Hillsdale's Andre Holmes Named GLIAC Football "Offensive Player of the Week"
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BAY CITY, Mich. - Hillsdale College junior wide receiver Andre Holmes (Elk Grove, Ill./Conant) was named the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) "Offensive Player of the Week" after leading the Chargers to a 45-14 win over Wayne State University on Saturday. Grand Valley State University junior defensive end Danny Richard (West Bloomfield, Mich.) garnered "Defensive Player of the Week" accolades for his efforts in a 34-7 Laker win over Ashland. The University of Findlay junior place kicker Cameron Stevens (Orlando, Fla./Timbercreek) was tabbed the GLIAC "Special Teams Player of the Week" for leading the Oilers past Northern Michigan University.
GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week:
Andre Holmes - Hillsdale College
(JR, WR, 6-5, 185, Elk Grove, Ill./Conant)
Holmes led the Chargers to a 45-14 win by the Chargers over Wayne State, scoring the team’s first three touchdowns, all coming in the game’s first 18 minutes of the game. He finished the game with five receptions for 119 yards and a career-high three scores. Holmes scored three of Hillsdale’s four first-half scores, as the team built a 28-0 lead over the Warriors. His third TD catch spanned 68 yards, the longest catch of the season for Holmes.
Offensive Honor Roll: D. Harvey - AU, S. Stoker - FS, M. Jackson - UF, P.T. Gates - GV, P. Bourne - UI, B. Heim - MT, C. Kopach - NM, D. Banks - NU, X. Walker - SV.
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.
GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week:
Danny Richard - Grand Valley State
(JR, DE, 6-4, 255, West Bloomfield, Mich.)
Richard tallied five total tackles, 2.0 QB sacks (-11), 3.5 tackles for loss (-13) and forced a fumble in No. 6 Grand Valley State’s 34-7 victory over Ashland. Richard was a key part of a Laker defense that sacked AU QB Billy Cundiff six times and limited the Eagles to 49 passing yards, 233 below there per game average and the lowest passing total in a game since 1995. Richard leads the Lakers in tackles for loss with 11 (-43) and QB sacks with six (-31).
Defensive Honor Roll: Q. Scott - AU, J. Morgan - FS, B. Cornell - UF, N. Galvan - HC, Mike Dum - UI, K. Kunnen - MT, N. Yelk - NM, A. DeWeerd - NU, J.Jacobs - SV.
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) J. Bell - WS; (10/5) N. Yelk - NM; (10/12) N. Hixson - HC; (10/19) J.T. Owens - UI; (10/26) D. Richard - GV.
GLIAC Special Teams Player of the Week:
Cameron Stevens - Findlay
(JR, PK, 5-7, 145, Orlando, Fla./Timbercreek)
Stevens accounted for all nine points in the Oilers’ 9-6 win over Northern Michigan on Saturday. Stevens hit on field goals of 19, 24 and 44 yards in the game. His 44-yard blast came with just over three minutes remaining in the game, giving the Oilers the victory. On the season, Stevens has made 11-of-14 field goal attempts and is the school record holder with 31 career makes.
Special Teams Honor Roll: C. Isles - AU, D. Miller - FS, J. Trumble - GV, M. Petro - HC, E. Kumming - UI, D. Banks - NU, J. Barley - 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.
Ashland - Senior RB Dawon Harvey (Columbus,
OH/Central State) registered his first 100-yard rushing game of the
season last Saturday with 109 yards on 15 carries. This is the
ninth 100-yard day of his AU career, but his first since Oct. 4,
2008, when he had 146 yards at Wayne State. Harvey also caught
three passes for nine yards, returned one punt 16 yards and had one
kickoff return for 22 yards. He ended the afternoon with 156
all-purpose yards…AU passed for 49 yards Saturday.
That’s the lowest amount of passing yards for the Eagles
since Nov. 11, 1995 when the Eagles passed for 48 yards in a 28-7
loss to St. Francis (IL). On that day, the winds were howling
between 40 and 50 mph. AU completed 8-of-25 passes against St.
