Grand Valley State's Brad Iciek Named GLIAC Football "Offensive Player of the Week"

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BAY CITY, Mich. - Grand Valley State University senior quarterback Brad Iciek (Grandville, Mich.) was named the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) "Offensive Player of the Week" for leading the Lakers to their fifth-straight conference championship with a 59-28 victory over Wayne State on Saturday.  Saginaw Valley State University senior linebacker John Jacobs (Prudenville, Mich./Midland Dow) was tabbed "Defensive Player of the Week" for leading the Cardinals past Ferris State University (41-7), while Ashland University sophomore placekicker Gregg Berkshire (Ashland, Ohio) earned "Special Teams Player of the Week" honors for his efforts in the Eagles 41-28 win over the University of Findlay.

GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week:
Brad Iciek - Grand Valley State
(SR, QB, 6-1, 205, Grandville, Mich.)

Grand Valley State senior QB Brad Iciek completed 20-of-28 passes for 271 yards and two TDs, while rushing three times for 20 yards and a TD while leading GVSU to a 59-28 victory over Wayne State on Saturday. He led the Lakers to points in six-of-eight drives drives in less than three quarters of action. Iciek upped his record to 33-3 as a starting QB and led GVSU to its fifth straight GLIAC Championship.

Offensive Honor Roll: J. Horn - AU, Mi. Ryan - FS, M. Chambers - UF, V. Panizzi - HC, R.Forney - UI, B. Slowik - MT, C. Kopach - NM, S. Klukowski - NU, C. Dowdell - SV, M. Mohner - WS.

2009 Off. Players of the Week: (8/31) C. Dowdell - SV; (9/7) T. Weatherhead - HC; (9/14) B. Iciek - GV; (9/21) J. Bell - WS; (9/28) V. Panizzi - HC; (10/5) J. Bell - WS; (10/12) J. Horn - AU; (10/19) J. Bell - WS; (10/26) A. Holmes - HC; (11/2) J. Bell - WS; (11/9) B. Iciek - GV.

GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week:
John Jacobs - Saginaw Valley State
(SR, LB, 6-2, 230, Prudenville, Mich./Midland Dow)

Saginaw Valley State senior linebacker John Jacobs ended his regular season career as a Cardinal in strong fashion as he racked up 11 tackles and 2.5 sacks against Ferris State. He also became the GLIAC’s all-time tackles leader (conference games only) with 397, besting former Cardinal John DeGiorgio’s total of 392 that was set from 2002-05. Jacobs, who leads the GLIAC in tackles this season (135), led a defense that held Ferris to a season low -42 yards rushing.

Defensive Honor Roll: B. Gamble - AU, Ma. Ryan - FS, J. Knopick - UF, D. Richard - GV, D. Berube - HC, J. Vandenberg - MT, Z. Gauthier - NM, A. DeWeerd - NU.

2009 Def. Players of the Week: (8/31) K.Fitzpatrick - FS; (9/7) J. Jacobs - SV; (9/14) Q. Scott - AU; (9/21) K. Loney - WS; (9/28) J. Knopick - UF; (10/5) N. Yelk - NM; (10/12) N. Hixson - HC; (10/19) J.T. Owens - UI; (10/26) D. Richard - GV; (11/2) B. Gamble - AU; (11/9) J. Jacobs - SV.

GLIAC Special Teams Player of the Week:
Gregg Berkshire - Ashland
(SO, PK, 6-1, 196, Ashland, Ohio)

Sophomore Gregg Berkshire went 2-for-2 on field goals, connecting from 29 and 37 yards in AU’s 41-28 win over Findlay. He was also 5-for-5 on extra points. Berkshire ends the year with 81 kick scoring points, which is a school single-season record. He is 16-for-20 on field goals and he tied the school single-season record for field goals, which was set in 1990.

Special Teams Honor Roll: G. Berkshire - AU, M. Voss - FS, C. Stevens - UF, J. Trumble - GV, B. Wood - HC, P. Sijan - NU, K. Fournier - SV.

