By Canadian Press

Vanier Cup rematch on tap as Rouge et Or battle visiting Mustangs

Nov 23, 2018 | 7:30 AM

QUEBEC — League officials are calling Saturday’s Vanier Cup rematch between the reigning champion Western Mustangs and the host Laval Rouge et Or a dream final for university football.

“You could not ask for a better matchup,” said Lisette Johnson-Stapley, chief sports officer of U Sports, the organizing body for Canadian university sports.

It’s only the fifth time in the 54-year history of the Vanier Cup that teams undefeated in the season will meet in the league final. Western brings a 23-game winning stretch into the match, just two shy of Laval’s national record 25-game run (2012-14).

Western and Laval finished one-two respectively in national rankings this season, as they did last year. The two teams are also the top two winners of Vanier Cups, with Laval taking nine in 11 appearances since the program started in 1996. Western is 7-for-13 in Vanier showdowns.

Laval’s home-field advantage has not been lost on Mustangs head coach Greg Marshall, who masterminded Western’s 39-17 win over the Rouge et Or last year at Hamilton’s Tim Hortons Field. Laval has won both of its two previous Vanier battles fought on home turf, in front of its famously boisterous fans.

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“That’s totally different. As much as we tried to pump noise into our stadium this week, it’s not the same. They won’t understand until they get out there on Saturday afternoon,” said Marshall, whose team could become the first squad in U Sports history to finish with back-to-back unblemished seasons.

The coach, now in his 12th year at the Western helm, credits Laval for taking the chance to host the Vanier Cup. The Rouge et Or, playing in their third consecutive Vanier Cup, have signed up to host next year’s final, which will be the sixth national championship in Quebec City.

Laval head coach Glen Constantin says the home-field advantage “is huge. Every home team I think is better. In our case even more because of our great fans here in Quebec City. I think our kids take pride in playing at home. The confidence level obviously will help us.”

Constantin said last year’s match was almost like a home game for the Mustangs, since Hamilton is about a 90-minute drive from Western’s campus in London, Ont.

The two quarterbacks are the same, with Laval’s record-breaking pivot Hugo Richard playing his last game at the university level.

“Especially for the fifth-year guys, including me, it’s a special thing to be able to play our last game ever at home, especially in a Vanier Cup. We love our fans,” Richard said.

He’ll be facing fourth-year Western QB Chris Merchant, who bounced back from an injury early in last week’s Mitchell Bowl against Saskatchewan to lead the Mustangs to a hard-fought 47-24 victory. Laval had an easy time in the Uteck Bowl semifinal, blowing out the St. Francis Xavier X-Men 63-0.

Merchant will be keeping an eye out for Laval’s most potent defensive weapon, defensive end Mathieu Betts, who has caught the attention of National Football League scouts with his knack for sacking quarterbacks.

“I have all the respect in the world for Mathieu. I’m very excited to line up on the other side of the football with him and see what he’s got,” said Merchant.

Western has more than 10 players from Quebec programs on its roster, including star running back Cedric Joseph of Montreal, a graduate of the Champlain Lennoxville Cougars.

Peter Black, The Canadian Press