The Game: The Ferris State University football team, which is currently in a two-way tie for first place in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), will put its current three-game winning string on the line this Saturday (Oct. 2) when the Bulldogs go up against the Northern Michigan University Wildcats in Marquette, Mich.

Kickoff/Stadium: 1 p.m. (EDT)/Superior Dome (8,000).

Radio Coverage: This Saturday’s game at Northern Michigan can be heard live on WBRN-AM (1460) – Big Rapids. John Smith will call the play-by-play with Jason Edwards providing color commentary. The pregame show begins at 12:40 p.m. (EDT) with opening kickoff slated for 1 p.m. (EDT).

The Records: Ferris State improved to 3-1 overall and 3-0 in the GLIAC as the Bulldogs posted a 46-36 conference home win over Northwood last Saturday (Sept. 25) at FSU’s Top Taggart Field in Big Rapids, Mich. FSU compiled a 3-2 home mark and was 2-4 in away contests last year. Last season, Ferris posted a 5-6 overall record and finished tied for sixth place in the GLIAC standings with a 5-5 mark. The Bulldogs were 3-7 both overall and in the conference in 1997. Prior to two seasons ago, FSU had won an unprecedented five consecutive GLIAC titles (1992-96).

Northern Michigan stands at 1-2 overall and 1-1 in the GLIAC following a 42-28 conference road triumph over Saginaw Valley State last Saturday (Sept. 25) at SVSU’s Wickes Memorial Stadium in University Center, Mich. The Wildcats were 6-5 overall last season, which included a 5-5 conference mark (sixth-place tie). NMU was 5-1 in home encounters while posting a 1-4 road mark last season.

The Coaches: Ferris State – Jeff Pierce (Ferris State, 1979), 5th season, 33-17-0 (.660) — (3-1-0 vs. Northern Michigan); Northern Michigan – Eric Holm (Northeast Missouri State, 1981), 5th season, 28-17-0 (.622); Career–10th season, 65-36-0 (.644)— (1-3-0 vs. Ferris State).

Pierce, the 1995 GLIAC Coach-of-the-Year, had served 12 years as a Bulldog assistant coach prior to being named head coach in 1995. He spent seven years as Ferris’ defensive coordinator.

The Series: Northern Michigan holds an 11-8-6 advantage over Ferris State in their all-time series, which commenced in 1946 with a 7-7 tie at Big Rapids. Ferris recorded a 29-19 home triumph over the Wildcats last season (10/3) and has won six of the last seven meetings between the two teams. NMU notched a 23-21 victory in Marquette two seasons ago (9/27/97). The Bulldogs are 2-7-3 on the road and 6-4-3 at home versus the Wildcats.

Last Meeting – 1998: Ferris State’s Doc Proctor kickoff a school-record five field goals and quarterback Matt McCarthy passed for 358 yards in leading the Bulldogs to a 29-19 victory (10/3) in Big Rapids. The Bulldogs jumped out to a 6-0 lead after the first quarter on Proctor’s two field goals (22 & 24 yards). NMU then reeled off 10 straight points to claim a 10-6 advantage late in the second quarter, but Ferris narrowed the gap to 10-9 on Proctor’s 33-yard with seven seconds left before halftime. The Bulldogs then took a short-lived 12-10 lead with 9:10 to go in the third quarter following Proctor’s 31-yard boot. The Wildcats responded with nine consecutive points to take a 19-12 lead after 45 minutes of action. FSU dominated in the fourth quarter by accounting for all of the stanza’s 17 points. Proctor split the uprights from 38 yards with 12:35 left to pull the hosts within 19-15 and at 7:08, Ferris went ahead (22-19) when McCarthy hooked up with flanker Rikki Forgwe on a 24-yard TD pass. McCarthy’s four-yard TD run with 1:35 remaining sealed the win. The Bulldogs generated 453 yards in total offense. Split end Clarence Coleman had a game-high 11 receptions for 150 yards while flanker Neal Mozdzierz caught 10 passes for 117 yards. In rushing, tailback Mo Harris notched a game-best 108 yards. Middle linebacker Sean McLafferty, strong safety Ben Delor, and outside linebacker Charles Anderson posted 16, 15 and 10 tackles, respectively.

