Football 11/6/2024 2:59:00 PM Jeff Weiss, Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Media Relations

Football Hosts GLIAC Newcomer Roosevelt This Saturday

GAME STORYLINES
The Wayne State University football team will host GLIAC newcomer Roosevelt University for the inaugural meeting between the two programs. The Warriors return home for their final two games of the 2024 campaign after completing their road slate last Saturday at Grand Valley State.

SCOUTING ROOSEVELT
The Lakers (1-7) claimed their first GLIAC victory on Saturday, October 19 with a 16-10 overtime triumph at Northern Michigan. Roosevelt will be bringing a high powered passing attack to Tom Adams Field this Saturday.

Jared Williamson is in his 15th season as a collegiate head coach. He was hired in June of 2010 to start the football program from scratch at Robert Morris University in Illinois, with the first playing season being in 2021. In the summer of 2020, Roosevelt University and RMU officially merged, bringing football to Roosevelt's campus for the first time.

Leading the way through the air for the Lakers is Carson Budke. In eight games for RU, Budke has completed 55.8 percent of his passes (148-of-265) for 1,749 yards and six touchdowns with eight interceptions.

Keonta Nixon, RU's top pass catcher, has hauled in 35 passes for 764 yards and three scores. Those 764 receiving yards are the most in the GLIAC with the 35 receptions ranking third.

Through eight games, Cyrus Zuell has been a work horse on the ground for the Lakers. The senior has rushed 155 times for 527 yards, while finding the end zone six times, the only six rushing scores for RU. Zuell has contributed 18 receptions for 110 yards.

ALL-TIME SERIES
This will be the first meeting for the two programs, as Roosevelt competed in the NAIA, prior to transitioning to the NCAA.

RAYBA HAULING IN TOUCHDOWNS
Junior tight end John Rayba caught two touchdown passes at Grand Valley State increasing his season total to four. In a check of the WSU record book, since 1960 only two other tight ends had four touchdown receptions in a season - Richard Hall in 1993 and Eddie Jackson in 1984.

TYUS RUNNING HARD
XaVior Tyus recorded his second career rushing touchdown in last Saturday's game at Grand Valley State. He rushed for 70 yards on 18 attempts during the annual Homecoming game against Saginaw Valley State on November 2. In the five games this year that he has had at least nine carries, Tyus is averaging 45 yards per contest.

RED ZONE EFFICIENCY
Through nine games, Wayne State is ranked seventh nationally in offensive red zone efficiency. The Warriors have been able to score 21 times in 23 attempts (.913). WSU has crossed the goal line 16 times and connected on five field goals.

RECOVERING FUMBLES
Through nine weeks, Wayne State has forced eight fumbles, and recovered six. Senior linebacker Carl Ware is tied-for-second in Division II for forced fumbles this season with four. The Warriors are third in the GLIAC and 45th nationally in fumble recoveries with six.

TOUGHEST SCHEDULE
Heading into week 10, WSU has played the toughest schedule in D2 with past opponents having a .750 winning percentage (54-18). Future opponents have an .059 winning percentage (1-16), which ranks last nationally. The composite strength of schedule (55-34, .618) is third nationally behind Tusculum (.632) and Delta State (.630), and just ahead of Pittsburg State (.610) and Fayetteville State (.603).

MILOVANSKI CONTINUES SUCCESS
Griffin Milovanski went four-of-four on PATs at Grand Valley State to extend his successful PAT streak to 61, the second longest in school history behind Stefan Terlecky's 65 (2011-13). He connected on his lone field goal attempt against Saginaw Valley State and is tied-for-first in field goals made (39) in WSU history.

Milovanski is tied-for-sixth among active Division II kickers for field goals made with 39 (which ranks 53rd among all active NCAA kickers). The graduate student's 201 career points is tied-for-17th among active Division II kickers and tied-for-30th among all players. Six of his 13 career missed field goals have been at least 50 yards.

HARRIS CONTINUES TO BE VERSATILE
Wide receiver Manny Harris had two touches for 44 yards at Grand Valley State with a 40-yard reception and a four-yard rush. The junior also played on three of the four special teams. Last month at Davenport, with WSU leading 6-5 in the first quarter, Harris recovered a fumbled punt. On the second half kickoff return, he forced a fumble which went out of bounds.

After scoring his first two career touchdowns on the ground, Harris hauled in a 20-yard touchdown pass from Champion Edwards late in the third quarter against Findlay. It was Harris' first TD at home having scored rushing touchdowns at Grand Valley State (Nov. 5, 2022) and at Slippery Rock (Sept. 2, 2023). He caught a 72-yard touchdown pass at Davenport on October 19.

