December 21st, 2024 7:00pm
By Chuck Bitner, D2Football.com
Ferris State (14-1) controlled the action from start to finish in Saturday’s Division II National Championship game in McKinney, Texas. The Bulldogs defeated Valdosta State (13-1) by a final score of 49-14 to earn the program’s third national championship.
Game recap
Valdosta State received the opening kickoff and picked up a pair of first downs to move into Bulldog territory. A sack put them behind the sticks and ultimately forced a punt two plays later.
Ferris State’s first possession went exactly according to plan. On their first play from scrimmage, Trinidad Chambliss kept the ball on a designed quarterback run, bouncing to the outside and tip-toeing the sideline before cutting it back to the middle for a 44-yard gain. Chambliss capped the drive a few plays later with a 1-yard touchdown run for the first points of the game.
After another Valdosta State punt, Ferris State would go up 14-0 on a throw-back to slot receiver Brady Rose who then lofted a perfect ball down field to Cam Underwood for a 39-yard scoring strike. The score would not be closer than 14 points for the remainder of the day.
Valdosta State remained committed to the ground game, which was producing some success, but not allowing them to sustain drives. After yielding possession to the Bulldogs once more, the second quarter scoring kicked off with a 30 yard reception by Kannon Katzer. On what looked like a designed quarterback run, Chambliss pulled up and hit Katzer who had snuck behind the defense along the sideline. Katzer juggled the ball, but hauled it in and raced the rest of the distance for the Bulldogs third TD of the day and 21-0 lead.
Valdosta State finally responded later in the quarter with their first points of the day. After forcing the Bulldogs to punt from their own end zone, Sammy Edwards connected with Tyler Ajiero from 38 yards out on a fourth down play.
Ferris State’s next possession would begin with under two minutes to play in the half. The Blazers forced a punting situation and were poised to retake possession and look to cut into the lead further before the half. An offsides penalty on the punt play gave Ferris State a free first down. The Blazers appeared to have stopped them once again but were flagged for a personal foul face mask call on a third and long. The automatic first down gave the Bulldogs another opportunity. The Blazers defense would once again force a 4th down play, however, Emari O’brien snuck behind the defense for a wide open touchdown grab. The score rebuilt the Ferris State lead to 28-7 with just 0:10 remaining in the half.
Ferris State received the second half kickoff and needed little time to move down field. Katzer opened the half with a 40-yard run to put the Bulldogs in Blazer territory. Chambliss would later complete the drive with his second rushing touchdown of the day from five yards out. The Bulldog lead swelled to four touchdowns at 35-7.
The Blazers punched back with their best drive of the day and had an opportunity to shift momentum after forcing a punt on the Bulldogs next possession. Unfortunately for the Blazers, they were unable to take advantage. Quarterback Sammy Edwards appeared to have picked up a critical third down conversion, taking off for a rush on third and nine. However, extending the ball to be sure of making the line to gain proved costly. The ball was jarred loose as Edwards was going to the ground and was scooped up by the Ferris State defense and returned it for a touchdown. The defensive score reestablished a 28-point lead and seemingly ended any hopes for a Valdosta State rally.
The Bulldogs added one more score in the final period. Cam Underwood hauled in his second touchdown reception of the day from nine yards out, on a play where defensive pass interference was also called. That would complete the scoring, delivering the Bulldogs a 49-14 victory.
Ferris State finished the day with 465 yards of total offense with 251 on the ground and 214 passing. Kannon Katzer led the rushing attack with 97 yards. Chambliss added 78 yards and two touchdowns. He also passed for 153 yards and three touchdowns. Cam Underwood had three receptions for 86 yards. Two of his grabs resulted in touchdowns. Defensively, Eric Jackson forced two fumbles while linebacker Sefa Saipaia led the team with eight tackles.
Valdosta State posted 311 total yards with 121 rushing and 190.
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Note: Shortly following the conclusion of the game, it was confirmed that Valdosta State coach Tremaine Jackson has accepted the head coaching position at Division I Prarie View A&M.