FSU Football At A Glance: For the second consecutive week, the Ferris State University football team will go up against another nationally-ranked foe as the Bulldogs face the Northwood University Timberwolves this Saturday (Nov. 4) in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) regular-season road finale for FSU. A 12 p.m. (EST) start time is slated for the cotnest at NU's Hantz Stadium in Midland, Mich.

The Records: Ferris State had its two-game winning streak snapped as a result of a 28-6 conference loss to nationally number-one ranked Grand Valley State last Saturday (Oct. 28) at FSU's Top Taggart Field in Big Rapids, Mich. 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.

Northwood, which is ranked 14th nationally in both this week's (10/30) Don Hansen's Football Gazette and American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) polls, improved to 7-1 both overall and in the GLIAC with a 48-34 conference win over Wayne State last Saturday (Oct. 28) at Midland. The Timberwolves started out the 2006 season winning their first six outings and are 4-0 at home this fall. NU compiled a 9-3-0 overall record and tied for third place in the GLIAC at 8-2-0. Northwood made its second straight NCAA Division II Playoff appearance a season ago and suffered a 31-16 loss to Saginaw Valley State to conclude its 2005 campaign.

The Series: The all-time series is tied at 16-16-0 as Northwood has won the last two meetings, including last season's 42-23 triumph over Ferris State at Top Taggart Field in Big Rapids, Mich. The Bulldogs are 8-9-0 in contests played at Midland.

* Northwood rushed for a season-high 582 yards in last season's encounter, which represented the second most yards on the ground in the Timberwolves' history. NU had four players with at least 100 yards and ended a five-game series losing skid at Top Taggart Field. Outside linebacker Jeff Hollandsworth recorded a season-high 16 tackles for Ferris while kicker Josh Eichler was successful on three field goal attempts. Northwood had 638 yards in total offense while FSU chalked up 404 yards.

* Ferris State has won 14 of the last 19 games, including 10 of the past 14 contests after Northwood was victorious in 11 of the previous 13 encounters.

* Eighteen of the 32 meetings have been determined by 15 points or more and Ferris State is 10-8-0 (.556) in those games – (5-5-0 away and 5-3-0 home).

* Three of the last nine contests have been decided by 15 points or less, but not the last four outings to date.

* In the last six meetings, Ferris State is averaging 25.5 points per game (153 pts.) to Northwood’s 30.7 points a contest (184 pts.) for a 5.2 points margin.

* Ferris State is 4-5-0 in contests decided by 10 points or less (3-2-0 home and 1-3 away) and 12-11-0 in games decided between 11 or more points (7-6-0 away and 5-5-0 home).

* Ferris State is averaging 22.0 points per game (110 pts.) in its last five outings at Midland while Northwood has averaged 29.8 points a contest (149 pts.) for a 7.0 points differential during that period.

The Coaches: Ferris State – Jeff Pierce (Ferris State, 1979), 12th season, 75-55-0 (.577) – (7-4-0 vs. Northwood). Pierce is 37-31-0 (.544) on the road, 16-9-0 (.640) in November outings, and 70-47-0 (.598) 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.

Northwood – Pat Riepma (Hillsdale, 1983), 14th season, 83-63-2 (.568) – (4-9-0 vs. Ferris State). Riepma is a four-time GLIAC Coach of the Year recipient, which is the most among active conference head coaches. He also is the second all-time winningest coach in Northwood history.

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.

Notable Kick: Senior kicker Josh Eichler’s (Tomball, Texas) 52-yard field goal against Grand Valley State (10/28) not only was a career high, but also tied for the fourth-longest field goal since 1990. Doc Proctor (1996-99), who kicked a school-record 62-yarder vs. Michigan Tech (10/23/99), had a 52-yard field goal at Ashland in 1998 (10/17). Eichler’s previous career best was 37 yards at Ashland the previous week (10/21).

Nationally Ranked: Ferris State dropped to 39th nationally this week (10/30) by Don Hansen’s National Weekly Football Gazette after being listed 37th the previous week (10/24). The Bulldogs are 37th in this week’s (10/30) CollegeSportsReport.com’s poll. Northwood is ranked 14th in both the Hansen’s Football Gazette and American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) polls.

Season Road Finales: The Bulldogs are 27-27-1 (.500)?in regular-season road finales since 1950 and have won 11 of their last 14 such outings to date. Ferris suffered a 39-32 setback at Saginaw Valley State in the 2005 regular-season finale (11/5).

Productive Month: Senior middle linebacker Mike Klobucher (Grand Haven/North Muskegon) totaled a squad-lading 43 tackles (23 solos) in four October games this campaign. The two-time (2004-050 All-GLIAC Honorable Mention performer produced a squad second-place best 43 stops (25 solos) in five 2005 October encounters.

Ground Assault: Ferris State’s 1,596 rushing yards in its nine games this fall presently represents the 12th-highest season total in school history, bettering the 1,593 yards in the 2004 campaign. The Bulldogs are nine more yards shy of matching the 11th-place 1,605 yards total set in 1987. FSU is 18 points from tying its 258 points total in 2002, which is the 12th-highest single-season output in the program’s all-time annals.

Tackles Leaders: FSU’s three two tackles leaders this season, Mike Klobucher, sophomore outside linebacker Jeff Hollandsworth (Livonia/Stevenson) and sophomore defensive tackleJake Visser (Coopersville) have combined for 34.6% (212-612) of the team’s total tackles production with both Klobucher and Hollandsworth registering a team-leading 71 stops apiece. Visser has racked up 70 tackles this fall.

Interceptor: Senior cornerback Jim Skodak (Lennon/Corunna), a three-time (2003-05) All-GLIAC Honorable Mention selection, notched his 10th career pass interception versus Grand Valley State (10/28) and is now tied for seventh with Akil Young (1991-94) on FSU’s all-time chart. Skodak has three pass thefts in each of the last three seasons (2004-06).