Ferris State seeks a rare three-peat as national champion in 2023. The road to a third consecutive title passes through Grand Valley State, home to the Bulldogs' rivals and one of the chief contenders to the NCAA Div. II football crown. 

The 2023 edition of the Anchor Bone Classic marks the third meeting between Ferris State and GVSU in a calendar year. If this installment is anything like the two 2022 season meetings, including a Div. II Playoffs showdown, expect an instant classic. 

Quarterbacks played a pivotal role in Ferris State's 24-21 quarterfinal win, accounting for all three Bulldogs touchdowns. Both Ferris State signal-callers from that contest are back in 2023, leading an offense that averages 43.6 points per game heading into a game with major implications for both the GLIAC championship and the postseason picture. 

Mylik Mitchell 

Ferris State thrives with a unique, multiple-quarterback system. Mylik Mitchell could be labeled the QB1-A of the Bulldogs duo, functioning as the primary passer. 

Mitchell has completed 44-of-66 attempts through six games in the 2023 season, his 66.7 percent up from 62.3 percent (114-of-183) a season ago. Mitchell's also thrown more touchdown passes with eight in six games this year than he threw last year with six. 

But while Mitchell handles the majority of passing duties, he's a true dual-threat. In 2022, Mitchell ran for 209 yards and four touchdowns. His 87 yards led the Bulldogs in the last meeting with GVSU. 

Carson Gulker 

Sharing snaps a season ago, Carson Gulker made history with his incredible 31 touchdown carries. He also led the national champion Bulldogs with 882 yards for an average of 58.8 per game. 

Gulker is again setting the pace for the Ferris State ground game at 81.6 yards per, with 408 in five appearances through 2023. He's also shown off his ability as a passing threat with five touchdowns and no interceptions yet on the year. 

Trinidad Chambliss 

A common yet perhaps not entirely accurate cliche says that a team with two quarterbacks has none. Well, there's no such idiom for three because it's such a rarity. Ferris State pulls it off brilliantly, though, integrating Trinidad Chambliss into its prolific offense as effectively as it employs the skill sets of Mitchell and Gulker. 

Chambliss has a pair of multiple-touchdown performances already in 2023, both passing with two scores Week 1 vs. Mercyhurst; and rushing with a pair against GLIAC counterpart Northern Michigan. Chambliss also ran for 125 yards against NMU, and 78 against Mercyhurst, breaking off long gains en route to per-carry averages of 11.1 and 25 in the two appearances. 

Notable Past Ferris State Quarterbacks

Jared Bernhardt

A college athlete ending their career with a national championship is a major milestone few reach. Boasting two is especially remarkable. Doing it in two different sports? That's downright legendary. 

Jared Bernhardt can make just that claim, quarterbacking Ferris State to the first of its two NCAA Div. II football championships. Before that, Bernhardt helped the University of Maryland to the national championship in lacrosse.

Evan Cummins

Jumping into the quarterback rotation following Bernhardt's departure, Evan Cummins played a key role in Ferris State repeating as national champions. What's more, he did so from multiple positions. 

In addition to his six touchdown passes and two scoring carries during the 2022 campaign, Cummins contributed to the dominant Bulldogs defense with his punting ability. Cummins boomed six punts in 2022 for an average of 42.7 yards, with four pinned inside the opponents' 20-yard line.

Jason Vander Laan 

The most prolific rushing quarterback in college football history, Jason Vander Laan left Ferris State with an NCAA record 5,953 yards on the ground and whopping 81 touchdowns. 

No mere running quarterback, however, Vander Laan also passed for 8,240 yards with another 85 touchdowns. His dual-threat exploits garnered two Harlon Hill Awards, making him the first two-time recipient of the honor since Danny Woodhead in 2006 and 2007. 

Jayru Campbell 

Ferris State hosted another Harlon Hill Trophy winner in 2018 when Jaryu Campbell passed for nearly 3,000 yards and rushed for 1,460. Campbell's remarkable, dual-threat playmaking powered the Bulldogs to their first NCAA National Championship Game appearance, where he passed for a score and rushed for another against Valdosta State.

Matt McCarthy

Just before the turn of the millennium as passing offenses were completing changing the make-up of college football, Matt McCarthy did his part in rewriting Ferris State passing records. McCarthy set a program record on Halloween eve 1999, going for 441 yards against Hillsdale. 

McCarthy's record remained for more than two decades, broken in October 2021 when Mylik Mitchell threw for 508.  Other marks McCarthy set in his tenure quarterbacking the Bulldogs include setting the single-game touchdown record with five — which he did in the 1999 edition of the Anchor Bone Classic. 

Bill Love

The cornerstone around which Ferris State became a Div. II football dynasty was arguably established in the early-to-mid-1990s. From 1992 through 1996, the Bulldogs won a share of five consecutive conference championships and four in a row outright. 

Bill Love quarterbacked three straight Midwest Intercollegiate Football Conference title-winning teams from 1993 through 1995. Along the way, he posted a variety of records that, while short-lived at the top of the Ferris State annals, remain among the program's most impressive. 

Love threw for 18 touchdowns in 1995, flirted with 2,500 yards in 1994 and surpassed that milestone as a senior. That year, sharing the backfield with legendary Ferris State running Chris Pulliams, Love was part of one of the most historic games in program history: The Snow Bowl vs. Saginaw Valley State.