2009 S.T. Players of the Week:  (8/31) S. Thornton - WS; (9/7) P. Sijan - NU; (9/14) J. Renel - WS: (9/21) M. Petro - HC; (9/28) B. Smolen - GV; (10/5) T. Cattelino - MT; (10/12) M. Petro - HC; (10/19) C. Isles - AU; (10/26) C. Stevens - UF; (11/2) J. Glendening - HC.; (11/9) G. Berkshire - AU.

Ashland - Sophomore kicker Gregg Berkshire (Ashland, OH) ended his season by scoring 11 points at Findlay. Berkshire was 5-for-5 on extra points and 2-for-2 on field goals. The sophomore went 16-for-20 on three-pointers this season and tied the school single-season record for field goals. He has 81 points, which is the school record for kick scoring points in a season…when quarterback Billy Cundiff (Uniontown, OH/Connecticut) found wide receiver Christian Livingston (Newark, OH) with a 26-yard TD pass in the first quarter Saturday, it snapped a string of eight consecutive quarters without a TD pass for the Eagles…Cundiff was intercepted once this season in 305 pass attempts. He ends his career with 79 touchdown passes and 16 interceptions in 1,001 pass attempts. For the second consecutive season, Cundiff is one of 24 finalists for the Harlon Hill Trophy…sophomore defensive back Brian Gamble had two interceptions Saturday and ends the year with a team-high four picks. Gamble had a 24-yard interception return for a touchdown, that’s the first time an Ashland player returned an interception for a score since linebacker Tom Brenner did it against Michigan Tech on Sept. 13, 2008. Gamble also recovered a fumble at Findlay … UF entered last week’s game fourth in the country in turnover margin. Ashland forced the Oilers into five turnovers (three interceptions, two fumbles) and those miscues resulted in 17 points.

Ferris State - Saginaw Valley State put a close to Ferris State’s 2009 football season as the Cardinals proved they belong in the NCAA Division II Playoffs with a convincing 41-7 triumph over the Bulldogs at Wickes Memorial Stadium on Saturday (Nov. 7) afternoon. The Bulldogs fell behind 14-0 after the opening quarter and could never get back into the contest while finishing the year with a 1-10 overall record with the season finale setback. FSU trimmed the lead to 28-7 on a 59-yard scoring pass from senior quarterback Kyle Parrish to sophomore receiver Mike Ryan with 13:22 left in the third. The Cardinals limited the Bulldogs to only 130 yards and 11 first downs, including only eight yards of offense in the opening half. FSU finished with 24 rushes for -42 yards as the Cardinals sacked Parrish eight times on the day. Parrish wrapped up his career with 172 passing yards on 14-of-24 throwing, but was intercepted twice... Defensively, senior linebacker Matt Ryan paced FSU with a game-high 18 tackles.

Findlay - The Oilers dropped their final game of the season 41-28 at home against Ashland on Saturday…Senior quarterback Andrew Beam completed 22-of-41 passes for three touchdowns and 278 yards…His total of 2,179 yards passing this season eclipsed the school record of 2,133 set by Bo Hurley during the 1997 campaign…Junior wide receiver Dustin Zielaskiewicz made six receptions for 119 yards and a score while senior wide receiver Mike Chambers caught nine passes for 98 yards and a score…His 98 yards receiving gave him 1,027 on the season, establishing a new school record…The previous record of 1,018 yards was set by Derek Hutchinson during the 1986 campaign…Freshman running back Monterae Williams finishes his first season with 937 rushing yards and six touchdowns…Senior linebacker Joe Knopick made 11 stops in the game and finishes the season with 118 tackles.


Grand Valley State - The 2009 GVSU senior class is 48-3 with one National Championship and four GLIAC titles. In addition, the 2009 senior class is 41-1 in regular season games...Junior RB Justin Sherrod (Wyoming, Mich./Park) rushed for 186 yards and three TDs on 13 carries (14.2 ypc), while hauling in one reception for 24 yards and a TD. Sherrod’s four TDs were a career-high...Grand Valley State tallied its ninth straight 10-win season...James Berezik (Fraser, Mich./Warren De La Salle) moved into second all-time in rushing yards at GVSU with 3,508 and is just eight yards away from breaking Michael Tennessee’s all-time mark of 3,515. WR Blake Smolen (Grosse Ile, Mich.) upped his all-purpose mark to 5,238 yards (1,973 rushing/2,021 receiving/1,244 KO returns)...Senior QB Brad Iciek (Grandville, Mich.) upped his passing total to 7,636 yards and 89 TDs, while his total offense now stands at 7,829 yards...The GVSU defense limited the nation’s leading rusher to just 20 yards on 13 carries versus the Laker starting defense. In addition, WSU came into the game averaging 250.0 yards per game rushing, but managed just 71 on 32 attempts... Grand Valley State is making its ninth straight appearance in the NCAA DII Playoffs and the Lakers are the only school in Division II to appear in each of the last nine NCAA DII playoffs. GVSU is 24-4 in the playoffs since 2001 with four NCAA DII National Championships and five title game appearances.

