» The Panthers will make the 420-mile trip to Marquette for the second game of the season on Saturday. The good news is that Davenport is 1-0 after a 13-9 win at Lake Erie in the season opener.

» It was a defensive battle in Painesville, Ohio as neither team could eclipse 300 total yards for the contest. The similarities included 18 first downs by both clubs and the time of possession was 30:50 to 29:10 in favor of the Panthers. 

» The Davenport defense was once again very stout against the run. The Storm rushed for 113 yards at Mercyhurst in their opener but managed just 30 yards against Davenport. Lake Erie ran the ball 29 times.

» The Panthers rushed for 130 yards on 40 carries and took the opening drive all the way into the end zone. Gabe Ford playing in his first game at DU scored on a one-yard touchdown run up the middle. The rushing attack features a three-back rotation with Michael Catching, Creed Stegall-Monroe and Ford getting a majority of the carries in week one. Catching rushed for 67 yards (4.5 per carry), Ford rushed for 42 yards on eight carries, and Stegall-Monroe had five carries for 20 yards.

» Deondre Ford completed 14-of-27 passes for 167 yards but will need to clean up three lost fumbles at Northern Michigan. Ford threw a pass to six different receivers with his favorite target being Nate Couturier. Couturier caught three passes for 73 yards including a game-high 49-yard grab which set up the first field goal by Chris Ahmed in the second quarter.

» Ahmed was named GLIAC Special Teams Player of the Week after scoring seven points at Lake Erie. He made both field goal attempts with a 26-yarder and 41-yarder in the second quarter. The first came with 9:41 left and the second came as time expired to give DU a 13-3 lead heading into the break. The 41-yard field goal was the second longest by Ahmed who set the school record with a 42-yard boot in the season finale last year against Saginaw Valley State. Ahmed is now 9-of-13 in his career in field goal attempts.

» Deion Powers had a special day in the secondary last Saturday. He became just the second player at DU with multiple interceptions in a game. He picked off two passes in the second quarter. The first came with 4:40 left and stopped a Lake Erie inside the 10-yard line. The latter came with 23 seconds left until halftime and helped lead to Ahmed's second field goal. Powers also blocked an extra point which would prove critical as Davenport held onto a four-point lead in the fourth quarter. Lake Erie's final drive was halted inside the red zone needing a touchdown to take the lead. Powers finished with four tackles as well.

» It was a very productive day for several new faces particularly on defense for the Panthers. Jaden Gardner led the team with 10 tackles including 1.5 tackles for loss and a five-yard sack. Abe Thompson finished with six tackles and wreaked havoc in the backfield with three tackles for a loss of 15 yards. T.J. Daniels finished with six tackles and a half tackle for loss. Jeremy Kelly from his secondary spot finished with six tackles.

» Nate Couturier continued to be a force in the return game and finished with 190 all-purpose yards. He had 73 receiving yards, 62 kick return yards and 56 punt return yards. He also had a touchdown punt return called back due to a penalty.

» Northern Michigan is fresh off a 40-24 road loss at Texas-Permian Basin last Saturday. The Wildcats trailed 30-24 with 9:20 left in the game before Permian Basin scored the next 10 points to seal the win. The dagger was an 11-yard run by Gabe Nelson with 2:41 left in the game. UTPB finished the game with 30 first downs and 516 total yards. They passed for 358 yards and carried for another 158 yards. NMU finished with 427 total yards including 246 through the air. The Wildcats committed 13 penalties for 96 yards. Ryan Johnson threw for 246 yards with one score and two interceptions. Tyshon King ran for 99 yards on just nine carries with two scores. Isaac Darkangelo led NMU with 13 tackles and had 1.5 tackles for loss.

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