Photo courtesy of Joanna Kurowski Photography

In a record-breaking game that will be etched into the pages of the London Beefeaters and Ontario Football Conference's history, Drew Lawrence achieved something truly special. The Beefeaters soared to victory, defeating the Quinte Skyhawks with a resounding score of 70-3 at their home turf a couple of weeks ago. However, it was the third-year Beefeaters defensive back and London native Lawrence’s performance that stole the spotlight.

Lawrence had 196 punt return yards which set a new team record for return yards in a single game. He also tied the team record for the most punt returns in a game with 10 returns. What makes this achievement even more extraordinary is that he tied the record initially set by his father, Moe Lawrence, back in 1989.

Speaking about tying the record that was held by his dad, Drew said "He's been on me since I started playing for the Beefeaters two years ago. I told him I was going to beat it leading into the game, and I didn't end up getting to beat it, but it's pretty cool to hold it with him. Not a lot of people get to say they have a record to share with their father, so it's definitely cool."

When asked about the conversation with his dad after the game, Drew chuckled, saying, "My dad told me the record doesn't count because the 10th return that I had bounced between my legs. But I still feel that it does count, he's just trying to hold on to the record, but it's mine now. Well, it's ours, I guess."

Drew’s 196 punt return yards put him into the ninth position in the OFC's record books for the most punt return yards in a single game. Drew says that having his name in the OFC record books is a privilege. "That's obviously an honor to have any type of record, and I just owe a lot of thanks to the coaches for keeping me in that game and my blockers for helping me get the extra yards."

While Drew's name was added to the record books, he says that his teammates helped him get it there. "My blockers were helping me out a lot and were opening a lot of gaps for me. We work on our special teams a lot, so the coaches set up a good game plan for me to succeed."

Beefeaters Head Coach Snyder was very happy for Drew and his father, saying, "It's pretty awesome to be able to tie a record that your dad holds, and hopefully those two guys share the record for a long time."

While Drew did end up tying the record Snyder shared that almost didn’t happen. "I became aware of how close he was right when we were going to take him out of the game as a returner, and then he said, 'I need three more returns to tie a record.' I was like, 'What record?' and then he said, 'My dad's punt returns in a game record.' So that's kind of like he's tugging at my heartstrings here; so we left him in, and if I knew he needed eleven to have the record on his own, we probably would have tried to get them to punt once more just to get him out to break the record."

Praising Drew's performance, Snyder commended both Drew's skills and the teamwork in front of him, saying, "I liked how he just caught the ball in the air or caught it on the first bounce allowing him to execute the returns we had set up. I think our return team did a good job getting guys in front of him to block."

Snyder also emphasized Drew's dynamic athleticism, stating. "He's really fast to start with. He has a very good vision of just knowing where guys are going. He's real shifty and he's aggressive as heck and he just really hits the seams hard. A lot of guys want to dance, but he's really aggressive at just hitting a seam and getting up the field."

Adding to the day's significance, the 1988 Beefeaters team, which included Moe Lawrence, was honored and inducted into the Beefeaters Hall of Fame during the game. The game provided a stage for father and son to share the spotlight and etch their names into the history of the team.

While the old saying goes that all records are made to be broken, Drew and Moe Lawrence’s story serves as a reminder that while that may hold true for sports, family is forever and transcends any record or achievement.