August 1, 2024
Ferris State football team picked to finish first in conference by GLIAC coaches
Ferris State University, which has reached the NCAA Division II Playoffs a nation-leading nine consecutive years, was picked to finish first in the 2024 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Standings as the league unveiled its preseason coaches poll on Thursday.
The Bulldogs received four of a possible eight first-place votes and totaled 46 points in being chosen as the favorite among the league's eight conference football institutions. The votes were made by the conference member head coaches, who could not vote for their own team. The poll was released in conjunction with the GLIAC football media day event in Grand Rapids.
"We're excited to get the 2024 season going and I'm really proud of the effort of our guys in the offseason," Ferris State head coach Tony Annese said. "We return some great experience and will have to be ready to perform each and every week. We open with a tough opponent in Pitt State and it really will be a game at a time type of mentality as we go thru the year."
Ferris State was represented by Annese, a two-time National Coach of the Year, along with two veteran standouts in senior receiver Tyrese Hunt-Thompson and linebacker Sefa Saipaia.
"We'll find out how good we can be as an offensive unit," said Hunt-Thompson, a Cassopolis native. "We've really worked hard since last season to be able to come together and achieve some great things this fall."
The Bulldogs enter the 2024 campaign as the nation's preseason No. 4 team by Lindy's Sports.
"I know there will be some questions about us coming into the year, but we're focused on going out there as a defensive unit and being the best we can be," said Saipaia, of Canton, Ohio. "We have some great guys with the ability to make plays so our focus will be on coming out and playing great team defense."
Rival Grand Valley State University earned three first-place votes and 44 points in finishing second. Davenport University also claimed a first-place mention and notched 38 points in placing third overall.
The remaining teams in the standings included Saginaw Valley State University in fourth, Michigan Tech University in fifth, Wayne State University in sixth, Northern Michigan University in seventh, and league newcomer Roosevelt University in eighth.
Ferris State will begin its 115th season of varsity competition this coming fall with its sights set on making a 10th consecutive trip to the NCAA Division II Playoffs. The Bulldogs have made five national semifinal appearances along with three trips to the national championship game and back-to-back national titles in 2021 and 2022 during the stretch.
Over the past three seasons of action, the Bulldogs own a 36-4 overall record and FSU has reached the NCAA Division II Playoffs nine consecutive years and counting.
Ferris State has also reached the NCAA Division II National Semifinals five times in the past seven seasons of action and ranks as the country's winningest program over the past nine full seasons in D2 Football. FSU is 63-6 over the last four seasons of on-field action, including back-to-back NCAA D2 National Championships in 2021 and 2022.
Ferris State also holds the GLIAC's best mark and the best overall record of all collegiate programs in Michigan at 123-20 (.860) overall since the arrival of Tony Annese as head coach in 2012.
Ferris State opens the 2024 season at Pittsburg State on Aug. 31 with the home opener set for Saturday, Sept. 7, versus Lake Erie at Top Taggart Field. The Bulldogs' GLIAC opener is on Oct. 5 when FSU hosts Roosevelt for the first-time ever in its annual homecoming contest while also marking Ferris State's 400th all-time GLIAC game.