How No. 2 GVSU stunned No. 1 Ferris State with thrilling finish
BIG RAPIDS - When Jack Provencher lunged into the end zone on a chilly fall afternoon, it wasn’t just any touchdown.
It was a load off the shoulders of the Grand Valley State sixth-year senior. Well, his team’s too.
The Lakers rallied to beat rival Ferris State University 22-21 on Saturday to beat the reigning Division II National Champions and snap their 19-game winning streak.
“It’s super-huge to beat the National Champions and our biggest rival by far,” Provencher said. “We were able to come in here and take care of business. It wasn’t pretty towards the end but we were able to buckle down. No one quit on each other. That’s the brotherhood we preach here.”
GVSU, the No. 2 team in the country, improves to 2-0 in the GLIAC and 7-0 overall. No. 1 Ferris State had beaten GVSU eight out of the last nine meetings before Saturday’s game. The Bulldogs fall to 1-1 in conference play and 5-1 overall.
“People want us to make excuses for why we lost,” Ferris State coach Tony Annese said. “We didn’t win this time because Grand Valley outplayed us.”
GVSU trailed 21-10 entering the fourth quarter. Johnt’e Crawford scored on a 1-yard run with 7:57 to go in the game to cut the lead to 21-16. The 2-point conversion failed.
On the Lakers next offensive possession, Provencher scored on a 10-yard run to give GVSU a 22-21 lead. They tried to score on a 2-point conversion run, but were stopped short.
“I noticed the defensive player overplaying and I thought if he over-run that thing I was going to bounce outside,” Provencher said. “So I cut underneath him and got into the end zone pretty clean.”
Provencher, who graduated from Utica Eisenhower High School, has spent six years at GVSU, including a red-shirt season and he took advantage of the COVID season.
So is this the biggest game in his career?
“One-hundred percent,” he said. “I’ve been around here a long time. I didn’t always play my best in big moments like this. So I’m just really proud of myself and this team. We got sick and tired of coming up short. In the past, this game slipped out of our hands. But not this time.”
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GVSU quarterback Cade Peterson was excited for Provencher, too.
“I know that means a lot to him,” Peterson said. “He’s a sixth-year senior. He works hard every day. It means so much to him. I’m glad we could get this done for the seniors. Get that trophy back in our locker room.”
The drama didn’t end there.
On Ferris State’s next possession, running back CJ Jefferson fumbled the ball and it was recovered by GVSU’s outside linebacker Stephen Roncelli with 3:31 left in the game. The GVSU sideline went wild.
But the celebration quickly stopped when GVSU fumbled the ball, too. With 3:20 left, backup QB Avery Moore fumbled the ball and Ferris recovered. But Ferris was unable to score and GVSU would eventually run out the clock.
“At the end of the day, the defense got the stop we needed,” GVSU coach Matt Mitchell said. “They’ve got a lot of heart. I’m really proud of ‘em. It feels good to win this game.”
Provencher finished with eight carries for 76 yards. He also caught three passes for 49 yards. Tariq Reid led the team with 91 yards rushing on 15 carries. Peterson was 12-of-29 passing for 186 yards. Ferris quarterback Mylik Mitchell was 19-of-27 passing for 235 yards and a touchdown.
Slager has been waiting a long time for this
GVSU tight end Jayk Slager, a fifth-year senior out of Zeeland West High School, smeared heavy black paint on his face before the game. His version of war paint.
“I like (TV series) Vikings and Floki is one of my favorite characters and he paints his face like this,” Slager said.
He said he only does it for big games and Saturday was one of them.
“It’s unbelievable,” Slager said. “Words can’t describe it. I’ve been waiting six years for this moment. I’m glad this finally happened, and we did it on their field.”
Slager also had two catches for seven yards.
“They said they would go to me on fourth-and-1 and said ‘go make a play,' and I did,” he said.
Ferris State’s streak comes to an end
The Ferris State Bulldogs are the No. 1 team in the nation for a reason. They are the National Champions and had won 19 games in a row.
Coach Tony Annese was hoping it would last forever.
“I’m gonna be sad,” he said. “I want it to last forever. I want to win 900 games in a row. Truth be known, it’s extraordinarily amazing what that streak has been.”
GVSU’s defense steps up late
The GVSU defense was huge in the fourth quarter. It stopped Ferris on its final series, on a 4th-and-10 at the GVSU 43-yard line with 1:46 left on the clock.
“Unreal,” QB Cade Peterson said. “Led by Abe Swanson and Denzel (Williams) and that D-Line … they were playing so hard. They made some big plays at the end of the game. Their pursuit and their hustle … they cause the turnover (late fumble) in the end.”
Swanson, a junior linebacker, had a team-high seven tackles. The team had three sacks.
Gulker scores again
Carson Gulker only touched the ball one time, but he made the most of it. The redshirt-senior quarterback from Zeeland West scored on a 7-yard run with 1:20 left in the third quarter to give Ferris a 21-10 lead.
Gulker, who serves as the team’s Wildcat quarterback, is second in the nation with 12 rushing touchdowns entering the game. He also leads the team with 406 rushing yards on 61 carries.
More:Carson Gulker making most of role for Ferris State
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: GVSU football stunned No. 1 Ferris State with thrilling finish