Hillsdale - The Chargers finished off their best season since 1992 with a 59-24 win over Tiffin University…The Chargers’ 9-2 record is its best in 17 years, and the team finished the regular season tied for second place in the GLIAC…Senior RB Vinnie Panizzi broke a 54-year-old school record in the win over the Dragons…His five first-half touchdowns gave him 52 rushing TDs for his career, breaking the old record of 51 held by Nate Clark, who played at Hillsdale from 1953-55…Panizzi’s five rushing TDs also tied a single-game school record…The Chargers scored 118 points in their last two games, the most in a two-game span in school history…Junior LB Ben Wood had his first career blocked punt and first career interception in the game … Hillsdale scored 35 points in the second quarter and led the game 59-10 at one point… Hillsdale finished 4-0 vs. ranked teams in 2009 and was ranked 20th in last week’s AFCA Division II Top 25 poll… Senior WR A.J. Kegg is four catches shy of the all-time record for receptions in a career in school history… Senior Mark Petro’s 48 career field goals are second in school history …Hillsdale’s won-loss record of 24-9 the past three seasons is third-best in the GLIAC, behind Grand Valley State and Saginaw Valley State.

Indianapolis - The Greyhounds fell to 4-7 overall on the season with a 41-14 loss at Northern Michigan in the season finale … Sophomore Ryan Forney (Crown Point, Ind.) had a career-high 10 catches for 107 yards in the contest … Sophomore Cody Kave (Waukesha, Wis./North) led the team in tackles for the first time in his career, generating eight total stops, including one for a loss … Sophomore Mike Dum (Indianapolis, Ind./Bishop Chatard) finished the season with 85 tackles to lead the team.

Michigan Tech - Bobby Slowik (Green Bay, Wis./Southwest) hauled in eight passes for 125 yards and three touchdowns vs. Northwood last Saturday (Nov. 7). The three touchdowns came from distances of 10, 24 and 13 yards. The 5-10 wide receiver also had three catches of over 20 yards. Slowik’s 125 yards in the game pushed his career total to 2,089 receiving yards, making him one of just five receivers in school history over 2,000 … Quarterback Brent Heim (Green Bay, Wis./Preble) broke or matched all of his own career passing bests by going 20-of-34 for 296 yards and three touchdowns. The 5-11 junior finished 2009 with 1,451 yards and a 60.9 completion percentage … Bryan LaChappelle (Crystal Falls, Mich./Forest Park) posted four catches for 82 yards vs. Northwood. For the season, the freshman tight end finished second on the team in receptions (29), receiving yards (329) and touchdowns (four) … Sophomore Jesse Vandenberg (Kaukauna, Wis.) finished the year as Tech’s team leader in tackles with 71 after tallying a game-high 11 vs. Northwood... Tech wrapped up its season at 2-8. It’s senior class posted a four-year record of 22-20.

Northern Michigan - With the win Saturday over Indianapolis, the NMU football team finished the season 6-4 for its first winning record since 2002…Mark Bossuah led the ‘Cats on the ground Saturday with 78 yards on 19 carries, he led the team on the season with 734 yards on 152…For his career Bossuah had 3,093 yards on 615 carries…Zach Nichols hauled in a team-high eight catches for 103 yards and two scores against the Greyhounds as he led the team for the season with 47 catches for 613 yards…Zach Gauthier playing his final game in an NNU uniform led the defense with 16 total tackles (six solo and 10 assisted)…Nathan Yelk ended the 2009 campaign leading the ‘Cats with 98 total tackles (51 solo and 47 assisted), Gauthier was second with 83 (33 solo and 50 assisted) … The NMU defense intercepted 12 passes this season and ran two back for touchdowns, Junior Michel returned one for a TD Saturday against UIndy…NMU was 4-1 at home this year and averaged 39.8 points a game while giving up 12.4.

