UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – The Saginaw Valley State University Cardinal football team fell at home to 16th-ranked Indianapolis 35-10 on Saturday afternoon. The Cardinals fell behind by 28-3 at the half and couldn't overcome the deficit in the second half.
Jairus Grissom was 13-23 passing for 141 yards and a touchdown on the afternoon. Terrance Brown totaled 45 yards on 11 carries to lead the ground attack. Derrick Hinton Jr., caught four passes for 40 yards while Jalen Williams had 41 yards on two grabs. Kevin Swift scored the lone SVSU touchdown on a 10-yard pass from Grissom in the final minute of the game.
Alfred Dailey Jr., finished with seven tackles while Micah Cretsinger totaled five stops and picked off a pass. Adom LeDuc and Jacob Spencer registered a sack on the afternoon. Elijah Gordon also registered an interception in the first half for the Cardinals.
The Greyhounds scored on their second drive with a 15-yard touchdown run with 10:24 left on the clock in the first quarter to give UIndy a 7-0 lead.
SVSU started a drive on the plus side of the field but stalled out at the 18-yard line and was forced to settle for a 35-yard field goal to cut the lead to 7-3 with 14:17 left in the first half. The Hounds responded with a 66-yard touchdown pass on a scramble play where UIndy quarterback Gavin Sukup found Alonzo Derrick who scampered 28 yards to score and push the lead to 14-3 with 13:08 to go before the half.
A 10-play, 45-yard drive for the Cardinals was cut short at the Indianapolis 17-yard line after a fumble gave the ball back to UIndy. The Greyhounds extended the gap to 21-3 on the ensuing drive. The final scoring play in the second half was in the final ticks of the quarter when Indianapolis scored on a nine-yard pass to hold the 25-point lead at the break.
The final score by UIndy came in the opening three minutes of the half on a 70-yard touchdown that widened things to 35-3. The defenses kicked in for the rest of the third stanza and most of the fourth. The Cardinals' final drive went 49 yards in seven plays and ended with a 10-yard touchdown pass from Grissom to Swift that put the score where it would stay until the clock showed zeros across.
Saginaw Valley State will remain at home to host the annual Battle of the Valleys next Saturday, September 30 when the Grand Valley State Lakers come to town for a 6:00 p.m. kickoff.