Francis. On Saturday against GVSU, the Eagles connected on 9-of-13
throws… wide receiver Nick Bellanco was limited to one catch
for six yards on Saturday. That snapped a streak of 22 consecutive
games with at least two receptions for the senior.
Ferris State - A strong third quarter showing by
the Northwood Timberwolves broke Saturday’s (Oct. 24) GLIAC
game open as NU snapped a halftime tie to pull out a 33-7 victory
over Ferris State at Hantz Stadium in Midland, Mich.The Bulldogs
put together one of their best first-half outings of the season as
the score was tied 7-7 at halftime..FSU suffered its
eighth-straight loss despite holding NU’s potent rushing
attack to 173 yards on 42 carries. Ferris had two punts blocked in
the game and turned the ball over three times. Ferris State totaled
193 offensive yards with senior quarterback Kyle Parrish throwing
for 141 yards on 16-of-30 passing with one interception...The
Bulldogs totaled 52 rushing yards on 31 attempts with freshman
Skyler Stoker running for 57 yards on 22 attempts. Defensively,
senior linebacker Matt Ryan finished with 11 total stops for FSU,
which fell to 1-8 overall and 0-8 in the GLIAC.
Findlay - The 18th ranked Oilers were defeated
38-13 by 8th ranked GraThe Oilers improved to 7-2 on the season
with a 6-2 record in the GLIAC after defeating Northern Michigan
University 9-6 on Saturday at Donnell Stadium…Junior PK
Cameron Stevens accounted for all nine points, hitting on field
goal attempts from 19, 24 and 44 yards out in the game. His 44-yard
blast came with just over three minutes remaining in the game to
give the Oilers the victory. On the season, Stevens has made
11-of-14 field goal attempts and is the school record holder with
31 career makes…The Oilers defense recorded five sacks in
the game and recovered three fumbles to give them a plus 15
advantage in the turnover column on the year…Senior
linebacker Joe Knopick made 15 stops and now has 97 tackles on the
season…He also recovered two fumbles in the win, giving him
five fumble recoveries on the season… Sophomore DL Brandon
Cornell had a pair of sacks and a forced fumble while sophomore DB
Ikechi Emeaghara contributed his first two sacks of his career
along with a fumble recovery…Senior wide receiver Mike
Chambers caught two passes for 23 yards, giving him 47 receptions
and 876 yards receiving on the year…He has two games left to
try and break the school record for receiving yards in a season
(1,018 yards).
Grand Valley State - GVSU head football coach
Chuck Martin moved into second in all-time wins at Grand Valley
State with 69. Martin passed former Laker head coach Jim
Harkema’s 68 wins...Blake Smolen (Grosse Ile, Mich.) moved
past 5,000 career all-purpose yards (5,062). Smolen has rushed for
1,946 yards, has 1,923 receiving yards and 1,193 kick return
yards...The 2009 GVSU senior class is 46-3 with one National
Championship and three GLIACtitles. In addition, the 2009 senior
class is 39-1 in regular season games...Grand Valley State is 80-4
in its last 84 GLIAC games...Senior QB Brad Iciek (Grandville,
Mich.) has thrown a TD pass in 34 straight games and three or more
15 times...Junior RB James Berezik (Fraser, Mich.) is tied with
former Laker Brent Lesniak for career 100-yard rushing games with
15...Berezik is third in all-time rushing yards at Grand Valley
State with 3,237...The Grand Valley State defense gave up over 100
yards rushing for the third time in nine games this season versus
Ashland (177), but the Eagles managed just 49 passing yards.