Northwood - NU finished its 2009 season with a 38-26 road victory over Michigan Tech Saturday afternoon (November 7) ... the Timberwolves finished the year with four straight victories and went 7-3 overall ... NU finishes the season alone in fourth in the GLIAC standings after being picked to finish 11th in the preseason coach’s poll ... Northwood finished the game with a season-high 552 yards of total offense - the Timberwolves had 398 yards rushing and 154 yards passing ... NU’s rushing attack came to life in the second half of the season - after Northwood rushed for a total of 691 yards in first five games of the season (138 yards per game), the Timberwolves had 1,609 yards in the final five games of the year (321.8 yards per game) ... balance was the key to the running game’s turnaround - NU had six players average more tahn 30 yards rushing per game in the final five games of the season ... senior quarterback Spencer Klukowski (Rockford, Mich.) finished his career with a strong performance, rushing for 88 yards and three touchdowns to go along with 154 yards passing ... after opening the year 0-3 on the road, Northwood earned victories in their final two road games (at Wayne State, at Michigan Tech).

Saginaw Valley State - SVSU extended its winning streak to five games with a 41-7 victory over Ferris State on Saturday (Nov. 1). The Cardinals racked up over 500 yards of total offense for the first time since early in the 2008 season. Xavier Walker (Bridgewater, N.J. / Raritan (Moorpark College)) had 73 yards on 13 carries and a touchdown. Junior QB Charles Dowdell (Indianapolis, Ind.) racked up 313 yards of total offense on the afternoon, 202 yards in the air on 10-of-19 passing with two touchdowns and rushed for 111 yards on nine carries with two touchdowns... John Jacobs (Prudenville, Mich. / Midland Dow) ended his regular season career as a Cardinal in strong fashion as he racked up 11 tackles and 2.5 sacks against Ferris State on the day he became the GLIAC’s all-time tackles leader (conference games only) with 397, besting John DeGiorgio’s 392 that was set from 2002-05. The Cardinals’ rush defense held Ferris State to - 42 yards rushing.

Tiffin - Tiffin University finished a difficult 2009 season at nationally-ranked Hillsdale, falling 59-24 in their season finale…Nate Scully completed 10 of 22 passes for 145 yards and 2 interceptions but also was sacked 4 times. Steve Feeman finished his Dragons career at quarterback, connecting on 7 of 13 passes for 110 yards. Dave Singleton had 98 all purpose yards while Dave Pickeral led the defense with 9 tackles and Chris Evans added 8 tackles.

Wayne State - Redshirt freshman quarterback Mickey Mohner (Painesville, Ohio/Harvey) passed for 382 yards and four touchdowns on 24-of-40 and finished with the second-highest passing efficiency rating (131.18) in school history ... senior running back Joique Bell (Benton Harbor, Mich.) rushed for 74 yards and had 76 yards receiving including a career-high two TD receptions ... he concluded his collegiate career with 6,728 rushing yards (sixth in D-II/8th in NCAA history), while his 152.91 rushing yards per game is 11th in D-II and 25th in NCAA history ... Bell scored 576 points which ranks fourth in D-II and fifth in NCAA history, while his 13.1 points per game average is fourth in D-II and 10th in NCAA history ... his 8,055 all-purpose yards is fourth in D-II and ninth in NCAA history ... Bell rushed for 2,084 yards in 2009, the 15th-highest total in D-II history, while his 17.5 points per game average in 2009 is the eighth-best mark in D-II history ... senior kicker Anthony Morasso (Detroit, Mich./Harper Woods Notre Dame) set WSU single-season marks in PAT attempts (40) and made (36) ... Wayne State set school records for yards per play (6.07) with 4,275 yards (second most) in 704 plays, and yards per rush (5.47) with 2,571 yards in 470 carries ... the 322 points scored is the second-best total, while the 45 touchdowns equaled the school record set in 2007.