GVSU-NMU Football Gamenotes

The #2-ranked Grand Valley State football team will host Northern Michigan in a Family Day affair at Lubbers Stadium Saturday night. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.. The Lakers come into the contest 2-0 both overall and in GLIAC action, while the Wildcats are 1-1 overall and 1-0 in GLIAC action. 

The Game: #2 Grand Valley State (2-0, 2-0 GLIAC) vs Northern Michigan (1-1, 1-0 GLIAC)
Date: Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016
Time: 7:00 p.m. (ET)
Site: Lubbers Stadium (10,444)
TV: ESPN3/Xfinity 900 - Tom Cleary (play-by-play) and Bob Mitchell (color)
Radio: ESPN 96.1 FM - Steve Lloyd-Jones (play-by-play) and Greg Johnson (color)

RADIO AFFILIATES
ESPN-FM 96.1 Grand Rapids**
WMUS-FM 107.9 Muskegon**
WDFN-AM 1130 Detroit
WKMI-AM 1360 Kalamazoo
WIMS-AM 1420 Michigan City, IN**
WBRN-AM 1460 Big Rapids
WBRN-FM 107.7 Big Rapids
WHFB-AM 1060 Benton Harbor**
WBRN-FM 95.1 Reed City
WHTC-AM 1450 Holland
WFNT-AM 1470 Flint
WTVB-AM 1590 Coldwater
WTVB-FM 95.5 Coldwater
WLBY-AM 1290 Ann Arbor
WCAR-AM 1090 Detroit/Livonia
WKAD-FM 93.7 Cadillac
Flagship station in BOLD

The Coaches
Grand Valley State • Matt Mitchell (Cornell College, 1997) • 59-19/.750 (7th) 
Northern Michigan • Chris Ostrowsky (Jersey City College) • 17-29 (5th)

Series
• The Series
Grand Valley State leads the all-time series with Northern Michigan by a 21-17-1 margin.  The Grand Valley State-Northern Michigan series has gone in cycles over the years. NMU won 12-of-the-first-13 meetings between the schools, but the Lakers rebounded and went 7-1-1 from 1989-1997. The Wildcats won three straight meetings (1998-2000) prior to the Lakers' 11-game winning streak from 2001-2011). GVSU averaging 44.5 points in the last 11 meetings, while yielding 13.0. GVSU is 19-5-1 vs. NMU since 1989.  

• About NMU - 

With 238 yards against Angelo State, 64 more than he needed, Senior QB Shaye Brown claimed Northern Michigan's career passing yards record. He now has 7,395 career passing yards. The previous record, owned by Tom Bertoldi, had stood since 1983. Brown now owns five Wildcat passing records: single-game yards (490), single-season yards (3,123), single-season touchdowns (30), career touchdowns (55) and career yards. Jake Mayon leads the ground game with 211 yards and three TDs in two games, while Jaranta Lewis, Walter Jackson and Julian Crum all have nine catches. LB Darryl Williams leads the defense with 23 tackles and four TFL in two games. Jared Vucsan is second in tackles with 13. Freshman punter John Kwiecinski had a memorable game against Angleo State, landing ve punts inside the 20, including two on the Ram one-yard line. Overall, he totaled 510 yards on 11 punts, 23 shy of the GLIAC record. With his performance, he moved from 18th in the country in punting average to 11th (45.1). His 857 punting yards leads all punters in the top 50 in punting average. 

GVSU 

• #2 Grand Valley State will continue a three-game homestand to open the 2016 season with a league tilt versus Northern Michigan. GVSU is coming off a 55-7 victory over Lake Erie, while Northern Michigan is coming off a 47-41 triple overtime loss to Angelo State.

• Grand Valley State is in its 46th season of football and sport a 372-137-3 all-time record. GVSU's .730 winning percentage tops all Division II schools and is third all-time in all divisions behind Notre Dame (.733) and Michigan (.732).

• Grand Valley State moved up one spot in the AFCA Division II Coaches' poll to #2 with 690 points after its 55-7 victory over the Storm last Saturday. The Lakers moved past West Georgia (689) who was #2 in the first two polls. NW Missouri State is #1 with all 30 first place votes and 750 points.

• Grand Valley State has been ranked in the top five of 146 AFCA Division II Coaches' polls since 2001, including 102 weeks as the number one team in the country.

• Last Week
Sophomore running back Marty Carter scored three first quarter touchdowns, including a 79-yard TD run on the first play of the game and the Laker offense added 21 points in the second quarter to build a 42-0 halftime lead. Ollie Ajami scored two fourth quarter TDs and for the second consecutive game the starting defensive unit held the opposition off the scoreboard. The Laker D tallied six QB sacks and 14 TFL. 
     Northern Michigan trailed by as many as 17 points, but a Tyler Blackburn 49-yard field goal as time expired sent the game into overtime tied 27. The teams exchanged TDs in the first two overtimes, but the Wildcats' Shaye Brown was picked off in the third extra session after the Rams had scored a TD.

• Grand Valley State leads the GLIAC in scoring offense (50.0 ppg), scoring defense (7.0 ppg), rushing offense (311.0 ypg), passing defense (130.5) and total defense (241.5 ypg). The Laker are second in total offense (556.5 ypg).

• The Laker offense is averaging 311.0 yards per game rushing, while its opponents are averaging 111.0 yards per game. 

