Ferris State Football To Host Live National TV Broadcast For Second-Straight Year

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Big Rapids, Mich. - The two-time defending Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Champion Ferris State University football squad, which is ranked as one of the country's top 20 preseason teams, will receive significant national exposure for the second-straight campaign as this year's homecoming showdown against Ashland has been chosen for a live national television broadcast.

The Bulldogs' Sept. 24 home tilt against the Eagles will be televised across the country by the American Sports Network (ASN) in partnership with the NCAA. The game will officially kickoff at 3:30 p.m. (ET) and will be part of an 11-week Division II Football Showcase this fall.

The official announcement was made Thursday by NCAA Division II and is among 22 regular-season football games that will be carried as part of a three-year agreement. Last year, the Bulldogs' home matchup against Michigan Tech was also part of the Division II Showcase.

ASN has developed agreements to distribute its broadcasts to various regional cable networks that have made it potentially available in 94 million of the nation's 113 million TV homes. ASN, which launched in August 2014, produced 250 college events in nine sports in its first year and aired nearly 400 events nationwide in the 2015-16 academic year. A complete list of available channels and distribution sites will be announced as the game draws close.

"I'd like to thank the NCAA, the GLIAC and the American Sports Network for this opportunity to have a marquee conference game shown nationwide," said FSU Athletics Director Perk Weisenburger. "We were thrilled to be involved with last year's national ASN broadcast and this opportunity will again showcase a key game between two of the nation's top programs. It will provide Ferris State University with tremendous exposure for our football program and athletics department along with our campus and the Big Rapids community during homecoming festivities."

The American Sports Network is part of the Sinclair Broadcast Group, one of the largest and most diversified television broadcasting companies in the world. Including pending transactions, the company owns, operates and/or provides services to 173 television stations in 81 markets, broadcasting 484 channels and having affiliations with all the major networks. Sinclair's content is delivered via multiple platforms, including over-the-air, multi-channel video program distributors and digital platforms. In addition to its regional affiliations, ASN launched a 24/7 channel in nine markets in January and increased the total to more than 20 in early June.

In addition to the national television exposure, the game will also be streamed live online, free of charge, at NCAA.com. It will be packaged for distribution to all Sinclair Broadcast affiliates and all Regional Sports Networks across the nation.

A year ago, Ferris State claimed its second consecutive GLIAC Championship by posting the school's second-straight unbeaten regular-season. Meanwhile, Ashland also earned a share of the league title and joined the Bulldogs in the NCAA Division II Playoffs after posting a 10-1 overall record and 10-0 league slate. FSU won the North Division crown with AU claiming the South Division title in the GLIAC. The two teams have not met since a 34-7 FSU road victory over the Eagles in Ohio in 2013.

The matchup between Ferris State and Ashland was the only game chosen as part of the Division II Showcase involving GLIAC institutions.

"It's awesome to be chosen to play on national TV for the second-straight season and it is a strong reflection of the success we've had in recent years," said FSU head coach Tony Annese. "We'll have several big games before this one and plenty more after, but this should be an outstanding contest between the two defending league champions. We're excited it also comes on homecoming as we know Bulldog Nation will be out in full force to showcase our university to the entire world."

As part of its broadcast platform, ASN televises live games from multiple NCAA college sports conferences, provides analysis from the game's top experts, delves into the human side of competition and shows the best of today's student-athletes.

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. is the leading local news provider in the country, as well as a producer of live sports content. The Company regularly uses its website as a key source of Company information which can be accessed at www.sbgi.net.

"This second year, with an expanded broadcast schedule, continues to give Division II student-athletes a chance to play in front of a national audience," said Terri Steeb Gronau, vice president of Division II. "Division II student-athletes balance community engagement and strong academics with their athletics, and this national platform gives the division the opportunity to highlight the successes of these student-athletes on and off the field."

The Bulldogs, under two-time reigning GLIAC Coach of the Year Tony Annese, have posted the best overall record of all collegiate programs in the state of Michigan over the past four years and presently own a 25-game regular season unbeaten streak.

FSU will begin its 108th season of varsity competition this coming fall with its sights set on repeating as GLIAC Champions for the third-straight year and making a return trip to the NCAA Division II Playoffs yet again.

Ferris State is coming off another historic campaign as the Bulldogs recorded a second-straight unbeaten regular-season en route to claiming a second consecutive GLIAC Championship in 2015. The Bulldogs also claimed the school's first NCAA Playoff win in 19 years and stretched their current regular-season win streak to 25-straight games.

Last fall, the Bulldog football squad finished 2015 with an 11-1 overall record for the second-straight year. Under Head Coach Tony Annese's direction, the Bulldogs also led the country with four Academic All-Americans and senior quarterback Jason Vander Laan claimed his second consecutive Harlon Hill Trophy as the nation's top NCAA Division II player. FSU was ranked among the nation's top 10 teams all season, including the school's highest ever national rankings at #1 in the D2Football.com poll along with #2 in the American Football Coaches Association rankings.

Since his arrival at Ferris State, Annese has turned the Bulldogs into a national power on the Division II level. The veteran coach has posted a 37-9 overall mark in four seasons at the FSU helm and has been the mastermind behind a Bulldog turnaround leading to 22 wins in the program's past 24 games overall. FSU has posted the GLIAC's best league record over the past four seasons (34-6) and the squad owns the top overall four-year record of all 21 collegiate programs in Michigan (37-9).

Overall, Annese has won 83% of his games as a head coach on the collegiate and prep levels and owns 262 wins to date, which is the most of any current GLIAC member head coach at all levels.

Ferris State, which will return upwards of 50 letterwinners for the 2016 campaign, opens the 2016 schedule this fall at home on Thursday, Sept. 1, at 7:30 p.m. (ET) against Ohio Dominican in Big Rapids.

Both season and individual game tickets for all 2016 home contests are now on sale and can be purchased thru the FSU Athletics Ticket Office by calling (231) 591-2888 or online at StarTickets.com. For more information, please visit FerrisStateBulldogs.com.