Posted: Nov 07, 2024
Game 10: Saginaw Valley at Ferris State
Saturday, November 9, 2024 | 1:00 p.m. ET
Top Taggert Field | Big Rapids, Mich.
2024 Game Notes: at Ferris State
Preview Interview: Coach Brady
FOLLOW THE ACTION
Video - https://svsucardinals.com/links/44igq1
Live Stats - https://svsucardinals.com/sports/fball/2024-25/boxscores/20241109_kvz0.xml
Radio - https://www.alphamediaplayer.com/wsgwsports
Kick-Off
The Saginaw Valley State University Football team travels to Big Rapids this weekend for a matchup against No. 1/2 ranked Ferris State. The 24th-ranked Cardinals (7-2, 4-1 GLIAC) face the Bulldogs (8-1, 5-0 GLIAC) for a share of first in the GLIAC standings with only two games remaining in the regular season.
SVSU defeated Davenport (6-3, 3-2 GLIAC) 24-14 at home last Saturday. The Cardinals held a 17-0 lead at the half with touchdowns from Terrence Brown, Jr., Brady Devereaux, and Mason McKenzie in the victory.
Ferris State won its eighth-straight game with a 55-9 win at Northern Michigan last week. The Bulldogs compiled 325 yards on the ground to improve to 5-0 in conference play.
The Series
This is the 49th meeting between Saginaw Valley State and Ferris State. The Cardinals trail 19-28-1 in the all-time series. The Bulldogs have won the last nine meetings with two of the last three being by a combined margin of seven points.
Last season's meeting was a 38-17 Bulldog win in Big Rapids. The Cardinals rallied from a 14-0 deficit to tie the game late in the second quarter, but a late touchdown before the half gave Ferris the lead before pulling away in the second half with 17 more points.
1ST-AND-10
• The Cardinals sit in a tie for second in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) standings with Grand Valley State. The Cardinals and Lakers are 4-1 in league play while SVSU is 7-2 overall and GVSU is 8-1.
• SVSU is currently ranked 24th on the D2Football.com Top 25 poll and is receiving votes in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Top 25 poll. Ferris State is ranked 1st by D2Football.com and 2nd by the AFCA. The Bulldogs sit atop the Super Region Three top 10; the Cardinals are eighth in the region.
• Senior All-American linebacker Micah Cretsinger was named to the East-West Shrine Bowl 1000 and the D2 Elite 100 watch lists. Junior linebacker Brandon Rawls joined Cretsinger on the D2 Elite 100 list.
• Saginaw Valley faces three ranked opponents this season: at (#15) Indianapolis (W, 28-24), (#2) Grand Valley State (L, 16-9), and at (#2) Ferris State on November 9.
• Freshman quarterback Mason McKenzie is 120-of-213 (56.3%) for 1,599 yards and 10 touchdowns through the air. McKenzie leads the Cardinals in passing and rushing with 92 carries for 564 yards and five scores on the ground. He currently ranks third in the GLIAC in both rushing and passing yards.
• Redshirt freshman Joseph Walker is the team's leading receiver with 25 receptions for 383 yards and two scores. Junior Eric Craft has 22 catches for 357 yards and two touchdowns. RJ Manning is the third receiver on the team with two touchdown catches. He scored them both in the 63-14 win at Northern Michigan in week five.
• Terrence Brown, Jr. leads with three touchdown receptions. Brown has made 16 catches for 220 yards and is second on the team in rushing with 108 carries for 486 yards and a team-leading six touchdowns. He is the team's leading scorer with 60 points on 10 total touchdowns and has a team-high 877 all-purpose yards.
• Micah Cretsinger is the team's leading tackler with 58 stops this season. The 2023 All-American linebacker has 8.5 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, one recovery, 1.5 sacks, an interception, and three pass breakups on his stat line. Cretsinger had eight tackles, a sack-fumble, and an interception in the win over Davenport last week.
• Alfred Dailey, Jr. and Eli Gordon have 52 tackles. Gordon leads the team in interceptions with four this season. Leonard Henry IV has 10.5 sacks to lead the Cardinal pass rush along with 43 tackles (5th-most on the team). Henry currently leads the nation in sacks per game with a mark of 1.17.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
ABOUT THE BULLDOGS
Ferris State is on an eight-game winning streak and is currently ranked first in the D2Football.com Top 25 and Division II Super Region Three Rankings. The Bulldogs are 2nd in the AFCA Top 25.
Trinidad Chambliss leads the team behind center. He is a dual-threat quarterback who has completed 142-of-228 passes for 1,928 yards and 17 touchdowns and rushed a team-high 73 times for 469 yards and 12 scores.
Kannon Katzer is the leading running back for Ferris State with 441 yards on 54 carries and four touchdowns. Twelve Bulldogs have caught a touchdown pass, including team-leaders Emari O'Brien (25 rec. for 444 yds.) and Cam Underwood (18 rec. for 317 yds.) with four touchdown catches.
Iosefa Saipaia leads the defense with 44 tackles. The Bulldog defense is top-five in team passing efficiency (2nd, 84.84), total defense (4th, 218.1), and scoring defense (5th, 9.8). Jalen Jones had a team-high four interceptions. Four Bulldogs (Saipaia, Tyrone Fowler, Deron Irving-Bey, and Ralph Carter) lead the pass rush with two sacks.
GLIAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Senior linebacker Micah Cretsinger was named the GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week on Monday.
Cretsinger had a team-high eight tackles with three tackles for loss, an interception, and a sack-fumble in the fourth quarter in a 24-14 win over Davenport. His interception was the first of the season and set up the game's first touchdown that gave the Cardinals a 10-0 lead. He anchored a Cardinal defense that held the Panthers to a season-low in total yards (172) and rushing yards (52) while holding DU to 2-of-16 on third downs.
This is Cretsinger's first Player of the Week award and the Cardinals' fourth defensive selection this season (Eli Gordon won three defensive nods in weeks 1, 3, and 4 of the season).
PASS RUSH NIGHTMARE
Cardinal pass rusher Leonard Henry IV has been a nightmare to opposing teams this season. Henry has 10.5 sacks through eight games and has the nation's best sack numbers, averaging 1.17 per game along with a second-best 15.5 tackles for loss.
