“There’s going to be a lot of coulda, woulda, shouldas on this thing.”

Grand Valley State University head coach Matt Mitchell could not have phrased it any better.

Mistakes and missed opportunities caught up to the GVSU football team Saturday afternoon against Michigan Technological University. The No. 1 Lakers started slow on the road, and the Huskies wasted no time capitalizing en route to a 20-17 upset.

“For everybody in our locker room – coaches and players – there’s going to be a lot of plays you can point back to,” said Mitchell, who suffered his first loss as a head coach.

Most of those plays will involve Phil Milbrath, Michigan Tech’s dynamic running back who ran wild through the heart of the GVSU defense. Milbrath, who missed last year’s meeting between the two teams due to injury, smoked the Lakers for 293 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 33 carries.

“I knew he was good. I told their coach in pre-game warm-up he’s the best tailback in the league,” Mitchell said. “We’ve faced the top two rushers in our league now – (Hillsdale College’s Joe) Glendening and Milbrath – and they’ve both gone for, I don’t know, close to 300. It’s a concern, obviously, for our rushing defense heading into next week.”

GVSU (8-1, 7-1 GLIAC) lost the battle at the line of scrimmage, which allowed Milbrath to easily break into the second and third levels of the defense before being touched. Missed tackles further hindered efforts to stop the electrifying running back.

“It’s disappointing,” said senior linebacker Justin Victor. “Defense clearly didn’t play as well as we were capable of … We knew Milbrath was a good back. We knew we needed to get him down. And, obviously, we were having trouble with that.”

Defense, however, was just one of the problems crippling the Lakers. After a great performance last week against Ferris State University, the special teams unit struggled again. The return team netted 34 yards on four kickoff returns while the punt team fumbled a snap that gave Michigan Tech possession deep in GVSU territory.

Offensive mistakes by the Lakers quickly set the momentum in Michigan Tech’s favor. On the game’s first play from scrimmage, senior quarterback Kyle McMahon’s pass tipped off of the hands of sophomore wide receiver Chris Crawford and was intercepted at GVSU’s 14-yard line. Milbrath scooted into the end zone on the next play to give the Huskies a lead 13 seconds into the opening quarter that they did not relinquish.

McMahon tossed another interception in the fourth quarter during GVSU’s comeback attempt.

“You can’t turn the ball over and expect to win, which is on me,” said McMahon, who passed for 269 yards. “I threw the two picks.”

The offensive line allowed five sacks, the highest total all season, and McMahon was rarely able to get comfortable in the pocket. The pressure also disrupted the GVSU ground attack, which tallied a season-low 16 yards rushing on 24 carries. Milbrath accounted for eight more yards on the ground than GVSU’s offense did in its entirety.

“They were able to get pressure on the passing game and able to obviously get some tackles for loss in the run game, which hasn’t happened much this year,” Mitchell said. “… It’s hard for me to sit here after the game and lay the blame of that loss on any particular one unit,” he added. “I think it was a complete loss by all three phases.”

Mistakes aside, the Lakers hung around in a game where they had no business. Michigan Tech’s own missed opportunities kept GVSU within striking distance, and McMahon rallied the offense for two huge touchdowns to junior wide receiver Jovonne Augustus to give the Lakers at least a shot at the victory. But the Lakers ran out of time to overcome the team’s earlier mistakes.

“I’m confident. I’m not too worried,” Victor said. “I know we’re going fix what we need to fix and pull through. I’m not scared or worried at all.”

The loss will certainly plummet GVSU in the national rankings, but more importantly, the Lakers must now take care of business during the final two weeks of the regular season. GVSU faces Northwood University at home Saturday before traveling to Saginaw Valley State University on Nov. 13. GVSU will need to win both games to guarantee a spot in the playoffs for the 10th consecutive year.

“I told the seniors if we lose another one, there’s a chance we’re not going to win the conference championship and chance we won’t make the playoffs,” Mitchell said. “Our backs are against the wall.”

[email protected]