RU defeated Quincy in week one, 23-21, before defeats to Southwest Baptist, UW-Oshkosh, and top-ranked Ferris State.
Roosevelt leads the
GLIAC in passing offense, averaging 257 yards per game. Running back Cam Davis ranks sixth in the league with 263 yards. Quarterback Zach Zella leads the
GLIAC in passing yards per game with 239.5. He is completing 61% (82-of-134) of his passing attempts for 958 yards and eight touchdowns. Norion Espadron ranks fourth in receiving yards with 267.
Kamal Mukarram leads the Lakers in tackles with 35 (tied for sixth-most in the
GLIAC). Brandon Harvey has the second-most tackles on the team with 28. He has 1.5 tackles for loss as well. Payton Orth leads the team with stops behind the line of scrimmage with 2.5.
Grand Valley State enters this week after starting 2-0 in
GLIAC play with wins over Davenport and Northern Michigan.
The Lakers (4-1, 2-0
GLIAC) lost a low-scoring contest to Pittsburg State, 17-14, in week three while boasting wins against Lincoln (Pa.) and Black Hills State (S.D.) to start the season.
GVSU recovered from a slow start in the first half to win 35-7 over Northern Michigan on the road last week. The Lakers entered the locker room at the half tied 7-7 with the Wildcats before rattling off 28 points in the second half (21 in the third) while pitching a second-half shutout on defense.
The Lakers are led by quarterback Andrew Schuster. He ranks second in the
GLIAC in passing, completing 61.6% of his passes for 1,077 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Syone Usma-Harper leads the Lakers with 159 rushing yards and one touchdown. Brady Drogosh has 150 yards and a team-high four rushing touchdowns on the year.
Kellen Reed and Lynn Wyche-El are the team leaders with three touchdown receptions. Reed has a team-best 243 receiving yards, while Wyche-El has 214. Sean Byrd and Donovan Johnson have caught two touchdown passes.
The GVSU defense is led by Anthony Cardamone with 35 tackles. He is tied for the team-high with two sacks and also has 4.0 tackles for loss. Jimmy Downs is the only other Laker with more than 30 stops (32). He has 5.5 tackles for loss, a team high, and 1.5 sacks. Josh Anderson leads the team with four pass breakups and is one of seven GVSU players with an interception.
the series
This is the 64th meeting between Saginaw Valley State and Grand Valley State. The Lakers hold the series lead at 42-11 and have won the last 12 meetings in the series. Five of the last 10 matchups have been decided by one score or less, with last year's meeting being one of those, with GVSU escaping out of Wickes Memorial Stadium with a 16-9 win.
The 2019 meeting in Lubbers Stadium was a 35-28 win for GVSU, and the 2018 showdown was a 31-28 close call. 2016 saw the only overtime meeting in the series, with the Lakers securing a double-overtime win of 62-56.
The last SVSU victory was a 55-52 shootout in University Center on November 10, 2012. The Cardinals have not won at GVSU since 2003.
