Battle of the Valleys pits No. 2 Lakers, No. 24 Saginaw Valley

Two of the top teams in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference meet Saturday with first place in the conference on the line. 

No. 2 Grand Valley (6-0 overall, 2-0 in GLIAC) travels to meet No. 24 Saginaw Valley (5-1, 2-0) on October 19 in University Center. Kickoff is 3 p.m.

The Lakers and the Cardinals sit in a three-way tie for first place with Ferris State. Both teams have Ferris remaining on their schedules — Grand Valley plays the Bulldogs on October 26, while Saginaw Valley plays Ferris on November 9. 

A win for either the Lakers or Cardinals on Saturday keeps them on track for the conference championship with the second half of their schedules before them. 

The game will feature three of the top offensive players in the GLIAC: Grand Valley’s Khalil Eichelberger and Avery Moore and Saginaw Valley’s Mason McKenzie. 

Running back Eichelberger leads the conference in rushing, averaging 90.8 yards per game, while Moore and McKenzie are two of the best dual-threat quarterbacks.

McKenzie ranks second in the league in rushing (67.5 yards per game); Moore ranks fourth (65.4 yards per game). McKenzie has the edge as a passer too, ranking fourth in the GLIAC throwing for 190.5 yards per game with Moore at fifth with 126.0 yards per game. 

McKenzie’s versatility could create a challenge for Grand Valley’s defense, which ranks eighth in Division II in total defense, surrendering just 229.7 yards a game.

Tickets and parking passes for Saturday’s game are available on the Saginaw Valley Athletics website . 

Fans can watch the game online at FloFootball . The radio broadcast is available on WLAV-FM 96.9 ( wlav.com ), WJRW-FM 106.1/WJRW-AM 1340 and WLCS-FM 98.3.

For full coverage of GVSU football, including broadcast info, news, features, highlights, press conferences and more, follow @GVSUFootball on social media and on the GVSU Athletics website .