hawks as they blew through Richardson Stadium, and the #5 Queen's Gaels, 47-32.
It is no understatement that the game was a shootout between two of the nation's top teams; they combined for nine touchdowns on the night
It is also no understatement that it was a shaky start for the purple and gold with three consecutive two-and-outs and four flags in the first quarter alone that kept the Golden Hawks at bay.
At 10:03, the Golden Hawks conceded the safety to put Queen's up 2-0, but those were the only points put up after the first 15-minutes.
The flood gates broke for both teams in the second quarter as they combined for 31-points. But it was the Golden Hawks who got the party started.
On second and ten, Laurier's offensive line gave Cal Wither time and space to find Jesulayomi Ojutalayo who was in tight coverage but timed his jump perfectly and rose above the Queen's defender to bring down the first touchdown of the game at 12:12.
The Gaels answered right back at 8:24, but the connection between Wither and Ethan Jordan has only been getting better and better as the weeks move on. Jordan was wide open to Wither's right, and Jordan turned on the jets where there was no chance of catching him.
Jordan took the 10-yard pass 81-yards to the house to put Laurier back on top 15-9. The touchdown meant that Jordan set a new career high in longest reception.
"That's a play we've gone to several times, and it's usually good for a 10 to 15-yard gain," manager of football operations and head coach Michael Faulds said.
"When he caught it, I thought, 'Okay, maybe this has a chance to go for 20-yards.' As many times as he's had long touchdowns, his speed just keeps getting better and better, and he outran everyone in the whole stadium. So, incredible job by him."
After the Gaels' next drive ended in a punt, Wither and Jace Atkinson teamed up for 46 passing yards and was enough to get Dawson Hodge on the field to nail the 44-yard field goal, putting the Golden Hawks up 18-9. And moments later, the Gaels conceded two points.
Once again, the Gaels answered back, albeit not in the way they wanted. Laurier's defense held their ground and forced Tyler Mullan to kick the field goal for a 20-12 score.
With the last play of the half, Hodge set up for the 50-yard field goal attempt, but the wind won that battle and the kick was missed, but the Gaels gave up the rouge.
At the half, the Golden Hawks led 21-12.
While Laurier's early penalties only taxed them field position, the Gaels' unnecessary roughness penalty on Ryan Hughes on their own 10-yard line was a costly mistake as Tayshaun Jackson, aided by Tyler Potvin and Spencer Walsh, pushed through for the touchdown at 11:50.
Hodge's leg was rocking throughout the game, and his 75-yard kickoff forced the Gaels to give up another single, putting the Golden Hawks in front 29-12.
The Gaels answered at 5:49 with a touchdown of their own, bringing the deficit to 29-19. The Gaels fans at Richardson Stadium were gaining hope with every tri colour response, but one Golden Hawk flew into the game under the radar and left with the spotlight.
Alex Vreeken had shown all night that his aerial game was strong and looked to push his Gaels forward. Another Queen's penalty proved to be crucial as they were brought back to their own 20-yard line.
Vreeken passed right, but third-year defensive back Paul Loggale jumped in front of Vreeken's target at just the right time and came up with the 26-yard pick-six, putting the Gaels deeper into the hole 36-19.
"We felt really happy for him because he got banged up a couple weeks ago, but he's a tough kid," Faulds said.
"He had an opportunity at a pick earlier in the game, and I know he was disappointed that he dropped it, so the fact that he got another opportunity, he made the most of it."
"That was a big swing in the game because at that point, it was a 10-point difference, and that pushed us over the edge there."
With that play, Loggale recorded his first career defensive touchdown.
A 70-yard kickoff gave the Golden Hawks another single and a 37-19 lead. Hodge had 172 punting yards and 328 kickoff yards with four rouges.
"Once you get a touchdown with the wind behind you, do you try to lay up the kick or do we kick it as far as we can? We told Dawson to just blast it, and he was great all game," Faulds said, crediting his kicker.
The Gaels got another touchdown to end the third quarter down 11-points.
With windy conditions, the Golden Hawks opted for a style fans aren't used to seeing: playing the run-game. And they have the running backs to do it.
The Golden Hawks rushed for 208-yards compared to the Gaels' 97. Quentin Scott had a game-high 115 rushing yards and had his 10th career game surpassing the century mark.
Scott, along with Jackson and Darion Bacik-Hadden, combined for 44-yards on Laurier's opening play of the fourth quarter that put Hodge back on the field for another three-pointer and a 40-26 spread.
Jackson showed his ability to cross the goal line on short-distance plays, and this time he flashed his speed in a way Golden Hawks fans have seen before.
Mullan's punt bounced a couple times on the Laurier 3-yard line before Jackson scooped it up and was faced with a crowd of purple, gold, and tri colour, and if you can't go around it you can go through it.
Jackson went right up the gut, broke a desperate tackle, and was off to the races for a 98-yard punt-return touchdown. It was Jackson's fourth career return touchdown, and first on the punt return side.
The Golden Hawks went up 47-26 with 5:19 on the clock.
"Most of his return touchdowns thus far have been when he would catch it and there would be a 10 to 15-yard gap between the would-be tacklers," Faulds said.
"This one was on the ground, so when he finally got his hands on it, they had about seven guys hovering within a 10-yard box of him. He's the quickest guy laterally in the whole country. We thought he was going to go down and have the ball there, but he made everyone miss and had enough juice to take it the distance."
It was the eventual nail in the coffin as the Gaels' last-minute touchdown could not get them back into the game. The Golden Hawks improved to 3-0 on the season, while Queen's fell to 1-2.
UP NEXT
The Golden Hawks are back in action on Saturday, September 13 for the Battle of Waterloo.
"What stands out is that we're playing a home game on the road. Our guys will be extremely motivated to play the Battle of Waterloo. We've got the mindset that we'll play anyone anywhere."
"Last year we let Waterloo hang around for way too long, so our guys have to be motivated. It's the next opponent on our schedule, and we have to fight for it."
Tickets are available here with kickoff set for 1pm.
