The Ferris State football team overcame late turnovers and mistakes to avoid an upset against the Saginaw Valley State Cardinals and clinch a share of the GLIAC championship.
The No. 1 nationally ranked Ferris State Bulldogs (9-1, 6-0 in GLIAC) extended their win streak to nine over Saginaw Valley State (7-3, 4-2 in GLIAC) by a narrow score of 27-24 on Saturday, Nov. 9.
Two second-half turnovers by junior quarterback Trinidad Chambliss prevented the Bulldogs from putting the game away and gave the Cardinals a chance to tie the game with a field goal try in the final minutes. However, the kick sailed wide right, and Ferris was able to drain out the clock for the victory, allowing zero points in the final quarter.
Senior defensive lineman Victor Nelson knew the task the defense had to take on in the final quarter.
“It took grit from us, I had to let my defense know it was time to go,” Nelson said. “It was do or die, we wanted to do it because we didn’t want to die.”
After the Bulldogs had allowed just 16 points the last two weeks combined, Saginaw Valley scored 17 in the first half. The 24 points allowed were the most that Ferris has allowed all season. The Bulldog defense ranks first in the GLIAC, allowing an average of 11.2 points per game.
Coming into the game, the Cardinals were ranked atop the conference in the fewest rushing yards allowed per game and 24th in the nation in the category.
Still, Ferris was able to move the ball on the ground. They rushed for 171 yards on 39 carries and had two scores on the ground. The Bulldogs totaled 388 yards of offense compared to the Cardinals 313.
Head coach Tony Annese was pleased to come away with the win against the tough Cardinals defense.
“I am just relieved that we won, the numbers look nice but that is a great defensive front,” Annese said. “We tried to utilize our speed and make big plays and it worked.”
Penalties and self-inflicted wounds got the best of the Bulldogs again in the early going. Ferris returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown, but it was called back due to a hold.
On the next drive, Ferris committed a defensive holding penalty on third and long, which allowed the Cardinals to score on a 58-yard pass just a few plays later. This gave Saginaw Valley a 7-0 lead, the first time the Bulldogs have trailed in a game since week one.
Annese was glad that his team was able to battle through the penalties.
“That was a hard-fought game,” Annese said. “Those are always going to be a tough thing to battle with and you have to overcome them and I thought we were able to do so.”
After trading punts back and forth, Ferris got on the board with a trick play passing touchdown from junior wide receiver Brady Rose to junior wide receiver Cam Underwood, which tied the game at seven going into the second quarter.
Saginaw Valley answered with a field goal to take the lead, but senior wide receiver James Gilbert caught a short pass from Chambliss to put the Bulldogs back on top.
“Trinidad told me to get open and that nobody was going to be in my way,” Gilbert said. “My team really needed that touchdown and I told them I was going to go get it for them.”
Gilbert was the leading receiver on the day with three receptions for 60 yards and a score.
With three minutes remaining in the first half, the Cardinals answered once again with a touchdown, but the Bulldogs were able to put together a successful drive to take a 20-17 lead into the half.
Ferris and Saginaw Valley would each score once more in the third quarter, bringing the score to 27-24 going into the fourth but the Bulldog defense held strong to secure the win.
This week Ferris will face off against Davenport in the first ever Calder-City Classic on Saturday, Nov. 16 at home. This will be the final regular season game for the Bulldogs. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.