PRSPECTVES: Laurier ➡️ Western: Michael Faulds Makes the Move to His Alma Mater
+ Brock U alum on olympic roster, Olympic hockey roster released, Manitoba women's volleyball records broken,
The OUA football landscape shifted this past week when Michael Faulds announced he would be stepping down as head coach at Laurier to accept the head coaching role at his alma mater, the Western Mustangs. He will become the eighth head coach of the storied OUA program.
Quick rundown: Faulds is returning to a program in which he previously led as a player, where he manned the Mustangs’ offense as the quarterback from 2005–09. During his playing career at Western, he formed an impressive résumé — winning two Yates Cups and an OUA MVP, while also leading the Mustangs to a Vanier Cup appearance in 2008.
Faulds began his tenure as Laurier’s head coach at just 29, leading to a 13-year stint with the program, where he led the team to two Yates Cup titles and earned U SPORTS coach of the year honours three times (2016, 2024, 2025).
Faulds acknowledged that the move wasn’t easy.
“I want people to know it was a super tough decision. I’m gutted for the people I’ve left behind at Laurier and those relationships — I love them dearly,” Faulds said. “But at the same time, I hope it’s okay to be equally as excited to be back at a place where I had blood, sweat and tears, where I ran out of the tunnel.” Faulds said.
Faulds’ exit: The circumstances under which Faulds departed from the Golden Hawks drew nearly as much attention as the news itself. It was reported that Faulds informed both the players and the university of his decision to step down via email, while also not allowing the university to make any sort of counteroffer to him.
Naturally, comparisons were drawn to the Lane Kiffin scenario, which made headlines when Kiffin left Ole Miss for LSU midseason in late 2025, followed by intense scrutiny — Faulds noted that he didn’t want to leave in a similar manner.
“Would I have loved to call a team meeting the first day back of the new semester and get the football Laurier coaches and players there? Yes, 100%, but then we would have had the theatrics of Lane Kiffin, where Ole Miss called a team meeting at two o’clock,” Faulds stated on notifying Laurier via email and avoiding similarities with the Kiffin case.
Faulds defended himself by differentiating the circumstances both coaches faced, stating that Kiffin had no prior connection to LSU, whereas Faulds previously competed for Western and has deep ties to the program, with his wife and family being from London, Ont.
“I think the big difference is that Lane Kiffin wasn’t the quarterback at LSU, and his wife and family aren’t from Baton Rouge, Louisiana,” Faulds said. “The comparison ends with the theatrics of moving from program to program and head coach to head coach.”
Former player’s reaction: Former U SPORTS football phenom and quarterback at Laurier, Taylor Elgersma, shared his thoughts on the situation.
“Beat them so badly they had to poach our coach,” Elgersma stated in reaction to Faulds leaving for Western.
Elgersma is, of course, referring to the last two seasons, where the Golden Hawks beat the Mustangs by double-digit margins in both their 2024 (43-28) and 2025 (60-13) regular season matchups, as well as their 2024 Yates Cup faceoff, where they won 51-31.
Faulds will succeed the legendary Greg Marshall, who spent 18 years with the Mustangs, and will be helping Faulds in his transition.
All eyes turn to next season, when the Golden Hawks and Mustangs meet in what’s already shaping up to be must-watch theatre.
Brock Alum on Men’s Olympic Hockey Roster 🏒
Quick rundown: Brock University alum and current Washington Capitals netminder Logan Thompson is headed to the 2026 Winter Olympics after being named to Team Canada’s 25-man roster. Thompson played one season at Brock (2018–19), where he won the OUA West Rookie of the Year and Goalie of the Year honours, while also being named a first-team all-star.
The stats: The Calgary native ranks sixth among all NHL goaltenders in goals-against average (2.34), sixth in save percentage (.916), and is tied for seventh in wins (17).
Who will start? The 25-man roster also includes Los Angeles Kings goaltender Darcy Kuemper and St. Louis Blues netminder Jordan Binnington, who started for Team Canada at the Four Nations Face-Off. Thompson ranks ahead of both Kuemper and Binnington in all three major goaltending categories — goals-against average, save percentage, and wins — leaving the question: Who will start for Team Canada at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games?
Canadian Olympic Women’s Hockey Roster is Locked 🏒
We are only 22 days out from Canadian women’s hockey action at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina, Italy, and the Canadian roster has been released.
Forwards
Laura Stacey (F) — Kleinburg, Ont.
Sarah Fillier (F) — Georgetown, Ont.
Brianne Jenner (F) — Oakville, Ont.
Sarah Nurse (F) — Hamilton, Ont.
Natalie Spooner (F) — Scarborough, Ont.
Emily Clark (F) — Saskatoon, Sask.
Emma Maltais (F) — Burlington, Ont.
Marie-Philip Poulin (F) — Beauceville, Que.
