Nothing gets the blood flowing like a heated rivalry on a Saturday fall afternoon, and this Saturday the storied Anchor-Bone rivalry hits the gridiron at Top Taggart Field.
The No. 1-ranked Ferris State Bulldogs (7-0, 3-0 in GLIAC) take on the No. 18-ranked Grand Valley State Lakers (4-2, 2-1 in GLIAC) in what seems to be a down year for the Lakers.
Grand Valley was upset last week by Saginaw Valley State by a score of 20-19, while also losing earlier in the season to Pittsburg State by a score of 17-14.
This rivalry means a lot to the Bulldogs, and junior quarterback Carson Gulker is excited to take on the Lakers.
“This is a huge rivalry with a lot on the line,” Gulker said. “For us, this game is just a ton of fun, It’s always a blast to go up against a great team and just have to play our best to win. We are just focused on being our best.”
These teams still have elite offenses, with the Bulldogs having the highest scoring offense in DII with 56.5 points per game and 553.7 yards per game. Grand Valley averages 33 points per game and 355.2 yards per game.
The Lakers have a pass-heavy offense, led by redshirt freshman quarterback Andrew Schuster, who has passed for 1,337 yards and 13 touchdowns and four interceptions. Schuster leans heavily on his wide receiver trio of junior Kellen Reed, sophomore Sean Byrd and junior Lynn El-Wyche, all of whom have 200+ receiving yards and two or more touchdowns on the season.
The Bulldogs have a more balanced offense, that offense being run by redshirt freshman quarterback Wyatt Bower, who has 1,322 yards and 15 touchdowns to zero interceptions.
While also being Ferris’s leading rusher with 545 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground, junior running back Zak Ahern is also a threat running the ball. Ahern has 314 yards, averaging 7.5 yards per carry and adding five touchdowns.
While the two teams’ offenses may be elite, the defenses are no slouches themselves. Ferris currently sits at third in the nation for the least amount of points per game with 8.5 while allowing 229.8 yards per game.
The Bulldogs’ defense has 17 interceptions on the year, which is the most in the nation. Three of those come from senior linebacker Isaiah Byars, who also has 26 tackles on the year with three tackles for loss.
Senior defensive back Chase Nixon believes this game is going to be a great one, and can’t wait for the matchup.
“It’s a long-time rivalry,” Nixon said. “It is going to be a lot of energy and emotion this Saturday, I just can’t wait to play in it.”
As for the Lakers, their defense averages 16.6 points per game, which is good for 18th in the nation, while they allow 294.8 yards per game. The Lakers’ defense is headed by the linebacker duo of senior Anthony Cardamone and junior Jimmy Downs. Cardamone leads the team in tackles with 39, while having three sacks and five tackles for loss. Downs has 38 tackles and has five tackles for loss this season.
Senior slot receiver Brady Rose is excited to be back in front of the fans at Top Taggart Field.
“We are going to watch a lot of film and put in a good game plan for Saturday,” said Rose. “I am excited to have an Anchor-Bone classic at home in front of our fans.”
The Bulldogs will look to make sure the Anchor-Bone trophy stays in Big Rapids when the Lakers come up to Top Taggart Field on Saturday, Oct 25, at 1 p.m.