FERRIS FOOTBALL RANKED AMONG THE NATION'S TOP 20 TEAMS

Bulldogs Earn National Recognition With Upset Victory Over Nationally-Ranked Foe

The Ferris State University football team, coming off an impressive 26-23 home victory over previously nationally second-ranked Saginaw Valley State last Saturday (Sept. 16) evening in its 2006 season home opener at FSU's Top Taggart Field in Big Rapids, Mich., is nationally ranked for the first time this season as the Bulldogs are listed in four NCAA Division II national polls this week (Sept. 18-19).

Ferris, which is presently 3-0-0 overall and 2-0-0 in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), is ranked as high as 14th by Don Hansen's National Weekly Football Gazette. The Bulldogs are 18th in CollegeSportsReport.com's Division II rankings and occupy the 20th-place spot in D2Football.com's Top 25 National Rankings, which are chosen by members of the D2Football.com Media Voting Panel.

FSU, under 12th-year head coach Jeff Pierce, is also among other teams receiving votes in this week's (Sept. 19) American Football Coaches Association Division II Coaches' Poll with 35 total points.

Grand Valley State, also a GLIAC-member team and the 2005 NCAA-II National Champions, is currently ranked as the nation's number-one team in Division II with the exception of CollegeSportsReport.com. The Lakers are third in the online publication's rankings behind Northwest Missouri State and North Dakota.

Ferris State continues conference play this Saturday (Sept. 23) night as the Bulldogs face the Hillsdale Chargers at HC's Frank "Muddy" Waters Stadium in Hillsdale, Mich. A 7 p.m. (EDT) start time is scheduled for the contest.

Ferris' 3-0 start this campaign represents its best since 1996 when the Bulldogs won their initial three contests en route to a 10-2-0 overall record and a first-place 9-1 mark in the Midwest Intercollegiate Football Conference (MIFC). FSU claimed its fifth consecutive MIFC Championship title.