COLLEGE FOOTBALL
The Dragons already had a tough start to the regular season, losing four out of their first five games against Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference teams.
Still, Tiffin coach David Walkosky could take solace in the fact his team had yet to be really blown out of a game. The scores might have looked lopsided at the end some times, but the Dragons had held tough.
Enter No. 2 Grand Valley State.
It's difficult to put into words how good the Lakers are. They have four national championships in the last six years, and have blown away their first three opponents this season.
But Tiffin got an idea how tough GVSU is early Saturday.
Very early.
The kickoff was scheduled for 1:30 p.m. While it's possible the kickoff was early or the watch was slow, Grand Valley State had scored a touchdown and was getting ready to kickoff at 1:32.
It was a sign of things to come in a 49-0 win.
After a strong opening kickoff return by Matt Fluter, the Lakers opened inside the Dragons 30. A few plays later, quarterback Brad Iciek tossed an 8-yard pass to Jonn Matthews in the end zone for a 7-0 lead.
"That's kind of our mentality," said Iciek, who threw five of his team's six touchdowns in the first half. "If we can score quick, we score quick; if it takes 10 minutes, we score in 10 minutes."
The Dragons responded with their best drive of the contest, giving their Homecoming crowd - for the moment - some hope.
TU quarterback Matt Root connected a few times to running back Cameron Mobley and the Dragons moved all the way down to the Grand Valley 3-yard line.
But while it looked like TU was on the verge of a tying score, in reality, GVSU had the Dragons right where it wanted them. Three plays later, Root was facing a fourth down from the 10. Walkosky, no doubt considering the Dragons kicking woes so far this season, went for it. Root faced a monster rush, and was able to get a screen to Mobley, who moved to the 3 before getting brought down.
It appeared the Dragons had missed an opportunity. Moments later, they were presented with another one.
The Lakers, who had turned the ball over once in four games, were victimized when running back P.T. Gates fumbled and Jackson Davis recovered.
Any euphoria the Dragons felt from the fumble was very short-lived.
After TU assumed possession at the 20, Root was picked by the Lakers' Zach Breen, who returned the ball all the way to the Dragons' 5 where he was tripped up by receiver Trey Williams.
"It started off great; we got a turnover," said Walkosky, whose team dropped to 1-5, 1-4 in the GLIAC. "But we had the ball in the red zone 10 plays and didn't put the ball in. You have to score. When you get opportunities like this against a great team, you have to capitalize on every opportunity you get."
The Laker made good on their opportunity when Greg Gay caught his first touchdown of the half. It was from 5 yards out and gave Grand Valley State a 14-0 lead with 4:11 left in the first quarter.
But Gay, a redshirt freshman and the team's third receiver, was far from done. He caught two more touchdowns in the half (from 16 and 10 yards, respectively). The touchdowns were his only receptions of the game.
"We got (Gay) on some 1-on-1 matchups," said Grand Valley State coach Chuck Martin, whose team moved to 5-0. "(The Dragons) were actually trying to cover him with an outside linebacker. When you've got a good receiver on an outside linebacker, you think you've got a heck of a chance to have some success there."
Blake Smolen and Carlos Clark also hauled in touchdown passes in the first half, giving the Lakers a 42-0 halftime lead.
The Lakers outgained the Dragons 252-51 in the first half. Root had completed 9 of 19 passes for 72 yards, but was sacked five times.
Martin pulled most of his starters by the break, but his defense still thrived, sacking once more and bringing down Vince Phillips - Root's backup - twice.
Root finished with 176 yards passing and a pair of interceptions.
Grand Valley State added one more touchdown when Justin Sherrod rumbled for 44 yards with 2:39 left in the game.
The news just got better Saturday for Grand Valley State. As the Lakers were rolling, Valdosta State (Ga.), which was ranked No. 1 in the AFCA poll, lost, 27-24, to Delta State in double overtime.
That should move GVSU into a familiar spot - first.
There probably won't be any argument from TU about that ranking.
For more on this story, read Zach Baker's blog at:
