HOUGHTON, Mich. -- The No. 12 Davenport football team failed to score a touchdown for the first time since Nov. 16, 2024 against Ferris State on Saturday in a lopsided and unexpected 37-6 loss at No. 14 Michigan Tech. The game featured the Huskies, ranked No. 4 in Super Region 3, and the Panthers, ranked No. 5 in Super Region 3. It was touted as a game that would go a long way towards determining postseason berths. The Huskies (8-2, 5-1) made a major statement, while the Panthers (8-2, 4-2) are left with more questions than answers.
The Huskies used imagination on offense and kept the Panthers on their heels in a dominant first half building a 30-0 lead going into halftime. MTU scored 10 points in the first quarter and added 20 more points in the second quarter. The Panthers ran for 214 yards and reached the red zone three times, but their scoring was limited to two field goals after the Huskies had already built a 37-0 lead.
Ian Jenkins accounted for the only points for Davenport with a 26-yard and 31-yard field goal in the fourth quarter.
The Panthers put together a sustained fourth-quarter possession while facing a 37-3 deficit, moving 65 yards on 12 plays before finishing the drive with Jenkins' second field goal. Davenport managed to total 68 yards on 13 plays in the fourth quarter. For the game, Davenport did not commit a turnover, but also could not make the big play on offense.
Jonathan Palmer missed the contest and so backup QB's
James Young and
Mac VandenHout split snaps. Young was just 1-for-9 passing for just three yards. VandenHout completed 5-for-6 for 49 yards.
Jack McKee also got some action late in the game and was 3-for-5 for 30 yards.
The Huskies generated more explosive production across the full game, averaging 8.2 yards per play with 441 total yards. The Panthers ran for 214 yards on 48 carries, with
Cephus Harris finishing with a season-low 66 yards on 19 attempts and
James Young adding 58 yards on 11 carries. The Huskies made the most of their red zone trips going 3-for-3 getting the ball into the end zone. Alex Bueno completed 10-for-16 for 178 yards and two scores. Elliott Larner threw for a score and also carried for 87 yards on eight carries and two more touchdowns.
The Panthers picked up a first down on their opening possession with consecutive five-yard runs by
Mac VandenHout, and
Alec Wojahn later pinned the Huskies at the 15 before the defense forced a punt. The Panthers crossed midfield on their next drive behind a 15-yard
James Young run, but the series stalled at the Huskies' 40 and Wojahn's punt put the Huskies at their 10. The Huskies broke through on the ensuing possession when Alex Bueno ran for 13 yards on third down and later connected with Nic Nora for a 73-yard touchdown at 6:47, with Avery Kucharski's extra point making it 7-0.
Latrell Scott and
Vincent Cooley recorded tackles for loss on the Huskies' next scoring drive, but completions to Abram Larner helped set up Kucharski's 47-yard field goal at 1:37, and the Huskies led 10-0 after the first quarter.
The Huskies struck on the first play of the second quarter, with Elliott Larner rushing 42 yards for a touchdown at 14:51 before Avery Kucharski's extra point made it 17-0. The Panthers' next possession ended in a punt, and the Huskies drove back into the red zone, overcoming a forced fumble by
Latrell Scott that was recovered by Brandon DeVries before Larner scored again on a nine-yard run at 10:19 to push the score to 23-0. The Panthers later put together an eight-play drive from their own 23 behind a 12-yard VandenHout completion to
Brody Thompson and a three-yard Harris run on third down, but the series ended on downs at the Huskies' 48. The Huskies added a late 12-yard touchdown pass from Eliott Larner to Abram Larner with 55 seconds left, and the Panthers moved to the Huskies' 35 in the closing seconds before halftime with the Huskies ahead 30-0.
The Huskies opened the third quarter with a 68-yard scoring drive, using Elliott Larner's 33-yard completion to Nora to reach the Panthers' 5-yard line before Alex Bueno hit Abram Larner for an 11-yard touchdown at 11:01, and Kucharski's extra point made it 37-0. The Panthers put together an 11-play, 59-yard drive from their 18, with VandenHout finding
Landon Tungate for 16 yards and Young breaking a 20-yard run, but the possession ended when Young was sacked on fourth-and-8 at 5:38. The Panthers moved again from their 43 as VandenHout completed a 15-yard pass to
Nate Cobbs and Young ran 15 yards to the Huskies' 8 on third-and-1, but the third quarter ended after Harris was stopped for a four-yard loss, leaving the score 37-0.
The Panthers began the fourth quarter at the Huskies' 12, and
Ian Jenkins finished the possession with a 26-yard field goal at 14:09 to make it 37-3. The Huskies picked up one first down on their next drive, but the Panthers forced a punt after
D'Angelo Bellamy stopped a short completion for a loss and
Zalyn Brooks helped halt a third-down run. The Panthers followed with a 12-play, 65-yard drive that included
Jack McKee's 17-yard completion to
Kaleb Parrish on third down, McKee's 17-yard run,
Kayden Collins' 12-yard rush and McKee's 11-yard pass to
Michael Young before Jenkins hit from 31 yards at 6:13.
Scott recorded six tackles and forced a fumble. Bellamy also had six tackles including two tackles for a loss. DU managed to record eight tackles for loss, but no sacks for the second time this season.Â
Up next, the Panthers host No. 23 Grand Valley State at noon Saturday, Nov. 14, in Caledonia, Mich. scheduled for a noon start.
