On Saturday the NMU football team traveled downstate to face No. 1 Ferris State as the season winds down. Unfortunately, the Wildcats came up short with the Bulldogs on top, doubling down on the ‘Cats 70-35. NMU is currently unranked and sits 1-8 on the season while Ferris State is currently ranked number one nationally, and sits 9-0 overall on the season heading into the final two weeks.
The first quarter started out strong for the Wildcats on both sides of the ball, holding Ferris to 14 points and scoring 14 of their own heading into the second quarter. This is where the Wildcats start to slip away, with Ferris State out scoring the Cats 21-7. Going into the half the Wildcats trailed 35-21.
Top ball players in the first half included defensive back Luc Damiani, coming away with six tackles and one interception for the team. Quarterback Trevor Theuerkauf led the team to two touchdowns in the first half, and Tucker Welch added a rushing touchdown.
Coming out of halftime down 35-21, the Wildcats looked to get some plays going both on offense and defense. That was not the case for the Wildcats, as they went scoreless in the third quarter while Ferris only grew their lead— adding two more touchdowns heading into the fourth quarter.
To start the fourth and final quarter, the Wildcats were down 49-21.
The team was able to find the end zone twice in the fourth quarter as Theuerkauf threw completions to Sebastian Boyea and Jake Heemstra, capping off his best performance of the season thus far, giving fans some hope.
Twice in the end zone was not enough for the Wildcats to push ahead of Ferris, as they put up 21 more points in the fourth quarter.
Running back Noah Dobert put on a show, coming out of the game with 117 yards on 29 carries, as well as one catch for four yards. Freshman wide receiver Chris Battley was the punt returner for the game, coming away with 89 yards of returning. Senior linebacker Mitch Larkin ended the game with seven tackles, adding to his impressive season. Touchdowns were scored by Theuerkauf, running in for two on his own.
Next in scoring was freshman running back Tucker Welch, who ran in for a touchdown. Along with Welch were sophomore fullback Jake Heemstra and freshman wide receiver Sebastian Boyea, both of whom caught receptions for touchdowns. Finally, on the defensive side of the ball was another turnover for the wildcats. This time it was a fumble recovery by senior Jeremiah Gossett, his first of the season.
This weekend the Wildcats are back on the road for the final time this season. The team will travel down to take on Davenport for the second time this season. Earlier, when Davenport came to the Dome, the Wildcats were unable to come away with the win, falling to Davenport 35-16. Kickoff is set for this Saturday at noon in Grand Rapids.
Following this weekend, the team will return home as they close out the season with a matchup against Wayne State on Saturday Nov. 15.
