Findlay Falls at #3 Ferris State to Open Season
Big Rapids, Mich. – The University of Findlay football team kicked off the 2021 fall season with a trip to no. 3 Ferris State on Thursday, Sep. 2. Findlay scored first but fell by a final of 54-14. With the loss, the Oilers begin the year 0-1 while Ferris State will begin 2021 at 1-0. It is the seventh consecutive loss to Ferris State for Findlay who has not beaten the Bulldogs since October of 2011.
Despite the big margin of defeat, it was the Oilers who actually struck first in the contest, a 47-yard touchdown pass from Matt Winzeler to Jake Brown to cap Findlay's first offensive series of the evening.
Ferris State would then go on to score 27 unanswered points to open up a 20-point lead with 10:20 remaining in the second quarter.
Findlay then went on a 73-yard drive that ended with a 32-yard touchdown reception by Mike Rigerman, pulling the Oilers to within 13 points at 27-14.
From then on it was all Bulldogs as the home squad would go on to the 40-point victory.
Ferris State put up a gaudy 625 yards of offense in the game, 347 of which came through the air, while the Oilers managed 405 yards of offense. Turnovers hurt Findlay they lost a pair of fumbles and also had two passes intercepted.
The Bulldogs excelled on third down on both sides of the ball. On defense, they held Findlay to just 5-of-12 on third downs while on offense, Ferris State converted on 8-of-11 attempts.
Matt Winzeler completed 17-of-33 through the air for 267 yards and two scores. His top target was Jake Brown who had five catches for 95 yards and a score. Tanner Schroeder had four receptions for 51 yards while tight end Mike Rigerman caught two passes for 44 yards and a score.
Josh Booker was the Oilers' leading rusher as he picked up 71 yards on 11 carries. Brian Benson had nine carries for 25 yards in a backup role.
The Oilers' leading tackler was Jack Trombetti who had 13 stops. Marqis Stokes also reached double-digits with 11 tackles including a half tackle-for-loss. Jeremiah Jackson had seven stops and also recorded an interception for the Oilers.
Findlay goes into a bye week before then heading to Southwest Baptist on Saturday, Sep. 18 in Bolivar, Missouri. That game will kick off at 2:00 pm.