Northern Michigan Football – 1999: The Wildcats are allowing 23.7 points (sixth in the GLIAC) while scoring at a 17.3 points per outing clip. Sophomore quarterback Bryan White (36-67, 386 yds., 2 TD’s) directs the NMU offense, which features freshman tailback Terell Goldsmith (46-193 yds, 1 TD). Senior flanker Jeremy Wilkinson (13-204 yds., 2 TD’s), who suffered a season-ending injury in last season’s opener, has caught a team-high 13 catches for 204 yards and two TD’s this fall. Wilkinson was the GLIAC’s top receiver in 1996 and 1997. Senior punter Ty Hartung, a 1998 All-GLIAC honoree, is averaging 38.6 yards per punt (23-888 yds.) this fall.

FSU’s Last Game: Senior quarterback Matt McCarthy (Alma) passed for four TD’s while senior tailback Mo Harris (Tampa, Fla./Hillsborough) ran for 252 yards for Ferris State, which came from behind to garner a 46-36 conference win over Northwood last Saturday (Sept. 25) in front of 4,105 fans at Top Taggart Field. NU took a 16-0 first-quarter lead, but the Bulldogs rallied with 17 second-quarter points to take a 17-16 halftime advantage. Senior kicker Doc Proctor’s (Big Rapids) 39-yard field goal with 11:40 left before halftime marked FSU’s initial points. Ferris then went ahead in the stanza on a pair of McCarthy scoring passes – a 26-yarder to sophomore split end Clarence Coleman (Miami, Fla./Miramar) at 6:08 and a seven-yard toss to junior fullback J.L. Holdsworth (Big Rapids) with :47 remaining before intermission. Northwood regained the lead in the third quarter on a fumble recovery in FSU’s end zone, but McCarthy’s 12-yard scoring pass to junior tight end Josh Heppner (Marshall) with 4:40 left in the quarter gave the Bulldogs the lead (25-22) for good. Ferris then increased its advantage to 32-22 on McCarthy’s one-yard sneak at the 2:43 mark. The Timberwolves sliced the deficit to 32-29 on quarterback Sleepie Tollie’s one-yard scoring run, but Ferris countered with two straight TD’s as McCarthy hooked up with Coleman on a 43-yard pass play and then freshman tailback Mike Collins (Rochester Hills/Rochester) hit paydirt from four yards out with 7:51 left in the contest. FSU registered 580 yards in total offense while Northwood had a 528-yard total. Senior flanker Neal Mozdzierz (Royal Oak/Kimball) had seven catches for 103 yards and Coleman notched seven receptions for 166 yards. Sophomore outside linebacker Charlie Pierson’s (St. Ignace/LaSalle) 18 tackles paced the defense, which received a 13-tackle output from sophomore free safety Alvin Grier (Benton Harbor). Senior middle linebacker Steve Dillon (Traverse City) and sophomore cornerback Devin Hutchings (Inkster/Dearborn Heights Robichaud) had 11 stops apiece.

1999 GLIAC Standings

 
 Michigan Tech 	(3-0) 3-0
 Ferris State	(3-1) 3-0
 Mercyhurst 	(2-1) 2-1
 Hillsdale 	(3-1) 2-1
 Indianapolis  	(3-1) 2-1
 Northwood     	(2-1) 2-1
 Ashland 	(2-1) 1-1
 Northern Mich. (1-2) 1-1
 Findlay 	(1-2) 1-2
 Grand Valley 	(1-3) 1-2
 Saginaw Valley (1-3) 1-2
 Wayne State 	(0-4) 0-4
 Westminster 	(0-4) 0-4
 

Last Week’s GLIAC Results
at Ferris State 46, Northwood 36*
Northern Michigan 42, at Saginaw Valley State 28*
Grand Valley State 37, at Findlay 9*
Hillsdale 30, at Westminster 17*
at Mercyhurst 27, Indianapolis 20*
at Ashland 46, Wayne State 7*

This Week’s GLIAC Games
Ferris State at Northern Michigan*, 1 p.m.
Wayne State at Northwood*, 12 p.m.
Saginaw Valley State at Michigan Tech*, 12 p.m.
Ashland at Westminster*, 1 p.m.
Indianapolis at Findlay*, 1:30 p.m.
Mercyhurst at Hillsdale*, 2 p.m.

