Ferris State's defensive line, led by ends Jordan Morgan (14) and Brad Iskow (95) were tough on Findlay's offense all day at Top Taggart Field on Saturday afternoon. (FSU Photographic Services/Ed Hyde)BIG RAPIDS – The defense never rests for Ferris State University and that was evident, yet again, Saturday afternoon during its annual homecoming game played this fall against the visiting University of Findlay.
Ferris trailed 10-6 at halftime, but outscored the visiting Oilers 17-0 in the second half to claim a 23-10 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory before a crowd of 3,533 at Top Taggart Field. With the win, Ferris has reeled off five straight wins to improve to 5-1 overall and 5-0 in the GLIAC.
“We found a way to get another win and that’s going to be critical for us down the stretch as the competition continues to get tougher,” Ferris head coach Jeff Pierce said during the post-game press conference in Wheeler Pavilion. “I give credit to these other teams. Sometimes takes a little time to get in a groove offensively and that's certainly what happened today.”
Offensively, Ferris totaled 456 yards of total offense. Defensively, Pierce’s Bulldogs held the Oilers to 210 (133 yards rushing and 77 passing).
Leading that defense was linebacker Matt Ryan, who totaled12 tackles to complement a spectacular diving interception as he dropped back into coverage. Jacob Moreno, playing defensive tackle, had 11 total tackles and was credited with half a sack. Linebacker Tayo Moss totaled 10 tackles. Defensive tackle Muneer Bawayeh, end Brad Iskow and end Jordan Morgan each had half a sack.
“Our defense has kept us in the game until we’ve been able to get rolling offensively,” said quarterback Tom Schneider, who completed 24-of-32 passes for 252 yards. “We made some adjustments at halftime and just executed better as the game wore on.”
Schneider did a lot of damage with his feet as he rushed nine times for 57 yards with two touchdowns. Fullback Dwayne Williams, bouncing back from injury issues, rushed five times for 57 yards with one touchdown.
Damien Miller had seven catches for 67 yards, Chris Wilson had five grabs for 83 yards and Mike Ryan had five receptions for 44 yards.
Findlay was led by talented running back Monterea Williams, who rushed 30 times for 138 yards. Williams did most of his damage in the first half, but was held largely in check by the defense in the final two quarters.
Ferris heads back on the road as it travels to Marquette in the Upper Peninsula to take on Northern Michigan University Saturday at 1 p.m. in the Superior Dome.
0 comments:
Post a Comment