FERRIS STATE SELECTS 2003 TEAM CAPTAINS

Senior Leadership To Guide The Bulldogs This Gridiron Season

Derek Fudge was among four seniors to be chosen a Bulldog team captain for the 2003 season.

Four senior Ferris State University football student-athletes have been named 2003 team captains as voted by their teammates. The announcement was made by ninth-year FSU head coach Jeff Pierce.

Serving as the captains on offense will be tailback Derek Fudge (Gibonston, Fla./East Bay) and tackle Matt McCoy (Charlotte) while middle linebacker Luke Piepkow (Jackson/Lumen Christi) and strong safety Vito Ciaramellano (Rochester Hills/Rochester) are the defensive captains.

Fudge, a three-year starter, earned All-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Second-Team honors last season after rushing for a team-high 1,016 yards and 10 touchdowns in 10 outings. He was the recipient of FSU’s Most Valuable Offensive Skill Player Award and led the Bulldogs in receiving with 44 receptions for 386 yards. Fudge enters this fall ranked fourth among the school’s all-time rushing leaders with 2,792 career yards and 20 TD’s on 625 rush attempts. The 5-9, 191-pound back also is sixth in career all-purpose yardage with a 3,651-yard total.

A pro prospect, McCoy was both an All-GLIAC Honorable Mention and GLIAC All-Academic pick a season ago. A two-year starter, McCoy was moved from tight end to tackle last fall as a result of injuries and received the starting nod in nine of 10 games. The 6-8, 290-pound lineman was a co-winner of the FSU Coaches Award in 2002.

Piepkow, a second-team all-conference selection last season, placed second in team tackles with 100 total in 10 outings after chalking up a team-leading 110 stops in 2001 en route to garnering honorable mention All-GLIAC kudos. The 6-3, 225-pound Piepkow, who’s entering his third year as a starter at middle linebacker, has registered 261 career tackles (127 solos) in 28 contests. His father (Ralph) and an uncle (Tom Prichard) both played football at Ferris State.

Ciaramellano is coming off his most productive campaign in a FSU uniform last year with a 41-tackle total (eighth highest on the team) along with three pass interceptions for 18 yards as a starter in all 10 contests. As a result of his season performance, the 6-1, 214-pound defender was named to the GLIAC Honorable Mention Team. Ciaramellano has totaled 105 tackles (66 solos) in 32 games during his three-year career.

Ferris State will begin its 95th season of varsity competition Saturday, Sept. 6, as the Bulldogs take on the Hillsdale College Chargers in a 7 p.m. (EDT) non-conference matchup at HC’s Frank “Muddy” Waters Stadium in Hillsdale, Mich. FSU opens GLIAC action Saturday, Sept. 13, versus archrival and 2002 NCAA Division II National Champion Grand Valley State University Lakers at Allendale, Mich. Opening kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. (EDT) at GVSU’s Arend D. Lubbers Stadium.

The Bulldogs concluded the 2002 season at 5-5 overall and 4-5 in the GLIAC.