LONDON, Ont. - It's been 671 days since the McMaster Marauders football team hit the gridiron, and that'll change this weekend as they take on the Western Mustangs Saturday afternoon in London.
The journey to a potential Yates Cup title defence starts at TD Stadium, in a rematch of the 2019 OUA Championship game that saw the Marauders raise their eighth conference banner in program history.
Holding the potent Mustangs offense to just 229 yards en route to a 29-15 victory, the Marauders stunned the hosts who were the top ranked national team at the time, thanks to 18 completions and 243-yards from quarterback Andreas Dueck.
But with 2019 in the rear view mirror, the maroon and grey will look to a hungry squad of veterans and newcomers to script this new chapter as they head into week one.
Game Day Details
Match-Up: McMaster Marauders (0-0) at Western Mustangs (0-0)
Date: Saturday, Sept. 18th @ 1pm
Watch: OUA.tv
Live stats: OUA.ca
2021 Football Schedule
With two years away from play comes two years of first-time Marauders who have yet to see the field, but are more than up to the task. Highlighting the batch of fresh faces is first-year quarterback Keagan Hall, a 6'4, 210lbs Nelson Lords graduate from Burlington, Ont. who looks poised to have a healthy career for the Marauders.
Mitchell Price, a 6'2, 250lbs defensive tackle from Clarkson High School in Mississauga, Ont. and Deemetrius Masuka, a 6'2, 220lbs local product out of Bishop Ryan are also poised to turn heads this season.
With two sets of recruiting classes since the 2019 season, instilling the team's team-first culture could prove difficult, but Ptaszek believes his returning veterans will provide great leadership during the season, starting with Dueck.
"Offensively, Andreas Deuck has got to be the leader of this football team," said Head Coach, Ptaszek. "He's worked as hard as anybody over the last year and a half – he's been at every lift, every throw, and he will set the standard for the whole team."
On the defensive side of the ball, McMaster will look to a quartet of veterans in defensive backs Josh Cumber and Mario Alyas, and defensive ends Enoch Penney-Laryea and Ryan Leder.
Divisional play in the OUA will look different this season, with an East and West Division, and eight-teams qualifying for the playoffs as opposed to six in years past. With six-regular season games, the top seed in each division will host the fourth-place team, with the second and third seeds facing off. The Yates Cup is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 20th.
After their season opener in London this weekend, the Marauders will have a bye-week in week two, and return home to Ron Joyce Stadium in week three, as they play host to the Waterloo Warriors Saturday, Oct. 2nd.
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