Football returns to York University's Keele campus this holiday weekend as the Lions welcome the Laurier Golden Hawks to Alumni Field for a Labour Day showdown in their home opener for 2019.
 
Kick-off is set for 1pm and tickets are available at the door. Fans who can't make it in person can also tune in to OUA.tv to watch live online.
 
Both squads will be looking to get into the win column for the first time this season after opening day losses last weekend. The Lions suffered a 34-17 defeat to the Windsor Lancers on the road on Sunday night, while the Golden Hawks went down to the defending Yates Cup champion Western Mustangs by a score of 32-19 on home field earlier in the day.
 
On Sunday in Windsor the Lions struggled to move the ball well in the first half and ultimately ran out of time to close the gap. The offence found its stride in the second half, however, and finished with 368 yards, 325 of them coming in the air courtesy of fifth-year quarterback Brett Hunchak. A couple of costly mistakes gave the Lancers great field position on two of their drives that led to touchdowns, and if the Lions can clean up those errors they can really show how good of a team they can be.
 
The Golden Hawks, meanwhile, put in a strong effort against the powerhouse Mustangs. They put up 442 yards of offence compared to just 288 for the visitors but allowed multiple big plays that made the difference. Like the Lions, they will be looking to make adjustments on those few mistakes in the hopes it leads to a different result.
 
The quarterback battle will see the veteran Hunchak face off against second-year pivot Connor Carusello, who took over the starting duties midway through last season. Both of them had strong first games, with Hunchak completing 24 passes for 325 yards and Carusello 34 passes for 360 yards and they each threw a pair of touchdowns. Their favourite receivers each picked up at least 100 yards on opening weekend, with York's Kadeem Hemmings catching six balls for an even 100 yards and Laurier's Brentyn Hall recording 132 yards on seven receptions.
 
Monday's contest is the first meeting between the two teams since 2017, a game the Golden Hawks won 53-31 at York just before Thanksgiving weekend. Laurier has won four straight match-ups, with the Lions' last win coming in 2013 by a score of 33-20 in their first game on what was then a new turf field at Alumni Field.
 
After Monday's game the Lions will head back on the road for Week 3, this time travelling to Guelph, Ont., to face the reigning Yates Cup finalist Gryphons on Saturday, Sept. 7. Their next home game will come the following week with a visit from the McMaster Marauders on Saturday, Sept. 14.