PREVIEW: #1 Bulldogs Head To Upper Peninsula To Battle Huskies In Matchup Of GLIAC Leaders

Ferris State – Tony Annese (Alma, 1983), 9th season, 93-16-0 (.853) – 8-0 vs MTU).  Annese recorded a 195-41 (.826) mark as a head coach in four stops at the high school level before totaling a 30-4 (.882) record in three years as the head coach at Grand Rapids Community College.  His overall career mark at all levels is 318-61 (.839) to date and includes three prep state championships and two national JUCO crowns. He claimed his 300th win in 2018 with the national semifinal victory at Minnesota State.

 

Michigan Tech - Steve Olson (Valley City State), 4th season, 15-17-0 (.469) - (0-3 vs. FSU). Olson is in his fourth season as the head coach at MTU and his 10th season overall with the Huskies after serving as the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. Olson has more than 25 years of collegiate coaching experience, including 12 years at Minnesota-Crookston before joining the Huskies.

 

Ferris State climbed to #1 in this week's American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Division II National Poll for the first time in program history. The Bulldogs, who were listed third last week, moved past previous top-ranked West Florida and Northwest Missouri State after both got beat this past weekend. Previously, FSU was ranked as high as 1st nationally in 2015 by D2Football.com along with the Division II Power Rankings, but had never been #1 in the current coaches poll. Ferris State was ranked #1 for two weeks back in 1996 when the NCAA Football Committee produced the weekly rankings prior to the creation of the head coaches' poll thru the AFCA. The Bulldogs' previous best in the AFCA poll was #2 at various stages with the first coming late in the 2015 regular season. FSU was also second early in the 2017 campaign along with different points in both 2018 and 2019 for the school's then highest ranking ever in the history of the coaches poll that dates back to 2000. 

 

Over the years, the Ferris State and Michigan Tech gridiron series has been one of the GLIAC's best. The Huskies lead the all-time series 34-31-4, but the Bulldogs are on a currenteight-game winning streak during the Tony Annese era. FSU pulled out a thrilling 30-28 victory at MTU's Sherman Field in Houghton in 2016 before handling the Huskies in the regular-season finale on a snowy field in 2017 in the Upper Peninsula. In 2018, the Bulldogs topped the Huskies 42-24 at Fifth Third Ballpark in Comstock Park before the 'Dawgs won again in Houghton by a decisive 52-0 score in the regular-season finale in 2019, which also came on a wintry day in mid-November.

 

The Bulldogs went on the road five years ago (9/10/16) and fought back from a 21-10 halftime deficit to beat Michigan Tech 30-28 at MTU's Sherman Field in Houghton. FSU pulled out the victory on kicker Wyatt Ford's 36-yard field goal with seven seconds remaining. The Bulldog defense forced four third-quarter turnovers and the offense compiled 516 total yards in the victory.

 

This year's contest will represent the Bulldogs' seventh road trip to face Michigan Tech across the Mackinac Bridge in the last nine seasons, not counting 2020 when no competition was held. FSU made the trip three times in four years from 2011-14 before back-to-back visits in 2016 and 2017 along with another trip in 2019. Overall, the Bulldogs have hosted the Huskies only three times at FSU's Top Taggart Field since 2006. Ferris State also made the trip to Houghton three times from 2005 to 2008 before hosting the Huskies in the initial "Battle At The Ballpark" in 2009.

 

The win over Grand Valley State last Saturday was the 34th-straight regular season victory for the Bulldogs along with FSU's 27th consecutive GLIAC triumph and the program's 19th road win in a row. It also marked the ninth time the Bulldogs have beat the Lakers in the last 11 meetings, including the fifth-straight as FSU retained possession of the Anchor-Bone Trophy.

Ferris State made it a clean sweep this week of the GLIAC Player of the Week awards following a victory in the Anchor-Bone Classic on Saturday night. FSU senior quarterback Jared Bernhardt was tabbed as the GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week with senior cornerback Alex Thomas chosen as the GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week. In addition, junior receiver and specialist Sy Barnett (Williamston) was picked as the GLIAC Special Teams Player of the Week following the Anchor-Bone victory. Bernhardt completed 75% of his passes, going 12-of-16 on the night for 217 yards and two scores. He added a game-high 116 yards rushing on 23 carries. Thomas made one of the game's biggest plays with a 99-yard scoop-and-score fumble recovery return late in the first half and also had a pick. Barnett converted all five of his PAT tries on the night and had three punts for 115 yards, averaging 38.3 yards per punt, including a 56-yarder to flip the field in the first half. Additionally, he tossed an 18-yard completion on a fake field goal try in the fourth quarter to setup FSU's final score.

 

Ferris State sophomore quarterback Mylik Mitchell earned the GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week after he threw for a school-record 508 passing yards and six touchdowns in the Bulldogs' recent 67-25 road win at Northwood (Oct. 2). He topped both FSU's all-time single game passing and total offense marks, completing 29-of-39 (74.4%) throws and added three yards on the ground. The FSU signal caller helped the Bulldogs generate 693 total yards in the game and became the eighth different starting QB under head coach Tony Annese to register five or more touchdowns in a single game. Both his passing yardage and total offense totals rank fourth all-time in GLIAC single game history. 

 

Every starting quarterback under FSU head coach Tony Annese has now accounted for five touchdowns or more in a single game after Mylik Mitchell became the eighth QB to do so at Northwood (Oct. 2). Ferris State junior QB Evan Cummins earned the start against Saginaw Valley State the week before in place of the injured Jared Bernhardt and accounted for six TD's in the win over SVSU. Bernhardt totaled seven TD's in this year's season-opening win over Findlay.

 

Ferris State is currently riding a school all-time best 19-game winning streak on the road dating back to its last true road loss at Ashland in September of 2017. FSU closed its 2017 campaign by winning its last four road tilts, including a playoff win at Fort Hays State, and won seven games on the road in 2018 along with five in 2019 and one earlier this year at Ashland. In 2018, FSU also posted a decisive neutral site win over Michigan Tech in the "Battle At The Ballpark" played at the home field of Minor League Baseball's West Michigan Whitecaps at Fifth Third Ballpark in Comstock Park. FSU's only setback away from home since 2017 came in the 2018 D2 National Champiosnhip game when the Bulldogs fell to Valdosta State in a neutral site tilt in McKinney, Texas. 

 

The Ferris State defense registered its first shutout of the year against Davenport (Sept. 25), holding the Panthers to less than 170 yards of total offense in a decisive 38-0 triumph. The shutout was FSU's second in its last two seasons on the field, dating back to a 52-0 victory at Michigan Tech in November of 2019. The shutout was Ferris State's second in four all-time matchups against the Panthers as FSU recorded a 26-0 road win in 2017 in Caledonia.

 

Bulldog senior defensive end Sam Girodat hauled in the first reception of his career against GVSU, making a big catch down to the one-yard line to setup FSU's eventual winning score on a fake field goal. The play was setup by holder Mylik Mitchell, who threw to kicker Sy Barnett, who ultimately found Girodat.

 

The Bulldogs began their 112th season of varsity competition this fall with their sights set on making a seventh consecutive trip to the NCAA Division II Playoffs. FSU has now made four-straight NCAA Division II National Quarterfinal appearances and is currently one of only four teams in all of college football to win at least 11 games each of the past six years (not counting the 2020 COVID season). The Bulldogs along with Northwest Missouri State are the only programs in Division II football to make the playoffs each of the past six seasons.