On Saturday, the Huskies fell to twelfth-ranked Grand Valley State University, despite a lead in the first quarter. The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener proved to be a difficult game for the Huskies.
“Grand Valley State is a very good football team, but we are a better team than what we showed today,” said head coach Steve Olson. “We have to be able to execute better on the offensive side of the ball to finish drives and on the defensive side of the ball we have to be better at not giving up the long plays.”
The Huskies scored in the first quarter following a 14 play 80-yard drive. Senior tailback John Williams ran for the eight-yard touchdown, his sixth of the season. Three passes on the drive were completed by quarterback Jake Brown.
This would be the only scoring the Huskies would do for the day, unfortunately. The GVSU Lakers managed to tie the Huskies with 9:55 left in the second quarter on a 68-yard touchdown run. An interception by the Lakers would result in a 28-yard touchdown bringing the score to 14-7. Just before the half, GVSU completed a one-yard touchdown pass, extending their lead 21-7.
GVSU started the second half with possession of the ball and quickly extended the scoring gap. A three-yard touchdown pass in the corner of the endzone brought the score to 28-7. A 16-yard touchdown pass and an interception finished out the game for the day and left GVSU with the victory, 42-7.
Williams led the offense with 129 yards rushing on 21 carries. Brown completed 10 passes for 73 yards. In total, the Huskies boasted 274 yards of total offense with 193 of those on the ground. On the defensive end, senior Spencer Moran had nine tackles while junior Graham Hubbell and sophomore Travis Tidwell each came away with five.
The Huskies travel to take on the Saginaw Valley State University Cardinals for another GLIAC game. Kickoff will be at 1 p.m.
“Saginaw Valley State will be another tough opponent,” said Olson. “We’ll get our film work in, work hard in practice, turn the page, and get ready to go play Saginaw.”