Hillsdale - Hillsdale won its season-high third
game in a row, defeating Wayne State 45-14 Saturday…Both
teams were among the top eight in the most recent Super Region 3
rankings…The game was the first-ever victory for the #25
Chargers when they have gone into a game ranked in the Division II
Top 25 poll…Hillsdale was 0-2 in two previous games as a
ranked team, one in 2007 and one earlier this season…The
Chargers’ seven wins this season equal their total from
2008…Junior WR Andre Holmes caught a career-high three
touchdown passes, accounting for Hillsdale’s first three
scores of the game…The third of his catches was a
season-long 68-yard reception… scored 28 or more points in
six of their nine games this season…Senior RB Vinnie Panizzi
crossed the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the season, making him just
the second running back in school history to have three 1,000-yard
rushing seasons…Panizzi’s 14 touchdowns are second in
the GLIAC, and he’s second overall in the conference in
scoring…Senior Mark Petro scored nine points Saturday,
extending his lead among scoring by kickers…He is averaging
8.6 points per gam…Junior QB Troy Weatherhead leads the
GLIAC in average passing yards per game, and in total offense.
Indianapolis - UIndy ran its winning streak to
three straight with a gritty 21-17 win over Tiffin in its
homecoming. The Greyhounds allowed just 163 yards of total offense
in the victory … Freshman RB Patrick Bourne (Hamilton,
Ohio/Hamilton) ran for a career-high 137 yards, his second 100+
rushing game of the season … despite recording carries in
only four games, Bourne is the team’s leading rusher this
season (374 yards) … UIndy is now 4-0 when he garners a
carry … Sophomore QB Rob Doyle (Indianapolis, Ind./Bishop
Chatard) threw two TD passes, marking the fourth straight game that
he achieved that feat … the Hounds registered a season-high
six sacks in the win … all six were credited to a different
member of the Greyhound defense … UIndy’s nine tackles
for loss were also a season best … Junior punter Erick
Kumming booted his second career 50-yard punt, corralling an errant
snap and unleashing on the run and unleashing a key off-balance
boot in the fourth quarter … the Greyhound have won four
straight homecoming games, including the past three with
second-half deficits.
Michigan Tech - Junior QB Brent Heim (Green Bay,
Wis./Preble) totaled 292 yards of total offense last Saturday vs.
Saginaw Valley State with 265 yards passing and 27 more rushing.
The 5-11, 205-pound Heim accounted for all four Tech touchdowns in
the game with three scoring passes and his first career TD run. He
completed 20-of-33 passes to improve his season completion
percentage to 59.7 … Sophomore Steve Worthy (Detroit,
Mich./Renaissance) posted six receptions for 97 yards and two
touchdowns vs. SVSU. The first TD catch was a 28-yard grab in the
endzond. The second was an acrobatic, 37-yard snare over a defender
at the goal line … Michigan Tech outgained SVSU in yards of
total offense by a 365-348 count. The Huskies have gained more
offensive yards five times in eight games this season … Ten
different players have scored a touchdown for Tech this season
including four who tallied their first career scores—tight
end Bryan LaChappelle (Crystal Falls, Mich./Forest Park), wide
receiver Pat Carroll (Ann Arbor, Mich./Orchard Lake), fullback Tim
Schmalz (Shawano, Wis.) and Heim.
Northern Michigan - NMU had a season-low 233
yards of total offense against the Findlay Oilers
Saturday…NMU stays on the road this week with a trip to
Allendale, Mich. to take on the Lakers (Oct. 31)…The
Wildcats rushed for a season-low 74 yards on 38 carries in the
loss…Carter Kopach was 14-28-0 for 159 yards and has not
thrown an interception since the Ferris State game (Sept. 26)..Zach
Nichols and Dustin Brancheau are tied for the team lead in
receptions with 31 each…Saturday at Findlay Nichols and
Brancheau combined for 11 of the 14 catches with six and five
respectively… Nichols has a team-high 455 receiving
yards…Nathan Yelk recorded a career-high 19 total tackles
against the Oilers as he had 12 solo and seven assisted…Yelk
leads the team with 80 total tackles (48 solo and 32
assisted)…NMU failed to score in the second half the first
time this season vs. UF.
