ASHLAND — Lee Owens loves a challenge and his Eagles are in for one on Saturday night.
Ashland University welcomes defending Division II national runner-up Ferris State to town for the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener at 7 p.m. at Jack Miller Stadium. The Bulldogs are ranked second in this week’s American Football Coachers Association Division II poll and feature reigning Harlon Hill Trophy winner Jayru Campbell at quarterback. The Harlon Hill Trophy is presented annually to the Division II Player of the Year.
“We’re in a different level of play now,” Owens said. “This is the best team in Division II college football with the best player in Division II college football.”
Ferris State (2-0) is coming off a 62-28 win at Central Washington. Campbell, who sat out Ferris State’s season-opening 24-23 win over Findlay after off-season elbow surgery, completed 17 of 29 passes for 271 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 42 yards on 13 carries. Wideout Xavier Wade had three catches for 110 yards, including a 72-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter after Central Washington had cut Ferris State’s lead to 34-28 moments earlier. The Bulldogs scored four fourth-quarter touchdowns to win going away.
“Proud of our guys hanging in,” Ferris State coach Tony Annese told Michigan Live after the game. “They cut it to six and it was nervous time … and then I think we wore them down a little bit there at the end.”
Ashland (1-1) bounced back from a season-opening loss to nationally-ranked Indianapolis with a 34-12 win at Walsh. Quarterback Austin Brenner completed 19 of 31 passes for 182 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for a team-high 98 yards and a score. Junior receiver Dakota Hobbs caught a pair of touchdown passes, his first two TDs for AU. Meanwhile, former Ashland High School standout Scott Valentine earned his first start. The junior defensive end had five tackles and a half-sack.
“It’s good for the future that we’re playing so many guys,” Owens said. “It may be a little tougher to step up in that scenario Saturday night.”
Linebackers Clay Shreve and Ryan Corkrean lead AU’s stingy defense, which has allowed just 2.3 yards per rushing attempt through the first two weeks. Shreve has a team-high 21 tackles and four tackles for loss while Corkrean has 17 stops and a sack.
“They’ve got great personnel but what they’ve got most of is just great fight,” Annese said. “They play really hard and they’re very passionate about their defense. They play with a lot of pride.”
