On Sep. 25, the Waterloo Men’s Football Team faced the Guelph Gryphons at CIF Field in what has become one of the most entertaining rivalries in the OUA.
The game was a tight defensive battle through three quarters before the Gryphons pulled away in the fourth for a 39-13 victory.
The teams traded field goals to begin the game but struggled to create offence for the next 20 minutes.
However, with two minutes to go until halftime, Guelph running back Kaine Stevenson ran the ball in to complete an impressive 75-yard drive into the wind and gave his team a 10-3 lead.
After halftime, the team’s traded touchdowns before Warriors’ quarterback Tre Ford and wide receiver Tyler Ternowski connected for a 48 yard completion to wake up the crowd.
Ternowski would finish the game with 141 receiving yards to become Waterloo’s all-time leader in the statistic.
Unfortunately, the Warriors were forced to settle for a field goal on the drive after failing to convert in the red zone.
With one quarter left in the game, it looked like the Warriors’ were in prime position for a victory.
The team was down by four points, but had all the momentum thanks to Ternowski and some strong defensive play.
It began well, as UW forced a turnover on Guelph’s first drive of the quarter to take possession a mere 25 yards away from the end zone.
Ford ran the ball in for a touchdown, but the excitement was short lived as the Warriors faced a 10-yard penalty on the play for interference.
The Warriors were unable to recover, as sloppy defence allowed the Gryphons to take control and score 22 unanswered points to take the victory.
Stevenson led the way for Guelph with his 194 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns. Warriors’ QB Ford finished the game with 18 completions for 301 yards in a strong outing.
The loss was the first of the team’s season, dropping them to fourth overall in the OUA. They will look to get back in the win column on Sep. 21 when they take on the Carleton Ravens in Ottawa.
