Prior to the game, the Bulldog’s were ranked 18th in the nation.
The Bulldog’s (3-0) scored early and often in the rout of the Lakers (0-3) and took the lead early and never looked back. Junior quarterback Jason Vander Laan led the offensive charge for the Dawgs and found senior wide receiver Jake Lampman across the middle for a 31 yard touchdown to put the Bulldog’s ahead 7-0.
Lampman finished the game with five receptions for 93 yards and two touchdowns.
Grand Valley quickly answered with a score of their own as junior running back Kirk Spencer scampered into the end zone on an eight yard touchdown run to tie the game 7-7.
After a Jamaal Jackson one yard touchdown run, the Bulldog’s pulled ahead 14-7 and Grand Valley answered back once again with a field goal midway through the second quarter to push the score to 14-10.
The rest of the game featured an impressive run by the Bulldog’s on both the offensive and defensive end. The offense went on to score 28 points unanswered and the defense held Grand Valley scoreless.
Junior cornerback Troy Smith stepped up midway through the third quarter with an interception. Smith was joined by fellow teammates, senior linebacker Darnell Morris and redshirt freshman KC Zenner, who had 11 and seven tackles respectively, with Zenner adding a forced fumble for the defense.
The defense also allowed zero points off the two turnovers the Bulldog’s had during the evening. The Lakers threatened to score three times in the fourth quarter, but the Dawg’s defense stayed strong and stopped the Laker charge on back-to-back-to-back possessions inside their own 10 yard line.
The offense was led by Vander Laan as the Bulldog’s recorded 496 total yards and scored 14 points off of the two Grand Valley turnovers.
Vander Laan finished the evening completing 19 of his 28 passing attempts for 215 yards and four touchdowns. The junior signal caller also recorded 166 yards on the ground on 28 carries. Vander Laan’s favorite target of the night was sophomore wide receiver Shakur Sanders who hauled in four receptions for 103 yards and three touchdowns.
The Bulldog’s next game is slated for Saturday, September 27th as the face the Cardinals of Saginaw Valley State University. Kick off is slated for 7 p.m.