BIG RAPIDS, Mich. — Defending champion Ferris State will play a Division II football playoff game Saturday without its coach because he has been suspended for players lighting cigars in the locker room after winning a national title last year. «Self-pity's the greatest form of self-destruction, so I just got to suck it up and be a big boy,» coach Tony Annese told WOOD-TV.
The Bulldogs will travel 60 miles in Michigan to play in-state rival Grand Valley State. Annese's one-game playoff suspension isn't a total surprise; it was announced by the NCAA earlier this year. «Technically speaking, I can be at the game.
Just got to buy my own ticket. So I don't know if that's a good idea,» he said. In addition, Ferris State had to pay a $2,500 fine and $15,383 in cleaning and repair expenses.
The McKinney, Texas, school district, where the 2022 championship game was played, has a strict no-tobacco policy. The Bulldogs beat Colorado Mines 41-14 for their second consecutive Division II championship.