HOUGHTON, Mich. – The Michigan Tech football team is riding the momentum of a four-game win-streak and now shifts their focus to Davenport for a noon kickoff at Kearly Stadium on Saturday.
Watch The Huskies
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MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS
October 5-12 is Student-Athlete Mental Health Awareness Week. Throughout this week Michigan Tech Athletics is highlighting its commitment to eliminating the stigma surrounding mental health. Student-athletes, coaches, and staff are sporting a green ribbon in solidarity with those experiencing mental health challenges. To all those struggling, you don't have to walk alone or suffer in silence. Dial 988 to start the conversation. We look towards a future free from mental health stigma, because each and every one of us has mental health, and mental health matters.
The Series
The two teams have played six times starting in the 2017 season and are locked at three wins each. The Panthers have won the last two games over MTU with the first shutout by either team coming in last year's matchup, seeing DU post a 28-0 win at Kearly Stadium. The Huskies are 2-2 at Kearly Stadium and 1-1 in Grand Rapids.
About the Panthers
Davenport is 3-2 this season, most recently dropping their GLIAC opener to No. 2 Grand Valley State 24-7 at Farmers Insurance Athletic Complex on Saturday. All of the scoring happened in the first half with Myren Harris scoring a 27-yard touchdown as the lone points for DU. The Panthers are 0-2 at home and 3-0 on the road this season.
The Panthers produce 19.2 points per game with a well-balanced attack of 119 rushing yards and 193 passing yards per game. Davenport utilizes two quarterbacks with Mike O'Horo, formerly the starting quarterback for Saginaw Valley State, who has thrown for a team-leading 652 yards for six touchdowns and four interceptions. D'Wan Mathis has thrown for 315 yards while rushing for 97 yards and a touchdown.
Harris controls the run game for DU gaining 280 yards on 60 carries with two touchdowns, along with being second on the team with 16 receptions for 236 yards and two scores. Preston Smith averages 51 reception yards per game, totaling 255 yards with two touchdowns.
The Panthers are a problem on defense for the opposition allowing just 18 points per game while posting 3.5 team sacks and 9.3 team tackles for loss. Both rank top-10 in the country.
Cameron Grodhaus and Geemonate Peck have recorded a team-leading two interceptions this season. Grodhaus paces the offense with 39 total tackles while Peck has 26 total tackles and six for loss (29 yards). In total, six players have accounted for tackles for a loss of over 10 yards through five games.
About the Huskies
Michigan Tech enters the week winners of four-straight, most recently opening GLIAC play with a 22-7 win over Wayne State in front of a crowd of 1974 at Kearly Stadium on Saturday for a 4-1 record overall.
For the third straight game, the Huskies' defense has limited the opposition to one score. In Saturday's win over Wayne State MTU had a blocked field goal and an interception returned 30 yards from junior defensive back Dante Basanese. He also recorded a team-high eight tackles with his performance on the gridiron, earning him his first GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week honor.
Senior defensive back Hunter Buechel has also earned GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week honors this season and recorded eight total tackles with two tackles for a loss of 14 yards and a sack for eight yards on Saturday. Senior linebacker Josh Cribben had an emphatic safety on the Warriors' final offensive drive of the game, marking the first safety since September of 2018 for the Black & Gold.
Offensively, senior quarterback Alex Fries has tossed for 1,229 yards and 13 touchdowns and scored his first rushing touchdown of the season in the win over the Warriors. Three wide receivers have over 200 reception yards, with Ethan Champney leading the group with 477 yards and four touchdowns. Darius Willis joins Champney in the 400 club with 405 yards on 34 receptions and five touchdowns, adding to his program record amount that he set last season. He recorded his first multiple-touchdown game of the season on Saturday with two. Brandon Michalak joins the dynamic duo with 218 yards on 17 receptions and three touchdowns.
Sophomore running back Jake Rueff has controlled the ground for MTU with 255 yards rushing on 54 carries with one touchdown. In the last two games, the Lawton, Michigan, native is averaging 115 yards rushing.
Senior punter Brenden Lach continues to be among the nation's best with his punting average of 45.8 ranking first in the league and third in the nation.
One Last Thing
The second year of the Dan Mettlach era is off to a good start at 4-1 and 1-0 in league play. For context, Michigan Tech is off to its best start since the 2015 season, when the Black & Gold started the season undefeated through five games. It's also the first time the Huskies have won four straight games since the start of the 2015 campaign.
