Ferris State football's Division II national title game run fueled by Lansing-area talent

If you look closely at Ferris State’s sideline during Saturday’s Division II national championship game, you might catch a few players throwing up the letter “L” with their hands. That “L” is for Lansing.

The Lansing area will be all over the field when Ferris State’s football team meets Valdosta State at 4 p.m. (ET) Saturday in McKinney, Texas. The game is nationally televised on ESPNU.

The Bulldogs’ top two tacklers, leading receiver and another starting defensive end are all from Greater Lansing. All had memorable high school careers here.

Waverly’s Austin Edwards, Sexton’s Avonte Bell, Williamston’s Sy Barnett and East Lansing’s Parker Underwood have each played a critical role in Ferris State’s determined and improbable 15-0 season, including four playoff wins. Their own roles, in a couple cases, have been somewhat unlikely, too. 

Edwards, a junior defensive end, and Barnett, a redshirt freshman receiver, were first-team All-GLIAC. Bell, a junior middle linebacker, was second-team all-conference. 

“Lansing, those four kids right there, from a character standpoint and just a personality standpoint, those four guys are as good as it gets,” Ferris State football coach Tony Annese said this week, while sitting on a plane bound for Texas.

Annese isn’t shy about explaining the impact of each of those four players on this season. Edwards and Bell, roommates since their freshman years, along with Parker, have been catalysts for a surprising defense that allowed the third-fewest points per game in the GLIAC, despite replacing 10 starters, nine of them seniors.

“I always knew that we were deep in all the position groups,” said Bell, who starred at running back and linebacker on the Sexton team that reached the state championship game in 2014. “It was never we were losing nine. It was a tremendous opportunity for nine people to step up and play well.”

The Bulldogs will face their stiffest test to date on Saturday. Valdosta State’s offense averages 52.2 points per game, tops in Division II.

Bell didn’t begin the season as a starter. He’ll finish it as an indispensable part of the defense, second in tackles and sacks heading into the final game, behind only Edwards in both categories.

“Those two are superstar defensive players for us,” Annese said.

“Avonte, in our defense, the (middle linebacker) has to make a ton of plays, be a guy that can run from sideline to sideline at times, and then a guy that can plug in and stop that downhill run against bigger personnel groupings. And he’s been able to be versatile enough to do both of those things.

“We loved his athleticism (at Sexton) and it took him a little bit of time to really show how great he is. He’s got a laid-back personality, so I think sometimes his laid-back personality was his worst attribute when it came to our coaches internalizing how great he is. When he got on the field and when he’s playing football, he’s dynamic. And once he got on the field, our linebacker coach said, ‘Wow.’ Now we really can’t take him off the field.”

Edwards, a 6-foot-5, 275-pound defensive end, is an NFL prospect, Annese said, perhaps following the footsteps of last year’s Baltimore Ravens seventh-round pick Zach Sieler. 

“Austin’s probably as good as they get for us,” Annese said of Edwards, who has 89 tackles and 7.5 sacks, the tackles number especially remarkable for a defensive end. “Loved him out of Lansing Waverly. A situation where he was probably under-recruited. When we first saw him, we were like, ‘Wow, this is a hidden gem.’ He and Parker are both 260(-plus) pounds playing D-end. Austin, we call him ‘Ace,’ he’s just a very skilled, athletic guy.

"Last week (in the semifinals), we’re ahead by 10 points, 5 minutes to go in the game and we had a timeout. I just looked at the defense and said, ‘We need a hero right now. How wants to be the hero?’ Austin got a strip-sack and we got a turnover, which kind of sealed the game for us. He’s just incredible.”

Underwood is just a sophomore eligibility-wise, though at his third school — a journey that began with a season at both Western Michigan, where he signed out of high school, and Illinois State. 

“It was really about finding the right fit for me,” Underwood said. “I’m a big believer in that everything happens for a reason. I’ve worked hard and trusted in God’s plan. I feel like I’m exactly where I’m meant to be.”

Annese took a look at Parker and saw the potential at defensive end. Parker, previously a tight end, said he’d never played defense. Opposite Edwards, he has 33 tackles and three sacks.

“We were looking for someone to plug in (to replace Sieler),” Annese said. “Parker was a guy who has a big body and great athleticism. It’s been a work in progress with learning his responsibilities (on defense) and getting the subtleties of being a great D-end. But this is really his first year playing and we’ve got several years with him. He’s going to be a force and he’s really grown in that position and been a catalyst for us to get to this point.”

There are two Lansing-area players on Ferris State’s offense. Corunna’s Cooper Clap is a reserve offensive lineman, a redshirt freshman who’s waiting his turn on a deep and experienced O-line unit. 

Williamston’s Barnett also wasn’t expected to have a huge role this season. He turned out to be Ferris State’s leading receiver as a redshirt freshman, with 42 catches for 968 yards. His 23 yards per catch ranks No. 1 in Division II among players with 35 or more receptions. 

“I worked my butt off all summer, just hoping I’d get a shot,” Barnett said. “But I was kind of planning on coming into the season just getting a kicking role honestly. And maybe getting a few plays here and there.”

An injury to the all-conference receiver in front of him created the opportunity and, from there, Barnett’s season took off.

“Sy’s been the unsung hero,” Annese said. “Sy jumped in there and has had just an extraordinary year as a redshirt freshman. He can do everything. He can kick, he can punt. He’s a very reliable receiver. But what’s amazing is how fast he is.

"We loved his skill watching him play (in high school). We loved that he was a basketball player. We knew he was an extraordinary athlete. What really surprised us was his top-end speed.”

Barnett wasn’t sure about that either until he faced last year’s vaunted Ferris State defense in practice.

“It kind of helped determine if I was going to be fast in the college level,” he said. “I’m still not the fasted guy on the field all the time, but I can hold my own.”

Barnett and Bell spoke this week about the connection between the Lansing players, those “Ls” they make with their hands, “Representing the Lansing area,” Barnett said. 

“Every time Sy comes up to the sideline, I come up to him, ‘That’s how we do it in Lansing,’” Bell said. “If Parker makes a sack, ‘That’s how we do it in Lansing.’ The bond is there. All four of us.”

They’re all part of a larger Ferris State football brotherhood, one that can taste a title that eluded them a year ago, when they lost in the quarterfinals in heartbreaking fashion.

“We’ve been working our tails off. Since Day 1 last year after losing to Harding,” Barnett said.

“We’ve been planning for this day for dang near a whole year.”

Contact Graham Couch at gcouch@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @Graham_Couch.

Division II National Championship

Ferris State vs. Valdosta State

When: 4 p.m. ET Saturday

Where: McKinney, Texas

TV: ESPNU