Under the lights, Grand Rapids native and Bulldog quarterback Trinidad Chambliss stepped up to bring Ferris football to the promised land once again.
Chambliss was a DII All-American, Harlon Hill finalist, GLIAC Player of the Year and led the Bulldogs to their third national championship in four seasons.
After winning the starting job out of camp, losing the opening game and doubting his own ability to lead the team, he was forced into the full-time quarterback role after an injury to junior quarterback Carson Gulker and led the Bulldogs to the championship.
Growing up, Chambliss began playing sports at a very early age. He comes from a sports-driven family as his father played college football, his mother played volleyball and basketball in high school and his brother Tyler played football and basketball as well.
His brother Tyler Chambliss says Trinidad could catch a football before he could walk.
“Our dad used to roll up socks together and toss it to him,” Tyler said. “He was catching stuff before he was walking and talking.”
Chambliss’ journey to Ferris almost didn’t happen. During the recruiting process, Chambliss had to make a decision. He was an All-State player in both football and basketball and held offers at the next level for both sports. At one point, Chambliss was close to picking basketball over football.
“I honestly wanted to play basketball in college but no schools were reaching out,” Chambliss said. “I was getting scholarship offers for football and decided I guess I’m going to play football. My love was for basketball but God works in mysterious ways and he chose the path of football for me.”
Chambliss felt that he was underrated and underrecruited, whether that be due to his size, frame or just the mold of player that he was.
“I was definitely underrated and underappreciated by schools,” Chambliss said. “I guess I didn’t fit the eye test coming out of high school, I wasn’t six-foot-three made of muscle. It was annoying because I knew the type of player I could be in the right situation.”
Tyler thinks the chip on his shoulder helped Trinidad throughout his journey.
“He always plays with that feeling of being slighted,” Tyler said. “He attacks everything the same, whether that be diet, workouts, or film, he’s just obsessed with it in the best way possible.”
Chambliss held other DII offers but wound up choosing Ferris due to the family’s feelings toward the Bulldogs and the togetherness shown during the recruiting process.
Chambliss did not appear in any games during his first two seasons and played sparingly during the 2023 season. This discouraged Chambliss but pushed him to work harder than he ever had to earn a starting job in 2024.
The underdog mentality and strong work ethic that Chambliss has kept throughout his career, even after having feelings of being underrated and overlooked helped him when he was thrown into the full-time quarterback role in just the third week of the season.
The people around him feel the same way. Former high school teammate and current Ferris State basketball player Ethan Erickson says that is what sets Chambliss apart from the rest.
“He is always out-working everybody,” Erickson said. “He obviously is the most skilled person out there but that work ethic he has always separated him.”
After the week zero loss to Pittsburg State, Chambliss doubted his ability to lead the team, but his teammates and coaches supported him.
“I didn’t know if I could be the quarterback of this team,” Chambliss said. “I didn’t think I was good enough, I’m thankful for my team and those moments over the season where I found myself and doing things that I never thought I could do.”
Throughout the Bulldog’s history under head coach Tony Annese, they have run a dual quarterback system. To start the year that was no different, Chambliss won the job, but Gulker split the reps and served as the running quarterback. Sadly, Gulkers’ season ended the following week after he suffered a broken leg during the win over Lake Erie. This forced Chambliss to take a large portion of the snaps and be the sole signal caller.
Chambliss took the challenge head-on and did not back away.
“It really sucked losing Carson but I knew then I had to lock in even more,” Chambliss said. “It was time to prepare harder, watch more film because there’s a lot of quarterbacks in the room but no other quarterback in that room had game experience like me and Carson. It was a lot of pressure but pressure is a privilege and I just grew so much as a player and a leader.”
After the week zero loss, Chambliss led the team to an undefeated rest of the season, including a national championship win over Valdosta State.
Chambliss secured many accolades this season, including GLIAC Player of the Year, numerous GLIAC Player of the Week and tied the Ferris record for passing touchdowns in a game with six.
Chambliss expressed his gratitude for the coaching staff putting him in a position to succeed and the “incredibly special” team around him.
Chambliss threw for 2925 yards with 26 touchdowns through the air. He also rushed for an extra 1019 yards and 25 touchdowns on the ground.
Emotions were high during the national championship, but Chambliss and the team stayed calm for the big game.
“It was just another game for us, as funny as it sounds McKinney is a home game for us now,” Chambliss said. “We expect to be there in December playing for a national championship. The whole trip nobody got over their heads and we just made sure we finished business. I signed up for it, national championship is the standard here.”
Moving forward, Chambliss will be returning to Ferris State for his final season, vying for their fourth title in five seasons. He plans on using this off-season and next season to better his mind and skills as he looks to extend his playing career past the collegiate level.