• GVSU is 14-for-24 (58%) on 3rd down conversions, while the opposition is 4-for-23 (17%) 

• The Laker offense has been explosive the first two games of the season with 20 plays that have gone for 20 yards or more.

• The starting Laker defense has yielded 146 yards on 17 drives and 71 plays in five quarters of action...Opponents are averaging 2.05 yards per play and 8.5 yards per drive...The GVSU starters have not yielded a point this season. 

• In two games the Laker defense has eight QB sacks (-39) and 20 tackles for loss (-71). 

• The Laker offense has not turned the ball over this season, while the Laker defense has picked off one pass and recovered two fumbles for a +4 in turnover margin.

• The Laker kickoff team has been impressive after two games...Versus Lake Erie, GVSU recorded four touchbacks and on the five non-touchbacks the average starting position was the 12 yard line...Versus Tiffin, GVSU recorded four touchbacks and on the four non-touchbacks the average starting yard line for the Dragons was the 15 yard line...Opponents are averaging 12.7 yards per kickoff return.

• QB Bart Williams has completed 23-of-36 passes for 429 yards and four TDs this season, having played in just five of eight quarters...Williams moved into 8th in career passing yards at GVSU with 4,644 and in 17 career games played Williams has 50 TD passes (2.94 pg). 

• Sophomore RB Marty Carter has toted the ball 18 times for 201 yards in just four quarters of football...Carter rushed for 144 yards and two TDs on nine carries vs. Lake Erie in the first half. His 79 yard TD run was the longest for a TD since Brent Lesniak went 80 yards for a TD in 2001 vs. Ashland. Mike Ratay had an 87 yard run at Northwood in 2013, but did not score. Carter became the 35th player in Laker football history to reach the 1,000-yard mark vs. Lake Erie and has 1,090 career rushing yards.  
     Carter was named GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week for his outing vs. Lake Erie. Carter, who scored three first quarter touchdowns, rushed for 144 yards and two TDs on nine carries and caught one pass for two yards and a touchdown. Carter touched the ball 10 times in the game for 146 all-purpose yards, averaging 16.0 yards per rush and 14.6 yards per touch. He went 79 yards for a TD on the first play of the game and then added a 30-yard touchdown run and a 2-yard TD reception in the first quarter.  

• Senior RB Terrell Dorsey ranks second on the squad in rushing with 21 carries for 155 yards and one TD...Dorsey rushed 15 times for 100 yards vs. Tiffin, marking the second and only time in his career that Dorsey reached the 100-yard mark...The other was in 2014 when Dorsey rushed for 115 yards versus the Tiffin Dragons. 

• Junior QB Ollie Ajami is third on the team in rushing with 133 yards on 16 carries, but leads the team and the GLIAC in rushing TDs with four...Ajami is averaging 8.3 yards per carry. 
 • Senior WR Matt Williams has hauled in three passes for 59 yards this season...Williams has 87 career catches for 1,597 receiving yards and 20 TDs.

• Junior WR Brandon Bean leads the team in receptions with seven and is second in receiving yards with 121...Bean caught six passes for 112 yards in the opener vs. Tiffin...Brandon has 46 career receptions for 838 career receiving yards.

• Sophomore WR Nick Dodson is tied for the team lead in receptions with seven for 65 yards and one TD...Caught five passes for 43 yards and a TD in the opener vs. Tiffin. 

• Junior WR Urston Smith leads the team in receiving yards (182) and TD receptions with two..Smith is averaging 36.4 yards per catch.

• Junior LB Collin Schlosser leads the team in tackles with 11...tallied six tackles in the opener vs. Tiffin...Chipped in five stops vs. Lake Erie.

• Senior LB Marquez Gollman ranks second on the team in tackles with six...Gollman tallied five tackles and a TFL vs. Lake Erie.

• Junior FS Garrett Pougnet recorded four tackles and a TFL (-1) vs. Tiffin.

• Senior DT DeOndre Hogan is second on the squad in tackles with six...Leads the team in TFL with 3.5 (-7) and QB sacks with two (-4).

• Senior DE Alton Voss saw his first action in 2016 and tallied five tackles, two QB sacks (-12) and two TFL (-12).

• Senior DE Sydney Omameh has six tackles a TFL (-3) and a QB sack (-2)...Omameh recorded three tackles a QB sack (-2) and a TFL (-2) in his first game with the Lakers vs. Tiffin.

• Senior LB David Talley has six tackles, a TFL (-4) and an interception return for a TD...Notched four stops and a TFL (-4) vs. Lake Erie...Recorded two tackles and returned an interception 20 yards for a TD vs. Tiffin.

• Sophomore DE Dylan Carroll tallied three tackles, 2.0 TFL (-15) and 1.5 QB sacks (-14) in the season opener vs. Tiffin. 

• Senior PK Joel Schipper ranks third in career points with 302, becoming just the third Laker in program history to go over the 300-point mark...Schipper is 37-for-47 in career field goals and 191-for-196 in career PATs.

• Tiffin QB Antonio Pipkin was the 2015 GLIAC Offensive Player of the Year in 2015 and averaged 310.8 yards of total offense per game. GVSU held Pipkin to 170 yards of total offense.

• The Lakers finished fourth in the final 2015 American Football Coaches Association poll (AFCA) and have now finished a season ranked among the AFCA top 10 12 times since 2001, including 11 seasons ranked among the top four in the final AFCA poll.

• Grand Valley State has been ranked in the top three of the AFCA preseason Coaches' Poll 11 times since 2002 and the top 10 13 times since 2002.