FSU Football At A Glance: The Ferris State University football team will face one of its stiffest challenges of the 2006 season this Saturday (Oct. 28) as the Bulldogs host the nationally number-one ranked Grand Valley State Lakers in Ferris' seventh annual Hall of Fame Game. Kickoff for the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) matchup between the two West Michigan archrivals is scheduled for 2 p.m. (EDT) at FSU's Top Taggart Field in Big Rapids, Mich.

The Records: Ferris State won its second straight contest with an impressive 38-7 conference victory over the Ashland Eagles last Saturday (Oct. 21) at Community Stadium in Ashland, Ohio. Ferris registered a 3-8-0 overall record in 2005, which included an eighth-place tying 3-7-0 GLIAC mark. The Bulldogs were 2-3 at home and 1-5 on the road a season ago.

Grand Valley State remained undefeated with a convincing 45-7 conference decision over the nationally-ranked Northwood Timberwolves last Saturday (Oct. 21) evening at GVSU's Arend D. Lubbers Stadium in Allendale, Mich. The Lakers were 13-0-0 overall and 9-0-0 in the GLIAC a season ago en route to claiming their third national championship in four years. GVSU bested Northwest Missouri State (21-17) in the 2005 NCAA Division II Championship game.

The Series: Grand Valley State has a 21-12-1 all-time series lead over Ferris State and will bring a five-game series winning streak into this Saturday's (Oct. 28) contest at Big Rapids.

* GVSU posted a 30-10 home triumph over the Bulldogs in the 2005 season opener in front of a Lubbers Stadium record crowd of 14,557 fans. GVSU kicker Scott Greene connected on all three of his field goal attempts while quarterback Cullen Finnerty passed for two TD's and ran for another as the Lakers outgained the Bulldogs 400 to 202 yards in total offense. GVSU, which trailed 7-3 after the first quarter, tallied 17 straight points in the second quarter and then tacked on 10 more in the third quarter to seal the victory.

* Grand Valley State has a 21-12-1 lead over Ferris State in a series which started in 1971 (10/9) with a 57-0 FSU home victory.

* The Bulldogs are 1-4-0 in their last five home contests and are winless in their last four encounters at Top Taggart Field.

* FSU had its 42-game unbeaten streak (40-0-2) snapped in 1996 (9/21) with a 36-17 loss at GVSU, which also halted the Bulldogs’ 41-game Midwest Intercollegiate Football Conference (MIFC) unbeaten string (39-0-2) and their 27-game conference win streak.

* Ferris State is 8-6-0 in contests decided by 10 points or less and 2-10-0 in games decided between 11 and 30 points.

* In the last four meetings at Big Rapids, Ferris is averaging 23.5 points (94 total) per game while Grand Valley State has averaged 41.0 points an outing (164 total) for a 17.5 points differential.

* The last four games have been decided by 18 points or more (28.5 avg.)

The Coaches: Ferris State – Jeff Pierce (Ferris State, 1979), 12th season, 75-54-0 (.578) – (2-8-0 vs. Grand Valley State). Pierce is 38-23-0 (.623) at home, 29-20-0 (.592) in October outings, and 70-46-0 (.603) in GLIAC contests all time. Pierce, who played at Ferris (defensive back) from 1974-77, is the 12th head coach in Ferris State’s history.

Grand Valley State – Chuck Martin (Millikin, 1990), 3rd season, 31-3-0 (.912) – (2-0-0 vs. Ferris State). Martin was honored as both the 2005 American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Region 3 and National Coach of the Year. He served as an assistant coach at GVSU for four years (2000-03) and was the defensive coordinator on the Lakers' 2003 national championship team.

On The Radio: All of Ferris State's 2006 football contests can be heard live on WYBR Radio (102.3 FM) with Jason DaDay calling the action.

On The Internet: Ferris State University Athletics’ official web site can be found at www.ferris.edu/sports. The site features information on all of FSU’s varsity athletics programs including rosters, statistics, yearbooks and more. The 2006 Ferris State Football Yearbook can also be accessed at the site.

