BIG RAPIDS, Mich. — The nation's top-ranked Ferris State University Bulldogs rolled to a decisive 69-3 homecoming victory over Waldorf University on Saturday (Sept. 24) before a crowd of more than 5,000 fans at FSU's Top Taggart Field.
Despite misty and rainy conditions, the Bulldogs beat the unbeaten Warriors in convincing fashion, limiting WU to only 93 yards of total offense in the game while forcing five turnovers. Waldorf had entered the contest ranked among the top 25 teams in the NAIA National Coaches poll.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Carson Gulker ran for five touchdowns for FSU as the Bulldogs tallied 450 yards of total offense in moving to 3-0 overall.
Ferris State jumped in front early as senior quarterback Evan Cummins hooked up with sophomore wideout Tyrese Hunt-Thompson on a 63-yard scoring throw only 3:08 into the game.
Waldorf found its only points with 4:32 to play in the frame when they took advantage of a Bulldog snap that sailed over the punter's head, taking over at the FSU two-yard line. They were held, though, to a 19-yard Connor Parker field goal.
From there, after leading 10-3 following the opening quarter of play on a late 28-yard field goal from Eddie Jewett, the Bulldogs outscored the Warriors 35-0 in the second period to build a 45-3 halftime lead.
In the second quarter alone, Cummins scored on a two-yard TD run and found senior wideout Brandon Childress on a 20-yard scoring throw while Gulker ran for three scores of his own in the frame. All five Bulldog scoring drives in the second quarter covered 34 yards or less thanks in part to the Warriors' turnovers and a special teams mistake in which WU did not field a kickoff and FSU recovered at the two-yard line.
The Bulldogs, despite playing nearly the entire roster in the second half, didn't let up after halftime. FSU scored 17 points in the third quarter with Gulker finding pay dirt from six and 12 yards away in addition to a 27-yard field goal from Jewett.
FSU capped off the scoring in the fourth quarter on Derrell Mabon's nine-yard TD run, which finished a lengthy nine-play, 83-yard drive that was the Bulldogs' longest scoring march of the afternoon.
Cummins completed 13-of-19 throws for 207 yards and two scores while Gulker ran for a team-high 51 yards on 10 carries. Overall, FSU totaled 255 yards in the air and 195 on the ground while limiting WU to only 40 rushing yards on 37 attempts along with 53 yards passing.
Hunt-Thompson paced the Bulldog wideouts with three grabs for 81 yards and Childress added three catches for 44 yards.
Defensively, Sefa Saipaia had six stops for FSU with Jovan Bayless adding five tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss and a sack. Standout Caleb Murphy totaled 3.5 tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble in addition to four tackles for the Bulldogs.
The win was FSU's 41st consecutive regular-season triumph dating back to 2017 and the Bulldogs are now only a win away from matching the historic 40-0-2 regular-season unbeaten streak put together by Ferris State from 1992-96. The win over Waldorf was also the Bulldogs' school all-time best 17th-straight win going back to last year.
Ferris State will play its final non-conference tilt on the road next Saturday (Oct. 1) as FSU visits Findlay for a 1 p.m. (ET) encounter in Findlay, Ohio.
►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 13 ON YOUR SIDE app now.
Have a news tip? Email news@13onyourside.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter. Subscribe to our YouTube channel.