Ferris State football team tops GLIAC coaches’ preseason poll, GVSU ranked second

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Western Michigan is well-represented in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference 2024 preseason football coaches poll.

During Thursday’s annual media day in Grand Rapids, the GLIAC announced the results of its preseason coaches poll, and for the fifth consecutive year, Ferris State took first place, with the Bulldogs receiving 46 points and four first-place votes.

Grand Valley State came in at No. 2 with 44 points and a trio of first-place votes, while Davenport was No. 3 with 38 points and the last remaining first-place vote.

Saginaw Valley State (30 points), Michigan Tech (26), Wayne State (20), Northern Michigan (13) and Roosevelt (7) rounded out the preseason voting.

After winning Division II national championships in 2021 and 2022, Ferris State is coming off another strong season in which the Bulldogs went 8-3 and ended with a 21-14 loss to GVSU in Round 1 of the playoffs.

Ferris State, which is also ranked No. 4 nationally in the Lindy’s Sports Division II preseason poll, boasts a 36-4 record over the past three years and has reached the 32-team playoff field in each of the past nine seasons.

The Bulldogs open the year at No. 3 Pittsburg State on Saturday, Aug. 31, and round out the non-conference slate against Lake Erie, Ashland and American International.

While Ferris State has been the GLIAC preseason favorite and a national powerhouse for the past several years, GVSU has won the past two conference titles and is coming off an 11-2 campaign that included a 49-28 regular-season win over Ferris State and a 7-6 quarterfinal loss to Harding in head coach Scott Wooster’s first season.

The Lakers begin the year ranked seventh nationally according to Lindy’s Sports, and will open the season with a home game against Central State on Thursday, Sept. 5, before finishing out the non-conference schedule with Colorado State Pueblo, Wisconsin-La Crosse and West Florida.

The annual Anchor-Bone Classic tournament between GVSU and Ferris State begins Oct. 26 in Allendale.

Davenport is coming off an 8-2 season, with losses coming to Ferris State and GVSU.

Despite the two losses, Davenport made program history by posting back-to-back eight-win seasons for the first time, and the Panthers also made a splash this offseason by landing a strong signing class that included former University of Georgia quarterback D’Wan Mathis and former Michigan State cornerback Justin White.

The Panthers open the season with a road game against Thomas More on Saturday, Sept. 7, then continue with nonconference games against Bowie State, No. 2 Central Missouri and William Jewell. The Panthers host GVSU on Oct. 5 and conclude the regular season with a trip to Ferris State on Nov. 16.