Football || Wayne State University

WAYNE STATE (0-2, 0-1 GLIAC)
hosts Grand Valley State (1-0, 0-0 GLIAC)
Saturday, Sept. 21 • Detroit, Mich.

MATCH-UP AT A GLANCE:
Stadium: WSU Stadium (6,000)
Surface: Natural
Kickoff: 12:00 p.m. Eastern
Site: Detroit, Mich.
Series Record: Grand Valley State leads 20-5

THE GAME
The Wayne State University football team will try to snap a six-game losing streak when the No. 1-ranked Grand Valley State Lakers visit Wayne State Stadium for the Warriors’ home opener this Saturday.

GVSU won last year’s game in Allendale, 77-12, in a game that featured 990 yards of total offense.

Both WSU quarterbacks, Dan Gray (151) and Randy Hutchison (122), passed for more than 100 yards. Jorge Gomez rushed for 79 yards, while Pierre Brown had 11 receptions for 166 yards.

THE COACHES
WSU head coach Steve Kazor is in his third season as the Warrior bench boss. He has a 7-15 record at Wayne State with an overall collegiate head coaching mark of 32-32 in his seventh season.

Grand Valley State head coach Brian Kelly has a 91-34-2 record in his 12th season with the Lakers. Kelly entered the 2002 campaign with the fifth-best winning percentage (.722) among active Division II coaches.

THE SERIES
Grand Valley State leads 20-5 in the all-time series having won the last 15 meetings. The Warriors are 0-7 in the last seven games in Detroit against the Lakers. WSU has a 3-9 mark in home contests versus GVSU.

IN THE POLLS
The Warriors were selected 11th in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) preseason coaches poll.

Grand Valley State is the No. 1-ranked team in Division II. The Lakers were the preseason No. 1 squad by both Street & Smith, and Lindy’s.

SCOUTING GRAND VALLEY STATE
The Lakers opened the season with a 24-17 triumph over sixth-ranked UC-Davis on Sept. 7. It was GVSU’s 17th straight regular-season victory.

Reggie Spearmon rushed for 68 yards on 16 carries, while Curt Anes completed 19 of 31 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns. Terrance Banks had a team-high seven receptions for 89 yards, while David Kircus had touchdown receptions of 26 and 7 yards.

Grand Valley’s defense forced six turnovers (3 fumbles and 3 interceptions) but allowed 348 yards (123 rushing, 225 passing).

FINDLAY GAME NOTES
Sophomore place-kicker Stephen Wayne (Farmington, Mich.) made all three of his field goal attempts against the Oilers. He made four field goals all of last season. He made a 44-yard attempt in the first quarter eclipsing his previous best of 35-yards set last year at Findlay.

The Warrior trio of tailbacks – junior Craig Duppong (Lockport, Ill.), junior Jorge Gomez (Oxford, Mich.) and senior Thabiti Williamson (Ann Arbor, Mich.) combined for 122 yards on 22 carries at Findlay. Williamson ran 21 yards for his 10th career rushing touchdown early in the fourth quarter to give Wayne State a 21-20 lead.

Freshman defensive end Leo Wells (Detroit, Mich.) had four tackles for loss including two quarterback sacks.

Cornerback Alvin Mask (Lansing, Mich.) had his second interception in as many games this season at Findlay, returning this one a career-long 64 yards. His fourth career interception set up a Warrior touchdown pass from Dan Gray to Nate Collins.

Linebacker Mike Macek (Redford, Mich.) returned his first career interception 21 yards against the Oilers setting up Stephen Wayne’s field goal which gave WSU a 15-14 lead.

Senior Nate Collins (Detroit, Mich.) had his first career touchdown reception as a Warrior in Findlay. He played his first two years at College of the Desert and had 23 receptions in 2001 for Wayne State.

Williamson and Duppong also had standout games on special teams. Willamson had three kickoff returns for 78 yards, while Duppong had three kickoff returns for 71 yards.

AT FINDLAY 33, WAYNE STATE 21
Wayne State lost a hard-fought 33-21 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game on Sept. 14 at Findlay's Donnell Stadium.

After falling behind 14-3 early in the second quarter, Wayne State rallied for the next 12 points to take a 15-14 lead late in the third quarter.

Both teams exchanged quick touchdowns (Findlay scored in two plays - 41 yards), while WSU running back Thabiti Williamson capped a five-play, 66-yard drive with a 21-yard touchdown run to put the Warriors back in front 21-20 with 11:55 remaining in the fourth quarter.

The Oilers scored just 31 seconds after Williamson's 10th career rushing touchdown on a 64-yard run by Robert Campbell.

With 5:51 left in the fourth quarter and the Warriors starting a drive at their two-yard line the lights went out in Findlay as a heavy downpour started. After a 15-minute delay, WSU's offense managed two yards in three plays and Randy Hutchison's punt was returned 36 yards by Harry Garland for the game's final touchdown.

WSU place-kicker Stephen Wayne made a career-high three field goals and a career-best 44-yard boot in the first quarter. His previous long was 35-yards in 2001 at Findlay.

Defensively for WSU, safety Mike Nowicki, starting for the injured Qasim Basir, tied for team-high honors with 13 tackles with Derrick Thomas. Defensive end Leo Wells led the Warriors with five tackles for loss including two sacks. Linebacker Mohamad Bazzi had three tackles behind the line of scrimmage, while fellow linebacker Mike Macek had his first career interception. Cornerback Alvin Mask returned his interception 64 yards. Mask now has four career picks, including one in each game this season.

Craig Duppong led the Warrior running backs with 55 yards on nine carries. Jorge Gomez gained 38 yards on three carries, with Thabiti Williamson rushing 10 times for 29 yards. Dan Gray completed 10 of 34 passes for 147 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions.

Roger White, Nate Collins and Mike Johnson each had three receptions. White had a team-high 60 yards receiving including a career-best 52-yard reception which set up WSU's field goal with 12 seconds left in the first half.

Findlay outgained Wayne State on the ground 242-114 and 189-147 through the air. The Warriors converted two-of-14 third-down conversions while limiting the Oilers to six third-down conversions in 16 opportunities. Findlay also had a sizeable advantage in time of possession (36:43 - 23:17).

NEWS & NOTES
Senior Thabiti Williamson had 107 all-purpose yards at Findlay to increase his career total to 3,624. He now trails Elbert Richmond (1950-52) by 67 yards for second place on the WSU all-time list.

Junior wide receiver Roger White (Sterling Hts., Mich.) equalled his career-high with three receptions at Findlay. He hauled in a career-long 52-yard reception late in the second quarter setting up a Warrior field goal.