GLIAC Week 8 Preview: Season Hits Home Stretch With One Month To Go
GLIAC Week 8 Preview: Season Hits Home Stretch With One Month To Go
The GLIAC schedule hits the home stretch, with just four weeks of games to go in the regular season, and as few as three conference games left for some.
The GLIAC schedule hits the home stretch, with just four weeks of games to go in the regular season, and as few as three conference games left for some schools.
Last week’s thriller in Allendale saw Grand Valley State topple No. 1 Ferris State, allowing them to stay unbeaten in the league, along with Davenport, who is the lone team in the GLIAC to play outside the league this week.
But it’s two teams who were on opposite sides of rivalry losses a week ago who take center stage this week, as Ferris State looks to rebound after last week’s loss when they make the long trip north to take on a Michigan Tech team who comes in on a high after blasting rival Northern Michigan last week to win their 13th-straight Miner’s Cup.
No. 9 Ferris State (4-2, 3-1) at Michigan Tech (4-2, 1-2), 1 p.m.
- Where: Kearly Stadium; Houghton, Michigan
- Last Week: Ferris State lost to Grand Valley State, 49-28; Michigan Tech defeated Northern Michigan, 62-0
- Series History: Michigan Tech leads 34-33-4; Ferris State won last season, 28-20
It seems hard to believe, but this is the most played rivalry in the GLIAC, with the two teams meeting 71 times over the years.
It also features two teams coming in on opposite ends of the spectrum, with Ferris State dropping last week’s clash-of-the-titans at Grand Valley State, in a game that saw both teams make huge runs before GVSU closed it out in the fourth quarter.
Tech meanwhile, traveled over to its biggest rival in Northern Michigan and delivered a historic win where everything went right for the Huskies, crushing the Wildcats by a 62-0 final.
The streak continues 🏆
— FloFootball (@FloFootball) October 17, 2023
Michigan Tech posted an impressive 62-0 win over Northern Michigan to keep the Miner’a Cup trophy for another year. pic.twitter.com/S6N9yIXNwG
Tech has been a hard team to pin down this season, flashing dominance at times with blowout wins over Northern and former GLIAC foe Hillsdale, a pair of narrow road wins, but then a two-game losing skid against undefeated Davenport followed by a loss to a struggling Wayne State team.
By every statistical measure, Ferris State is the better team, ranking at or near the top in scoring, yards, and total defense, while Tech is middle of the road or worse in all those categories.
Even in last week’s loss, the Bulldog offense still put up huge numbers, with Mylik Mitchell and Carson Gulker combining for over 380 passing yards and three touchdowns, while the offense finished with 438 yards against a good GVSU defense.
The problem for the Bulldogs in that loss, and for the first time all season, was the run offense struggled to just 55 yards on 29 carries, while the rush defense was torched for over eight yards per carry and 252 total rushing yards.
Combine that with 16 penalties and three turnovers, and you have a recipe for getting beat by almost any team, let alone a Top-10 opponent. It all added up to a 35-0 hole the Bulldogs couldn’t climb out of and one of the highest point totals allowed by Ferris State under Tony Annese.
.@CarsonGulker27 IS ON 🔥@FerrisFootball | @GLIACsports pic.twitter.com/ZP3sAg9jI0
— FloFootball (@FloFootball) October 14, 2023
Tech on the other hand, had pretty much everything go right in a 62-0 drubbing of winless Northern Michigan, gaining nearly 500 yards of offense, holding the host Wildcats to just 85 total yards, and forcing four turnovers.
It was a much-needed performance from a defense that had struggled the previous three games.
Offensively, the Huskies will lean on QB Alex Fries and WR Darius Willis if they’re going to pull the upset. Fries leads the GLIAC in passing yards per game, while Willis and Ethan Champney are near the top of the league in receiving yards. Willis had a monster game against Norther, hauling in 10 balls for 202 yards and a pair of scores.
Four of the league’s Top-5 receivers in terms of yards will compete in this one, with Ferris State’s Xavier Wade leading the league in nearly every receiving category, while teammate Tyrese Hunt-Thompson has also had a big season.
Last season was similar to this year on paper, in that it should favor Ferris State, but that didn’t mean much when the Huskies made the Bulldogs sweat out a 28-20 decision at Ferris State. In that game, the Bulldogs had to rally from a 10-0 deficit, then held off a Tech comeback bid in the fourth that got as close as four points.
GLIAC Games at a Glance
*All Games Scheduled for Saturday
No. 5 Grand Valley State (5-1, 2-0) at Northern Michigan (0-7, 0-3)
One week after facing the No. 1 team in the country, Grand Valley State gets set to take on one of the worst teams in the country in a winless Northern Michigan team.
The Lakers come in off the high of besting rival Ferris State last year in a game where the offense clicked, while the defense forced three turnovers. It wasn’t all roses for GVSU though, giving up 28 straight points over the second and third quarters to nearly give up a 35-0 lead.
Northern comes in looking for anything to go right after their season hit a new low at the hands of Michigan Tech last week.
GVSU drubbed the Wildcats last season, 56-3.
No. 13 Davenport (6-0, 3-0) at UMary (0-7, 0-7 NSIC), 1 PM ET
Davenport continues to take care of business as it rolls along toward showdowns with Ferris State and Grand Valley State to close out the regular season, rolling past Wayne State last week 32-3.
The Panthers out-gained the Warriors by more than 300 yards in the win thanks to 274 yards on the ground, while the secondary shined thanks to five interceptions, including two by Tyee Martin.
UMary is still searching for its first win, and after back-to-back weeks where they nearly made it happen, had things come crashing down in a matchup with Minnesota-Duluth last week, falling 46-0.
Wayne State (2-5, 1-1) at Saginaw Valley State (3-4, 0-2), 2 PM ET
A week after pulling off a stunner on Michigan Tech, Wayne State’s momentum was stopped in a big way in last week’s loss to Davenport, where five turnovers in the passing game halted any hopes of making it two upsets in two weeks. The Warriors' normally strong running game was held in check to just 47 yards in the loss as well.
SVSU found its way back in the win column but is still searching for its first GLIAC win after rolling past non-league foe St. Xavier last week, 32-10. The Cardinal defense came up big in the win, giving up just 117 total yards and forcing eight punts. Nine different players contributed to a rushing attack that posted 151 yards and three scores in that win.
SVSU took last season’s game, a narrow 21-14 decision, needing a touchdown in the final minute to pull out the win and rally from a 14-7 fourth-quarter deficit.