Blayre Turnbull (F) — Stellarton, N.S.
Kristin O’Neill (F) — Oakville, Ont.
Julia Gosling (F) — London, Ont.
Jenn Gardiner (F) — Surrey, B.C.
Daryl Watts (F) — Toronto, Ont.
Defence
Sophie Jaques (D) — Toronto, Ont.
Jocelyne Larocque (D) — Ste. Anne, Man.
Kati Tabin (D) — Winnipeg, Man.
Renata Fast (D) — Burlington, Ont.
Ella Shelton (D) — Ingersoll, Ont.
Erin Ambrose (D) — Keswick, Ont.
Claire Thompson (D) — Toronto, Ont.
Goaltenders
Ann-Renée Desbiens (G) — Clermont, Que.
Emerance Maschmeyer (G) — Bruderheim, Alta.
Kayle Osborne (G) — Ottawa, Ont.
Coaches
Troy Ryan — Head coach
Kori Cheverie — Assistant coach
Caroline Ouellette — Assistant coach
Britni Smith — Assistant coach
All 23 roster spots belong to players currently in the PWHL.
U SPORTS connections: Numerous names on the Canadian roster have connections to U SPORTS programs. Laura Stacey (McGill), Brianne Jenner (Toronto), Natalie Spooner (Ontario Tech), Marie-Philip Poulin (McGill), and Erin Ambrose (Toronto) have all spent time in various coaching roles across U SPORTS.
Head coach Troy Ryan has held multiple roles in U SPORTS, first competing as a player for the University of New Brunswick and later the Saint Mary’s Huskies. Ryan got his start in U SPORTS as an assistant coach with the Acadia Axemen, later holding head coach positions at St. Thomas University (2011–13) and Dalhousie University (2020–23).
Ryan isn’t the only coach with U SPORTS experience — all three of his assistants have strong university coaching backgrounds. Kori Cheverie made history as the first female lead assistant coach in U SPORTS men’s hockey history, assuming the role with the Ryerson Rams (now TMU Bold), and added another milestone in 2020 as the first woman to lead a U SPORTS men’s hockey program to a win during the absence of Ryerson head coach Johnny Duco. Caroline Ouellette helped guide the Concordia Stingers to U SPORTS national championships in both 2022 and 2024, with a silver medal in 2023 as the associate head coach. Britni Smith also brings U SPORTS experience, having served as an assistant coach at the University of Toronto.
The Herd Made History This Past Weekend 🏐
It was a record-breaking weekend for the Bisons’ women’s volleyball program, as Raiya Surinx and Eve Catajo both broke program records in the rally-scoring era.
Aces record: Surinx broke the program record for aces on her second ace of the match, recording 150 career regular-season aces with four total aces in the Bisons’ 3–1 win over Mount Royal University on Friday night.
Blocks record: In the same match, Catajo recorded her 300th career block, making her the Bisons’ all-time leader in blocks. The previous record was held by Jordana Milne at 299.
The Herd had a weekend.
Quick Hits
🏈 Former UBC Thunderbird Theo Benedet made his NFL playoff debut this past weekend in the Chicago Bears’ 31–27 wild-card victory over the Green Bay Packers. Benedet, a two-time U SPORTS Lineman of the Year, was signed by the Bears to the practice squad in 2024. He made his NFL debut in Week 1 and went on to play 16 games this regular season, with his first start coming in Week 4.
🏈 Former Windsor Lancer and 2024 OUA all-star linebacker Devin Veresuk will sign a futures contract with the Indianapolis Colts. The Windsor native totaled 160 tackles, 14 TFL, nine sacks, two forced fumbles, and one interception over four seasons with the Lancers. He was selected second overall by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the 2025 CFL draft and made his professional debut on June 7, 2025, starting 15 games at middle linebacker in his rookie season while earning East Division Rookie of the Year honours.
🎾 Canadian tennis icon Milos Raonic announced his retirement after 18 years on the professional tennis circuit. He is the only Canadian male to reach a Grand Slam final and holds the Canadian record for the highest ever singles ranking.
🏀 Three undefeated teams remain in U SPORTS women’s basketball after this weekend. Following the TMU Bold’s loss to York — Saskatchewan, Regina and Queen’s remain as the only undefeated women’s basketball teams in U SPORTS.
🏀 In their first weekend back after the winter break, UNB, in two matches, outscored Cape Breton 202–79 (Game 1: 102–27, Game 2: 100–52).
⛸ Is this déjà vu? Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier captured their fifth straight Canadian National Skating Championships in Gatineau, Quebec, with a total score of 231.05. The pair will headline Canada’s figure skating squad heading into the 2026 Winter Olympics.
⛷ Deux-Montagnes, Quebec’s Michael Kingsbury earned his 100th career World Cup win, claiming gold in the men’s moguls event in Val St-Côme, Quebec, in his home province.