#1 Ferris State Opens Home Slate With Big Win In First-Ever Matchup Against Bentley

Bulldogs win big against Falcons – The Ferris State Torch

A week after they took down Pittsburgh State 42-14, the Ferris State football team followed it up with the home opener against Bentley at Top Taggart Field.  Sophomore quarterback Wyatt Bower started the game for the Bulldogs and led a 7-play, 42-yard drive that ended with a 33-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Jaylin Townsend. Junior Luke Warnock started at quarterback for the Falcons but was forced to a 3-and-out by the Bulldog defense. While junior quarterback Chase Carter started the drive before Bower came in and threw an interception at the nine-yard line to senior cornerback Santi Quiceno. Sophomore quarterback Wyatt Bower hands off the ball to senior running back Zak Ahern. Photo by: Miles Joseph | Torch Photographer 34 seconds into the second quarter, junior quarterback Leeshaun Mumpfield ran for an 18-yard touchdown for a Bulldog touchdown to make it 14-0 Ferris State. A Ferris pass interference gave Bentley a first down on the 24-yard line, and a 40-yard rush by graduate running back Mason Andrade put the Falcons in Ferris territory.  After Bentley’s last timeout of the first half, the drive ended with Bentley’s sophomore kicker Peter Vafiadis putting the Falcons on the board with a field goal to bring the score to 14-3 with 7:20 left in the second quarter. Senior defensive end Tyrone Fowler talked about the defense’s mentality. “Honestly, I’m proud that we got the win,” Fowler said. “I feel like we could have executed a little better when it mattered. We got the stuff we needed to, but overall, just proud that we got the win and defense still got the job. I think there’s still more work for us to do overall.” Ferris State responded with a 10 play, 75-yard drive that ended with a 5-yard touchdown rush by Ahern, and the extra point brought the Bulldog lead to 21-3. Bentley ran the ball up to the 41-yard line, but penalties brought them back to their own 45-yard line.  Bentley received the second half kickoff off a touchback and went down the field before punting back to Ferris. Bower gained a pair of first downs before Ferris punted back to Bentley, who gained some first downs of their own before they were forced to punt back to the Bulldogs. Ferris’ two-play drive ended with Bower throwing a 57-yard touchdown pass to Ahern to give Ferris a 28-3 lead with 9:27 left in the third quarter. Ferris State forced and recovered a fumble. A Bentley pass interference put the ball in the red zone and the drive ended with a 34-yard Ferris field goal by sophomore kicker Jay Cady that gave Ferris a 31-3 lead.  Bentley got the ball to its 41-yard line before they were forced to punt. Mumpfield was put in the game at quarterback before a fumble put them back to the 41-yard line, which would end the half. The fourth quarter started with the Bulldogs scoring on a 19-yard touchdown rush by senior Jeremiah Housey to make it 38-3. Bentley marched down the field but had a turnover on downs at the nine-yard line. Ferris got the ball and scored a 41-yard touchdown caught by junior wide receiver Timothy Ormond, but was negated by a penalty, bringing the ball back to the 39-yard line. Bentley’s graduate safety Tyler Lane intercepted Mumpfield’s pass and marched down the field until the clock ran out, with the Bulldogs winning 38-3.  Even with the 38 points scored, head coach Tony Annese thought the team could’ve played better. “We got one touchdown called back, and we threw a pick down inside the 10,” Annese said. “So, I’m not a guy that thinks that 38 points are a lot of points, quite honestly, since we averaged 50 [points] last year. We were still efficient. We had very few plays for the number of yards we had, so it doesn’t reflect a crazy amount of yardage.” Next week, Ferris State will head to Central Washington on Saturday, September 12 at 9 p.m.

#1 Ferris State Opens Home Slate With Big Win In First-Ever Matchup Against Bentley

BIG RAPIDS, Mich. — Nationally top-ranked Ferris State University registered a 38-3 win over visiting Bentley (Mass.) in the home opener on Friday (Sept. 4) at Top Taggart Field, improving to 2-0 on the year.

Two Champions. One Statement Game: No. 1 Ferris State Hosts Bentley Friday Night

Ferris State has not lost since 2024. Bentley is the NE10 champ picked to repeat, and it arrives in Big Rapids with nothing to lose. Friday night at Top Taggart Field is a measuring stick for both.