← The issue Alumni DigestWestern

88Sport

Running back Ethan Dolby shares the load as the Mustangs spread the ball

Last year’s single-season rushing leader has 261 yards on 28 carries through three games, by design, says coach Michael Faulds.

Alumni Digest, from the London Free Press

A Mustangs ball carrier in a purple jersey runs with the football
SportA Mustangs ball carrier in the September 6 game.Photo: London Free Press

Ethan Dolby, the Mustangs’ single-season rushing leader last year, is carrying the ball far less this season. Through three games he has 28 carries for 261 yards, compared with 136 touches for 1,263 yards in Greg Marshall’s final season as head coach.

Head coach Michael Faulds says part of that is spreading the wealth and part is protecting players in lopsided games. He also noticed that Dolby was a little banged up late last season against Laurier and in the quarterfinal against Guelph after so many carries. Jack Kelly, Geoffrey Clubine and Jevaughn Roberts share the work.

The same idea applies to receivers. Faulds says quarterback Jerome Rancourt is spreading completions evenly across the field, so opposing defences cannot double-team one playmaker. The aim is to keep key players fresh for the biggest games late in the season.

Sources 1
  1. Original reporting · lfpress.com
Next · p.89Emmett Charles catches three touchdowns as the Mustangs top McMaster 32-25The receiver had nine catches for 206 yards before a capacity Homecoming crowd of 14,232, while the defence held McMaster to 17 rushing yards.

Chapter 07 · Campus LifeRead it in the issue →

More from Campus Life

p.77 · Campus LifePurple and proud, in motionp.78 · Campus LifeThe syllabus can still surprise youp.79 · Campus LifeThe campus keeps moving outward

109 stories about how ideas, people and purpose move from Western into the world.

This story is from the September 2026 issue of Alumni Digest · Western. It's free, monthly and independent.

Subscribe freeRead the whole issue

Alumni Digest is independent and is not an official Western University publication. Stories summarize the public reporting linked under each piece; photographs belong to the credited sources and remain under rights review.