HOUGHTON, Mich. – The Michigan Tech football team is set to host U.P. rivals Northern Michigan for the 22nd installment of the Miner's Cup Saturday slated for a 12:05 kickoff at Kearly Stadium.
ON TV
Saturday's game will be aired locally on TV6 with a broadcast team of Mark Evans (play-by-play), Dave Ellis (color) and Kevin McNulty (sideline reporter). TV6 and FOX-UP began broadcasting the Tech versus NMU rivalry during the 2013-14 season.
Watch The Huskies
All home and GLIAC games will be streamed on FloSports. Michigan Tech fans can watch all home and conference games in volleyball, basketball, football and soccer with one subscription. FloSports provides each subscriber with access to all content and events with the purchase of a monthly or yearly subscription. Subscriptions are offered in two different billing packages - monthly and annual. Discounts are available for students enrolled at GLIAC member and associate member institutions. You must subscribe with a .edu email address to be eligible. FloSports is available on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire, and Chromecast.
Hall of Fame Weekend
Former Michigan Tech players Tim Bedenis, Tom VanWagner and longtime voice of the Huskies and public address announcer Mitch Lake, will be recognized along with seven others at halftime of Saturday's game, as the Michigan Tech Sports Hall of Fame class of 2024.
The Series
The two teams first met over a century ago, starting in the 1920 season and have faced off in 96 games. The Huskies earned their 50th win over the 'Cats last season and control the series with a record of 50-41-5. The Black & Gold have also won 18 Miner's Cup games since the tradition of the traveling trophy started in 2002 and will look to win its 14th straight this weekend.
About the Wildcats
Northern Michigan is still finding its identity under second-year head coach Shane Richardson, as NMU has played to a winless record in 2024 at 0-7 overall and 0-3 in the loop.
The Wildcats are coming off a heartbreaking overtime loss at the Superior Dome, falling to first-year GLIAC affiliate Roosevelt 16-10. For the season, NMU is averaging 15.5 points per game, while the opposition is scoring over 39 points against the Wildcats.
Second-year quarterback Aidan Hoard has thrown for 551 yards and four touchdowns with 38 completions in 104 attempts. Hoard's favorite receiver is Michael Love as the lone Wildcat with over 100 yards receiving with 341 yards and four touchdowns.
The Wildcats have put a bigger emphasis on the run game this season, with five players having more than 30 carries, led by Jahi Wood with 406 rushing yards and a touchdown. Redshirt freshman Nico Lukkarinen has recorded a team-leading three rushing scores.
Adam Saleh (45 total tackles) and Mitch Larkin (44 total tackles) lead the Wildcats on defense. Chace Bridgers and Jax Hertel have combined for four sacks as the defense has amassed three interceptions.
About the Huskies
Michigan Tech looks to the rivalry game following back-to-back GLIAC losses, most recently falling to then-no. 4 nationally-ranked Ferris State (51-13). The Huskies are above .500 for the season with an overall record of 4-3 and an in-league ledger of 1-2.
In the 21st clash for the Miner's Cup, Michigan Tech boat raced Northern Michigan, recording its highest scoring output with the 62-0 victory to mark the 50th win in series history. The Black & Gold broke two records en route to the immaculate shutout, holding Northern Michigan to -46 yards rushing and just 85 yards of total offense.
Senior quarterback Alex Fries has thrown for 1,613 yards this season and 15 touchdown passes–both rank second in the GLIAC. Darius Willis has recorded a team-leading seven receiving touchdowns. The wide receiver room has also seen four touchdowns from Ethan Champney and three from Brandon Michalak. Champney and Willis reside at the top of the GLIAC in receiving yards per game and receptions per game.
Sophomore running back Jake Rueff has rushed for 329 yards on 77 carries, finding the endzone twice as the top rusher for the Black & Gold. Fries has added 89 yards on the ground with one touchdown.
Dante Basanese paces MTU's defense with 60 total tackles. A trio of Huskies joins Basanese with over 40 total tackles in Owen Watson (45 total tackles), Chase Koch (41 total tackles) and Hunter Buechel (40 total tackles). Buechel has recorded a team-leading four sacks for 28 yards.
Punter Brenden Lach has officially taken over the top spot in the land, averaging 46.7 yards per punt. He's recorded 44 punts for a total of 2,054 yards with a long of 67 yards and 17 punts over 50+ yards.
One Last Thing
Darius Willis, now a three-time program record holder, has wreaked havoc against the Wildcats in the past two seasons, with a team-leading four touchdowns with 301 receiving yards and a 24-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Michalak.
