BLOG 6: Tiffin looking forward to the opportunity to take on Bulldogs

By Sandy Gholston

Ferris State University linebacker Jordan Moore (6) leaps into the air to pull down a football during a drill this fall. (Photo/Sandy Gholston)

TIFFIN, Ohio – While odds may seem stacked against Tiffin, entering a competitive, high-level league like the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, the Dragons are very confident and eager to open the season on their home field this weekend against Ferris State University at 2:30 p.m. at Frost-Kalnow Stadium.

Tiffin, which finished 9-2 last fall has competed against several GLIAC teams, in recent years, and thus in some ways has familiarity in the league. Last season, the Dragons played two GLIAC schools. Tiffin beat last-place Gannon (a team that no longer is a member of the conference), 50-6, on Sept. 29; and fell to Hillsdale, 31-14, on Oct. 27. In 2006, however, the Dragons earned a win over Hillsdale, 24-14, as they finished 10-1 overall.

“I know the (GLIAC) is a phenomenal conference,” said Tiffin head coach Dave Walkosky, who indicated he expects to be competitive this fall in the league. “What we’ll recognize as a program in our first year is that we’ll be real good in a lot of areas and we’ll have to bulk up in some areas. We’ll find out after about three or four games where our recruiting has to take us.”

As for the Bulldogs, Walkosky has done some scouting of Ferris and has a pretty good idea what to expect when Ferris rolls into town this weekend.

“Ferris State has been a playoff team, they’ve been there before,” Walkosky, who most recently was an assistant coach at Washington State University, said during an Internet-posted interview on Tiffin’s Web site. “(The Bulldogs) have a great defense coming back and maybe the best defensive lineman (senior 2007 consensus All-American tackle Jake Visser) in the country in Division II. We’re excited about the challenge and we’re going to come with our guns loaded. We’re not backing down.”

Tiffin has some star power in its own right with senior Matt Root lining up at quarterback after a strong season during which he threw for career highs of 2,396 yards, 27 touchdowns and a completion percentage of 66 percent. On the other side of the ball, Parris Burt, who has drawn the attention of some scouts, is a talented prospect for the Dragons as a linebacker.

If you have any questions, ideas or comments feel free to contact Sandy Gholston at sgholston2@netzero.com