Ice dust settles

Ferris student section says Yost fans can't compare

By Joe Smith

Daily Sports Writer

BIG RAPIDS - A sign in the Ferris State student section proclaims, "If you can't run with the Big Dawgs, stay on the porch."

This is the attitude of the intense, possibly insane fans that reverberate the boards at Ewigleben Arena - often getting into the heads of the opponents with their uncanny antics and vulgarity that make Yost's fans seem like they're rated "PG."

"It's definitely a hard place to play," Michigan freshman Andy Burnes said. "You've got to drown them out and play your game."

Much like many arenas of smaller schools in the CCHA, Ewigleben makes up for its lack of capacity (2,457) with the placement of the stands - literally putting them directly into the action.

"Its like they're right on top of you," Ferris State senior captain Jim Dube said. It's like they're breathing down your neck. I'm sure some teams get intimidated coming in here, with the noise of the boards shaking."

But it wasn't always this way.

The tradition started off in an unlikely setting - a football game.

At a frigid and snowy football Saturday in 1995, Ferris State hockey coach Bob Daniels noticed five diehard Bulldog fans with their shirts off and faces painted - and something clicked in his head.

"I just went up to them and asked them if they could bring this same type of energy to the ice arena," Daniels said.

In a brief meeting in his office, Daniels started the group off with some season tickets and a couple jerseys, and from there it grew into an actual student organization.

"We just try to make it go nuts," Ferris State senior Joe Crawford said. "We want to make everyone go wild and have a good time."

Crawford is the president of the Ferris State Sports Supporters, which entails about 35 "alcohol free" fans who raise money through fundraisers to follow the team and give the "Dawg Pound" national notoriety.

With the help of an adviser, the group rented a 15-passenger van to make the trip on Friday night to Yost Ice Arena, comparing itself to arguably the best student section in the nation.

"We were at Yost last night and we weren't very impressed with their student section," Crawford said. "They didn't have very good cheers and we think ours are better."

Like Yost, the "Dawg Pound" features a pep band mixed in with the students, along with many similar chants to the Yost crazies. They even boast a separate rendition of "Hail to the Victors" - only in this altered and vulgar version, Michigan is certainly not the "leaders and best."

"Its the best student section in this league for sure," Ferris State defenseman Christian Schroder said. "They might be the rudest, but every team hates them, and hates coming to play here."

Those who especially regret coming into Ewigleben are opposing goalies, whom the "Dawg Pound" greets with taunts and chants. But Ferris States' goalie Vince Owen doesn't seem to mind, as it serves as redemption for what he is subjected to at Yost.

With his frustration reaching a boiling point on Friday, Owen banged his stick against the Yost glass after being subjected to repeated chants of "Ugly Goalie."

"From what I went through last night it was good to have a little payback," Owen said. "What comes around goes around."

Vulgar or not, the "Dawg Pound" gives Ferris State an intimate home-ice advantage that other larger universities can't offer.

After the bench clearing brawl on Saturday night, the Bulldog cheering section shared plenty of high-fives and embraces with the team, who was triumphantly making its way into the locker room.

"With our school being smaller, about 8,000 students, it's more intimate than other schools," Daniels said. "There's a lot more interaction between the athletes and the students on campus."

DANNY MOLOSHOK/Daily

Michigan goaltender Josh Blackburn was subject to the riggors of Ferris State's "Dawg Pound" in Saturday's 5-4 loss.