North Michigan News

Leading 10-2 in the second quarter, Northern Michigan University (NMU) football team experienced a challenging game against Wayne State, ending in a 41-17 loss on Saturday at the Superior Dome. The Wildcats started strong with freshman running back Noah Hofmann scoring on a 52-yard run, giving NMU an early lead of 7-0.

Wayne State responded when a group of their defenders sacked NMU's quarterback in the end zone, reducing NMU's lead to 7-2. Later, NMU's offense pushed into Wayne State territory but failed to convert on a fourth and one at the goal line. Despite this setback, NMU managed to add a field goal from Mike Karlen before halftime, leading 10-5.

The second half saw Wayne State dominate. Justin Cox connected with Dion Brown Jr. for a 34-yard touchdown, putting Wayne State ahead 12-10 early in the third quarter. Following an interception thrown by Aidan Hoard, Nathaniel Ebery-Rodriguez caught a 39-yard pass for another touchdown, extending Wayne State's lead to 19-10.

In the final quarter, Wayne State added another 22 points with two rushing touchdowns from Kendall Williams and an additional score and field goal. With less than a minute left in the game, Hoard found Sam Peiffer for a deep touchdown pass.

NMU finished with 268 total yards compared to Wayne State's 328 yards. Hofmann rushed for 88 yards before leaving due to injury. Hoard completed passes totaling 165 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. Mitch Larkin led defensively with 14 tackles while Justin Peake contributed another 12 tackles.

This defeat brings NMU’s record to 0-9 overall and 0-5 in the GLIAC conference. Meanwhile, Wayne State improved its season record to 3-6 and evened its conference play at 2-2.

Northern Michigan is set to face Saginaw Valley State on Saturday, November 4th at 1 p.m., marking their final GLIAC schedule matchup.