Live Stats: “Live Stats” of all 2006 Ferris State home contests will be provided in progress via the internet. Visit www.ferris.edu/sports and click on the “Live Stats” icon to access the “Live Stats” feature.

Impressive Showing: Junior flanker Nate Fricke (Covert) posted career game highs at Ashland last Saturday (10/21) with a game-best 153 receiving yards and two TD’s on six catches. Fricke, who had TD grabs of 60 and 42 yards in the contest, averaged 25.5 yards per reception. His previous game high was eight catches for 116 yards and two TD’s at Findlay last season (10/1). Fricke, who was named the 2005 FSU Outstanding Offensive Rookie, had totaled 142 receiving yards on nine catches entering the Ashland contest.

Nationally Ranked: Ferris State is ranked 37th nationally this week (10/24) by Don Hansen’s National Weekly Football Gazette, 33rd in the CollegeSportsReport.com’s poll (10/22) and is among other teams receiving votes in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Division II Coaches’ Poll (10/24). Grand Valley State is presently the nation’s top-rated team in both the Hansen’s Football Gazette and AFCA polls while the Lakers are listed second by CollegeSportsReport.com.

Defensive Stalwarts: The Bulldogs are holding their opponents to 108.6 rushing yards per game (869 yds.) to date this season. Last season, Ferris allowed 170.5 rushing yards per outing (1,364 total yds.) over the initial eight-game period.

Anchor Bone Trophy History: The Anchor Bone Trophy, which is sponsored by Huntington Bank, is awarded annually to the winner of the Ferris State-Grand Valley State football game. The trophy debuted in 2002 and GVSU has maintained possession of the trophy the last three years with a trio of victories.

First Impression: Ferris has outscored its opponents 58-6 (+52 pts.) in the opening quarter this campaign and 141-57 (+84 pts.) in the first half.

Double Figures: Senior middle linebacker Mike Klobucher’s (Grand Haven/North Muskegon) game-high 10 tackles at Ashland (10/21), marked his third consecutive double-figure tackle game and the fourth of this fall. The two-time (2004-05) All-GLIAC Honorable Mention performer has accumulated 19 career double-digit tackle performances. Klobucher, Ferris’ 2005 Most Valuable Player, has paced the Bulldogs in tackles each of the last two seasons.

Good Showing: The Bulldogs’ six victories this season are one shy of matching the program’s most season wins since 2001 (7-4-0 overall). FSU went 6-5-0 overall both in the 2003 and 2004 campaigns.

Hall of Fame Games: The Bulldogs are 3-3-0 in their annual Hall of Fame which dates back to the 2000 season (9/23) with a 51-30 victory over Wayne State. Ferris State has won its last two outings to date, which included a 33-27 victory over Mercyhurst last season (9/24). FSU is averaging 28.5 points per game (171 total pts.) while the opposition has averaged 31.5 points an outing (189 total pts.) during that period.

At Home: Ferris State is averaging 330.7 yards in total offense (992 yds.), which includes 187.0 yards passing (561 yds.) and 143.7 yards rushing (431 yds.). The opposition has averaged 413.0 yards in total offense (1,239 yds.) with 234.3 yards passing (703 yds.) and 178.7 yards rushing (536 yds.). The Bulldogs have been outscored 78-68 in this season’s three home encounters, but are +12 (47-35) in the first half.

Scholar-Athlete: Mike Klobucher is among 148 semifinalists for the prestigous National Football Foundation’s (NFF) Draddy Trophy, which recognizes an individual as the absolute best in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary community leadership. The Bulldog defensive co-captain is joined by seven other student-athletes in Division II and is also a candidate for the NFF 2006 National Scholar-Athlete Award. He was the 2005 team’s recipient of the FSU President’s Academic Award for having the highest team GPA.

Big Jake: Sophomore defensive tackle Jake Visser (Coopersville), a 2005 All-GLIAC?Honorable Mention and GLIAC All-Academic pick, is averaging 8.1 tackles per game in 20 career outings. He has 161 career stops (78 solos) with 20.5 tackles for minus 91 yards and 12.0 pass sacks for 74 yards. The 2005 FSU Most Valuable Defensive Lineman had a squad second-place 98 stops (43 solo) last fall in 11 games.