Northwood - Northwood improved to 5-3 on the
season with a 33-7 victory over Ferris State Saturday afternoon
… the Timberwolves finished the regular season with a 5-0
record at home … it is the first time Northwood has finished
the regular season with an unbeaten record at home since the 2004
season … NU’s defense continued its strong play of
late, allowing the Bulldogs to gain just 52 rushing yards and 193
yards of total offense … it was the fourth time in the last
five games the Timberwolves have held their opponent to less than
55 yards rushing … on the season, opponents are averaging
2.8 yards per carry … Andrew DeWeerd (Hudsonville, Mich.)
led the defensive effort, finishing with nine tackles, 3.5 tackles
for loss, a sack and a fumble recovery … Dmitri Banks
(Detroit, Mich./Murray Wright) had a strong game both on offense
and on special teams, finishing with a 12-yard rushing touchdown, a
40-yard touchdown reception and two kick returns that covered 87
yards (49, 38).
Saginaw Valley State - SVSU extended its winning
streak to three games with a 38-28 victory over Michigan Tech on
Saturday (Oct. 24)... Xavier Walker (Bridgewater, N.J. / Raritan HS
(Moorpark College)) became the first SVSU running back to break the
century mark in the 2009 season with 111 yards on 18 carries and a
touchdown. Quarterback, Charles Dowdell (Ft. Wayne, Ind.), was
effective running the ball again as he racked up 60 yards on nine
carries and two rushing touchdowns, one from 35 yards out and the
other from 19. The Cardinals’ rush defense held the rushing
attack of Michigan Tech under 100 yards for the afternoon. John
Jacobs (Prudenville, Mich./Dow) racked up 13 tackles, while
teammate Mike LeVand (Grandville, Mich.) added nine tackles.
Saginaw Valley extended its winning streak to three games over
Michigan Tech and also broke a five game streak between the two
teams where the home team had won each meeting. The
Cardinals’, ranked third in the NCAA Super Region 3 rankings
last week, will host Findlay, who was ranked ninth last week in a
match-up of for second place in the GLIAC and a possible spot in
the NCAA Playoffs.
Tiffin - Tiffin University lost its closest
battle of the season 21-17 at Indianapolis, leading early in the
game and not relinquishing the lead until late in the third quarter
in a hard-fought contest…Greg Raspberry hauled in a 34 yard
pass from Nate Scully, with Scully striking again a couple minutes
later on a 14 yard pass from Scully to David Singleton…Boris
Bede drilled a 42 yard field goal…Scully completed just 9 of
23 passes with 2 interceptions along with 2 touchdowns for 127
yards, but he also was sacked 6 times… Raspberry was the top
offensive threat, catching 3 passes for 73 yards… Bede also
did well, kicking a field goal, averaging 35.1 yards per punt
including putting 3 inside the 20 yard line, and averaging 66.2
yards per kickoff… Defensively the Dragons had a number of
standouts, with David Rumley totaling 11 tackles with a sack.
Arthur Allen had 10 tackles with a forced fumble, 1.5 tackles for
loss, and a deflection, while Dan Reedy had 10 tackles with 2
fumbles forced.
Wayne State - Despite last Saturday’s
setback, Wayne State is 14-6 in its last 20 games, the best winning
mark since a stretch from late in 1975 through almost the end of
1977 when WSU went 19-5 under the legendary Dick Lowry ... senior
Joique Bell (Benton Harbor, Mich.) rushed for 165 yards and two
touchdowns at Hillsdale to increase his all-time point total to 546
which ranks seventh in NCAA history (all divisions) ... he passed
Villanova’s Brian Westbrook (now of the Philadelphia Eagles)
with his second score, which also set a WSU single-season mark for
individual rushing touchdowns with 26 (Bell had 25 in 2007) ...
after recording 196 all-purpose yards at HC, Bell needs 71
all-purpose yards to become the GLIAC all-time leader ...
Bell’s average of 13.0 points per game ranks fourth in NCAA
Division II history and 10th among all NCAA divisions ...
WSU’s 27 rushing touchdowns in 2009 is third most in school
history behind the 32 in 2007 and 30 in 1975 ... WSU’s 5.4
yards per rush is on pace to be the highest for one season in
school history (the 1952 squad average 5.15 yards per carry/1,953
yards on 379 attempts) ... Bell’s next touchdown will equal
the WSU single-season mark of 28 he set in 2007.