EDWARDS SETTING QUARTERBACK STANDARD FOR RUSHING
Champion Edwards is leading the way on the ground for the Warriors with a team-high 452 rushing yards and a 5.3 yards per attempt. Edwards rushed for 146 yards and one touchdown on 13 carries against Findlay in week two. In that game, he became the first WSU quarterback with a 100-yard rushing effort since Doug Griffin rushed for 112 yards at Michigan Tech on Nov. 16, 2013. The previous 100-yard games by a signal caller were when Randy Hutchison gained 116 on the ground at Michigan Tech on Oct. 19, 2002, and 101 vs. Gannon on Aug. 30, 2003. It is believed to be the most rushing yards in a game by a WSU quarterback since Ed Skowneski rushed for 203 yards on Oct. 4, 1975, against Valparaiso. He gained 93 yards on 13 carries in less than a half at Davenport before being injured. He did not dress for last Saturday's game vs. Saginaw Valley State due to the injury suffered at DU.

McKATHERINE PUTTING SIX ON THE BOARD
Redshirt senior wide out Myles McKatherine caught his third touchdown pass of the season against Ferris State. In week two, McKatherine hauled in an 18-yard touchdown pass against Findlay for his second touchdown in as many contests. The last wide receiver to have a touchdown reception in back-to-back games was Trevonte Davis in 2021 (Sept. 18 at Missouri S&T [2] and Sept. 25 against Saginaw Valley State). Tight end Nick Poterack had touchdown catches in consecutive games in 2022 - Sept. 3 at Slippery Rock and Sept. 10 at home vs. Shaw.

McKatherine had a team-best 56 receiving yards at Grand Valley State and leads the Warriors with 314 receiving yards on the season.

LETTERWINNERS RETURNING
Wayne State has 28 returning letterwinners from 2023 (including 2022 if missed all of last year due to injury). Place-kicker Griffin Milovanski is the lone three-year WSU letterwinner on the squad. There are nine two-year letterwinners and 18 student-athletes with one letter for the Warriors.

PLAYING OVER TWO DAYS
In a search of the Detroit Junior College/Colleges of the City of Detroit (CCD)/Wayne University/Wayne State University historical record book, it is believed the game against Ferris State was the first in program history to be suspended and completed the following day. FSU led 10-0 near the mid-point of the second quarter when play was halted on Saturday evening due to lightning and the contest was resumed on Sunday at 11 a.m.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
A low snap on a punt attempt forced Findlay kicker Owen Clevenger to throw the ball resulting in an intentional grounding penalty which statistically is a sack for WSU's Dahmir Farnum, who was the closest Warrior to Clevenger when the pass was thrown.

BEND BUT DON'T BREAK DEFENSE
The 27 points scored by Ferris State at WSU was its lowest ouput since the 2024 season opener at Pittsburg State, and only the fourth time in the last 19 games the Bulldogs were held below 28 points (2023 vs. Grand Valley State and Montana).

WARRIOR DEBUTS
Through the first nine games, 81 players have been on the field for WSU, including 23 who have made their collegiate debut and 18 who made their Warrior debut.

Of the 69 players who traveled to Tiffin for the season-opener, 56 saw game action. Ten (10) Warriors made their collegiate debut in the contest vs. the Dragons (Jobe Benschoter, Amarion Brownlee, Kejuan Houston, Jordan Hutchinson, Kristian Kilpatrick, Jayden Lewin, Roshuan McGee, Raymond Payne, Jasir Rahaman, and Richardo Wourman). In addition, another 11 Warriors made their WSU debut (Jaylon Banks, Mekhi Battle, Kaleb Coleman, Champion Edwards, Will Fennema, Shamilyn Joppy, Jordan Lewis, Myles McKatherine, Lester McManaway, Jonathan Tillman, and Justyz Tuggle).

Four players made their collegiate debut in the Findlay contest (Max Edwards, Cane Mack, Will O'Brien and Da'Carion Taylor), while transfers Clifton Buchanan, Jr. and Jeremiah Drake made their WSU debuts against the Oilers. Two student-athletes made their collegiate debut in the Indianapolis contest (Amauri Haller and Steven McCrary, Jr.), while another four student-athletes made their WSU debut (Avery Burch, Colin Gardner, Xzavier Goldsby-Rogers and JoShawn Lewis) vs. the Greyhounds. Freshman M'Khi Guy made his collegiate debut at Truman State, while classmate Tanielu Ah-Loe made his collegiate debut at Davenport. Rob Brazziel made his WSU debut vs. the Panthers with first-year cornerback DeCarlos White making his collegiate debut against Saginaw Valley State.

In the Grand Valley State game last Saturday, three true freshmen (Amire Harris, Mickey Keller and Camren Warburton) made their collegiate debut as did redshirt sophomore Tray Steverson, who did not see any game action in two seasons at Independence Community College.

VETERAN OFFENSIVE LINE CONTINGENT
Arguably the most experienced position group for the Warriors in 2024 is the offensive line with two returning starters in redshirt junior Aidan Tweedy (21 career starts, including 19 of the last 20 games at center) and redshirt senior Charles Wesley (23 career starts from three different spots). Another five student-athletes who have started games also returned in redshirt sophomore Tomi Bisiriyu (three starts at left tackle); redshirt sophomore Will Edwards (eight starts at right guard); redshirt sophomore Ethan Gates (two starts at right tackle); redshirt junior Owen Salingue (three career starts); and redshirt senior Tyler Schompert (21 career starts).