All times are Eastern *GLIAC Game

FSU in This Week’s GLIAC Team Statistical Rankings

Scoring Offense: 1st 48.3 ppg.
Scoring Defense: 9th 29.8 ppg.
Pass Offense: 1st 289.5 ypg.
Pass Defense: 3rd 180.5 ypg
Kickoff Returns: 4th 22.1 ypr.
Punting: 9th 30.5 ypp.
Turnover Margin: 7th -0.25 tpg.
Rushing Offense: 2nd 261.3 ypg.
Rushing Defense: 8th 168.8 ypg.
Total Offense: 1st 550.8 ypg.
Total Defense: 9th 349.3 ypg.
Punt Returns: 2nd 18.2 ypr.
Pass Efficiency: 2nd 143.8 rating pts.
Pass Efficiency Defense: 6th 123.4 rating pts.
Field Goals: 9thT .333 (1-3)
Time of Possession: 11th 27:33 (110:13)

FSU in This Week’s GLIAC Individual Statistical Rankings

Rushing: 1st Mo Harris, 169.8 ypg.
    5th Mike Collins, 75.8 ypg.
Passing Yards: 2nd Matt McCarthy, 249.5 ypg.
Total Offense: 2nd Matt McCarthy, 243.5 ypg.
    8th Mo Harris, 169.8 ypg.
Receptions: 2nd Neal Mozdzierz, 8.25 rpg.
    3rd Clarence Coleman, 6.75 rpg.
Receiving Yards: 3rd Neal Mozdzierz, 114.0 ypg.
    4th Clarence Coleman, 110.8 ypg.
All-Purpose Running: 1st Mo Harris, 187.8 ypg.
    2nd Clarence Coleman, 187.0 ypg.
    4th Neal Mozdzierz, 146.0 ypg.
Passing Efficiency: 4th Matt McCarthy, 143.6 rating pts.
Punt Returns: 2nd Clarence Coleman, 18.5 ypr.
Kickoff Returns: 9th Neal Mozdzierz, 19.0 ypr.
Scoring: 2nd Mike Collins, 12.0 ppg.
    3rd Neal Mozdzierz, 10.0 ppg.
    4thT Clarence Coleman, 9.0 ppg.
    10th Doc Proctor, 6.8 ppg.
Field Goals: 8thT Doc Proctor, 0.25 fgpg. (1-3)
Tackles: 3rdT Rob Ridling, 10.3 avg.
    6th Ryan Morris, 9.8 avg.
    26thT Dave Zuiderveen, 7.0 avg.
    36th Steve Dillon, 6.8 avg.
    38thT Devin Hutchings, 6.5 avg.
    Charlie Pierson, 6.5 avg.
    42ndT Alvin Grier, 6.3 avg.
Quarterback Sacks: 4thT Dave Zuiderveen, 6 total (-39 yds.)
Tackle For Loss: 6thT Dave Zuiderveen, 8 total (-43 yds.)

Harris Named GLIAC Player-of-the-Week: Senior tailback Mo Harris has been selected this week’s GLIAC Offensive Player-of-the-Week following his season-high 252-yard rushing performance in FSU’s 10-point home victory over Northwood. Harris, who has rushed for over 100 yards in all four Bulldog contests this season, earned the same honor last season (10/24) after rushing for a career-high 307 yards and conference-record five TD’s at Michigan Tech. Harris’ 252 yards on the ground versus Northwood marks his third highest career rushing output.

Bulldog Bites: Ferris State is ranked 22nd nationally in this week’s Don Hansen’s National Weekly Football Gazette NCAA-II Top 40 poll . . . Sophomore strong safety Alvin Grier posted a season-high 13 tackles against Northwood, eclipsing his previous best of eight stops vs. Findlay (9/18) . . . Senior tailback Mo Harris has moved into second place on FSU’s all-time rushing list with 3,218 career yards to date. Harris, who currently has 679 yards this season, surpassed Tyree Dye’s (1990-91/93-94) 3,076-career yard rushing total . . . Sophomore split end Clarence Coleman presently ranks eighth on the school’s career receiving charts with 1,437 yards on 87 career catches . . . Sophomore outside linebacker Charlie Pierson netted a career-high 18 tackles versus Northwood last Saturday. His previous career best was an eight-tackle output against Findlay (9/18).

FSU On The Internet: Ferris State University Athletics’ world wide web home page can be accessed through the University’s home page address at http://www.ferris.edu. The football section features a wide variety of Bulldog gridiron information.

Up Next: Ferris State continues conference road play as the Bulldogs battle the Wayne State University Warriors Saturday, Oct. 9, at Wayne State Stadium in Detroit, Mich. Game time is scheduled for 1 p.m. (EDT).

Bulldogs of the Week: Following each game, individual players will be recognized by the FSU coaching staff for their outstanding performance. Individual(s) will be selected on offense, defense, specialty teams, and for extraordinary effort (every player, every play).

Home games listed in bold HC – Homecoming