HISTORIC BANNER CEREMONY TO BE HELD OCTOBER 11

Bulldogs To Unveil Their League Champion and National Tournament Banners At Season Home Opener

The Ferris State University men’s ice hockey program will put the finishing touches on its most successful season ever Saturday, Oct. 11, as the Bulldogs will acknowledge their significant accomplishments during the 2002-03 campaign with a championship banner ceremony.

The event, which will be held during Ferris’ 2003-04 season home opener against the Western Michigan University Broncos at FSU’s Ewigleben Ice Arena, will feature the banner presentation of the Bulldogs’ Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) Regular-Season Championship title along with the program’s first-ever appearance in the NCAA Division I Championship Tournament. Opening faceoff for the CCHA home opener is set for 7:05 p.m. (EDT). The banner raising will be conducted at intermission between the first and second periods of the CCHA contest.

“We’re hopeful all of our loyal fans will have the opportunity to attend this historic event,” said FSU head coach Bob Daniels. “The fan support we received this past season was unbelievable and the tremendous amount of success achieved wouldn’t have been possible without their efforts.

“Hopefully, this program will be raising more championship banners in the near future,” added Daniels, who was recognized as both the American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA) Division I and CCHA Coach of the Year last season.

Ferris State recorded its most successful season in the program’s 25-year history as a NCAA-I member with a school-record 31-10-1 overall mark while claiming its first-ever CCHA Championship title with a first-place 22-5-1 league record. The nationally-ranked Bulldogs also made their initial NCAA-I Championship Tournament appearance and advanced to the championship game of the NCAA West Regional before being eliminated by eventual 2002-03 National Champion the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers.

FSU also earned the distinction of being the nation’s first team to reach the 30-win season plateau in the 2002-03 campaign and also participated in the CCHA Super Six Championship Tourney for the first time since 1993.

Besides the scheduled banner ceremony, the Ferris State hockey program will be conducting a ring ceremony at halftime of this Saturday’s (Sept. 20) home football game versus Northern Michigan. The 24 student-athletes who comprised the 2002-03 squad will each receive a ring for their contributions in helping FSU capture the CCHA Regular-Season Championship title.