Tweedy was a Second Team All-GLIAC selection in 2023 and was very durable as he saw action on every offensive play in eight games a season ago. Wesley was named WSU's Offensive Most Valuable Player last fall, while earning Honorable Mention All-GLIAC recognition. He is WSU's nominee for the AFCA Good Works Team (based on community service) this fall.

The five additional offensive linemen that have started boosted the number of career starts for this group to 91. Schompert is the most veteran of this group with action in 28 contests and starting at left tackle (16 times), left guard (four) and right tackle (once). Salingue is in his fourth year in the program, while Bisiriyu, Edwards and Gates all are in their third year with the Warriors. Freshman Richardo Wourman started twice at right tackle, while Jayden Lewin has started the last eight contests at left guard.

A FAMILY AFFAIR
WSU currently has three sets of brothers:
Champion and Max Edwards
Devon and Donovan Isaac
Shamarr and Shamilyn Joppy

There are three younger brothers of former Warriors in Aaron Mass (older brother Jacob was also a defensive end), Gabe Mendoza (older brother Manny was a wide receiver), and Mekhi Battle (older brother Tiroca was also on the defensive line).

Jeremiah Sterling and Jordan Bell are cousins as Jordan's dad Joique and Jeremiah's mother Ambie are brother-sister. Redshirt freshman wide receiver Tyler Swick is the younger brother of defensive graduate assistant coach Trey Swick.

WARRIORS BY THE NUMBERS
Of the 106 players currently on the roster, 81 came directly from high school, 14 played at another four-year college, nine played at a junior college, and two attended another school (one four year and one two year) but did not see any playing time.
Football student-athletes represent 11 states with a majority (80) coming from Michigan. The other states include Ohio (8), Illinois (5), Virginia (3), California (2), New York (2), and Pennsylvania (2), along with one each from Indiana, New Jersey, Washington, and Wisconsin.

With only 13 players in their final year (six graduate students, six redshirt seniors, and one senior), the Wayne State roster is loaded with inexperience. There are 18 redshirt juniors, three juniors, 16 redshirt sophomores, four sophomores, 21 redshirt freshmen and 31 true freshmen on the squad.

DON'T MISS ANY OF THE ACTION
For the 23rd season, every contest can be heard live on WDTK - The Patriot (1400 AM / 101.5 FM) or online at PatriotDetroit.com. Veteran Detroit broadcaster Sean Baligian is in his 16th season calling Warrior football. Former Warrior defensive end Brady Beedon will serve as the color analyst. He will also conduct the weekly Locker Room Report and Senior Spotlight features for WDTK. In addition, Tony Ortiz will serve as the Sideline Reporter for all six home games.

The radio pre-game show will start 30 minutes prior to a home game. Beedon will also host the Weekly With Wheatley show every Wednesday prior to a home a game. The final episode will take place on November 13th at Woodbridge Pub starting at 5:30 p.m.

All six home games, plus the road GLIAC contests will be streamed on FloSports. The home games will be via The PreP with the radio announcers broadcast being simulcast on FloSports.

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Players Mentioned

#51 Steven McCrary, Jr.: LB; 6' 1"; Freshman

#83 Jordan Bell: WR; 6' 0"; Redshirt Freshman

#89 Jobe Benschoter: TE; 6' 2"; Redshirt Freshman

#77 Tomi Bisiriyu: OL; 6' 5"; Redshirt Sophomore

#62 Will Edwards: OL; 6' 2"; Redshirt Sophomore

#13 Dahmir Farnum: RB; 5' 7"; Sophomore

#80 Colin Gardner: SL; 5' 11"; Redshirt Senior

#76 Ethan Gates: OL; 6' 6"; Redshirt Sophomore

#1 Manny Harris: WR; 5' 8"; Senior

#13 Kejuan Houston: CB; 5' 10"; Redshirt Freshman

Players Mentioned

#51 Steven McCrary, Jr.
: 6' 1"; Freshman
: LB

#83 Jordan Bell
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Freshman
: WR

#89 Jobe Benschoter
: 6' 2"; Redshirt Freshman
: TE

#77 Tomi Bisiriyu
: 6' 5"; Redshirt Sophomore
: OL

#62 Will Edwards
: 6' 2"; Redshirt Sophomore
: OL

#13 Dahmir Farnum
: 5' 7"; Sophomore
: RB

#80 Colin Gardner
: 5' 11"; Redshirt Senior
: SL

#76 Ethan Gates
: 6' 6"; Redshirt Sophomore
: OL

#1 Manny Harris
: 5' 8"; Senior
: WR

#13 Kejuan Houston
: 5' 10"; Redshirt Freshman
: CB