EMU football opens 2022 with another 1-score win, 42-34, over Eastern Kentucky
YPSILANTI, Mich. – Taylor Powell passed for 271 yards and three touchdowns, Samson Evans rushed for 89 yards and two scores and Eastern Michigan beat FCS member Eastern Kentucky 42-34 on Friday night in a season opener for both teams.
Powell rushed for a 7-yard score early in the fourth quarter to extend Eastern Michigan’s lead to 35-17. After 10 straight points from EKU, Powell led a six-play, 65-yard drive ending in a 22-yard scoring pass to Hassan Beydoun for a 42-27 lead with 3:22 left.
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EKU scored on Parker McKinney’s 9-yard completion to Dakota Allen with 1:11 remaining, but Eastern Michigan secured the onside kick to seal it.
Tanner Knue caught four passes for 43 yards and two touchdowns for Eastern Michigan. Hassan Beydoun added 48 yards receiving and a score.
McKinney was 35-of-51 passing for 351 yards and three scores for Eastern Kentucky. McKinney also rushed for 49 yards and a score. Allen caught nine passes for 118 yards and two scores.
Thursday's GLIAC action
Ferris State 36, Central Washington 20: The No. 1 Bulldogs’ defense of their Division II national title didn’t go entirely according to plan, as Tony Annese’s squad struggled on the ground in Big Rapids, with just 2.9 yards per carry on 49 rushes. But quarterback Mylik Mitchell’s arm was up to the task, as he completed 19 of 29 passes for 339 yards and a touchdown. The score came on a 64-yard strike to Xavier Wade as time expired in the first quarter, giving Ferris (1-0) its first lead. Next up: a road tilt with preseason No. 22 Lenoir-Rhyne on Sept. 10 in Hickory, North Carolina.
Grand Valley State 25, Colorado School of Mines 22: The No. 5 Lakers needed nearly 25 minutes to break through before building a 17-0 lead midway through the third quarter in Allendale. But the No. 3 Orediggers clawed their way back to a 22-17 lead late in the fourth before quarterback Cade Peterson led GVSU (1-0) 80 yards in nine plays and 2:16 for the winning score with 56 seconds left. The Lakers’ TD was set up by a pass interference call in the end zone on fourth-and-6 with 1:12 remaining On the next play, Peterson found Jayk Slager for a 2-year score, then connected with Drew Peterson for a 2-point conversion. GVSU heads to Pueblo, Colorado, next week for a matchup with Colorado State-Pueblo.
Michigan Tech 23, Wisconsin-Platteville 13: Steele Fortress was nigh impenetrable on Thursday in Houghton, as the Huskies’ QB completed eight of 12 passes for 131 yards and a touchdown and scored on a QB keeper with 10 seconds remaining in the first half for a lead Tech never lost. The Huskies (1-0) next head to St. Paul, Minnesota for a date with St. Thomas, which is transitioning to FCS-level football, on Sept. 10.
Saginaw Valley 72, West Virginia Wesleyan 0: The Cardinals rolled over the Bobcats in University Center, picking up 372 yards on the ground and building a 37-0 lead at the half. Dante Barthwell rushed nine times for 82 yards and three touchdowns, scoring in the first, second and fourth quarters. The Cardinals (1-0) next host Bowie State on Sept. 10.
McKendree 31, Northern Michigan 24 (OT): A game of comebacks for the Wildcats in Marquette came up just short as Drake Davis couldn’t connect with Rad Premovic on fourth-and-16 in overtime. Davis led NMU back from a 14-0 first-quarter deficit, then marched the Wildcats 44 yards in 4:32 for a game-tying field goal by Daniel Riser with 50 seconds remaining. Davis finished with 211 yards through the air (on 20-for-31 passing) and 90 yards on 12 rushes. The Wildcats host Wisconsin-Oshkosh on Sept. 10.
Thursday's MIAA action
Trine 38, Anderson (Indiana) 0: Quarterback Brett Kaylor connected with Connor Arthur twice for touchdowns 98 seconds apart in the second quarter and the Thunder held the Ravens to just 57 yards of total offense, with seven sacks and three interceptions.
Free Press sports writer Ryan Ford contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: MAC football roundup: Eastern Michigan beats Eastern Kentucky, 42-34
