No. 1 vs. No. 2 college football games in the regular season are rare, but when they happen, they are games that deserve total attention.

But what about when the two programs ranked in those spots are bitter rivals and two of Division II's most successful teams of the past 20 years?

Yeah, the dial just got turned up to 11.

Ferris State and Grand Valley State - the top- and second-ranked teams in the latest Division II coaches' poll, respectively - are set for their annual rivalry showdown, the Anchor-Bone Classic.

This year's meeting will take place at Top Taggart Field in Big Rapids, Michigan, home of the reigning national champion Bulldogs, and will get underway Saturday at 2 p.m. (Eastern).

With their campuses separated by just over an hour's drive, FSU and GVSU have two very, very talented football programs this season. 

With the knowledge that whomever wins immediately is going to be considered the nation's No. 1 team, there are sure to be plenty of fans of both teams packing Ferris State's stadium. Saturday can't come soon enough in The Great Lakes State.

Here's a look at what the teams will bring to the table ahead of their highly-anticipated clash this weekend. The game will be streamed live on FloFootball.

Ferris State Bulldogs

Record: 5-0

AFCA DII Coaches Poll rank: No. 1

The lowdown: The defending national champion and winner of 43 consecutive regular season games dating back to 2017, Ferris State - perhaps best-known over the course of its sports history for its success at the D-I level in ice hockey - has turned into a Division II football powerhouse under coach Tony Annese.

Annese has led the team to five Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles and over 100 games in Big Rapids, since the longtime Michigan high school coach was appointed to the role before the 2012 season. 

The Bulldogs have finished sixth or better in the AFCA poll in every season since 2015 (with the exception of 2020-2021, when COVID-19 prevented Ferris State from fielding a team) and have reached at least the semifinal round of the Division II Playoffs for four of the past five seasons the NCAA has held a postseason. 

If there's a D-II football equivalent to an Alabama or a Georgia at the moment, it's located in central Michigan. 

FSU cruised through its first four weeks this year, before getting a scare at then-No. 25 Saginaw Valley State last weekend, needing a short touchdown run from Carson Gulker with just over a minute left, plus a game-sealing safety, to keep its stellar winning streak intact by a 33-28 score. 

WATCH! Exciting field-level highlights from the Bulldogs' come from behind win over SVSU! 5-0! pic.twitter.com/O5IF7WSXYx

— Ferris Athletics (@ferrisathletics) October 12, 2022

Speaking of Gulker, the redshirt freshman has emerged as the Bulldogs' top rusher in a loaded backfield, despite his age. The Zeeland, Michigan, product has 299 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground this year, the latter ranking him second in the country in rushing scores and first overall among freshmen. 

An incredible eight players for Ferris State have tallied at least 10 carries through five games, keeping defenses guessing and forcing personnel to stop fresh players constantly, but the Bulldogs' defense probably is what will carry them to another deep playoff run. 

FSU allows just 12.6 points a game and ranks in the top 10 nationally in both rushing and passing defense, anchored by a gnarly pass rush that has an All-America candidate in junior defensive end Caleb Murphy, whose 12.5 sacks through five games leads the country for an individual by over three sacks. 

Additionally, Ferris State's recent owning of its archrival should grant it a bit of confidence going into what likely is the Bulldogs' biggest regular-season matchup in years. FSU holds a six-game winning streak over the Lakers, including twice last year - once in the regular season and once in the second round of the Division II Playoffs en route to the Bulldogs' first football national championship. 

Grand Valley State Lakers

Record: 6-0

AFCA DII Coaches Poll rank: No. 2

The lowdown: Before the sudden rise of Ferris State, Grand Valley State was the team to beat in the GLIAC - and arguably the entire country at the D-II level - for the better part of a decade. 

Only Northwest Missouri State (with six) has won more national titles than the Lakers (four), which they captured over a five-year period from 2002-2006, with coaches Brian Kelly (now the head coach at LSU) and Chuck Martin (now the head coach at Miami of Ohio). 

GVSU is a very strong program under coach Matt Mitchell, who took over the reins in 2010 and has since won well over 100 games, but the Lakers haven't returned to the D-II title game since, coming closest with semifinal appearances in 2013 and 2015. 

With all that being said, this may be Grand Valley State's best football team in over a decade. 

The Lakers have rocketed out to a 6-0 start for the first time since 2018, picking up three top-25 wins over Colorado School of Mines, Colorado State-Pueblo and Saginaw Valley State in the process, to establish itself as a threat to their Anchor-Bone rivals they hope will make the Bulldogs sweat - particularly considering that GVSU handled SVSU a little more handily, by a score of 29-10. 

The Lakers offense is electric, coming off a weekend blowout of non-conference foe American International, in which GVSU posted over 650 total yards. Tailback Tariq Reid rushed for 144 yards and three scores, despite only carrying the ball 10 times.

Highlights from the #2 Lakers' 45-3 victory at American International Saturday presented by @mistudentaid. #AnchorUp pic.twitter.com/E0YccB1YHD

— GVSU Football (@gvsufootball) October 9, 2022

Junior quarterback Cade Peterson is efficient with nearly a 60% completion percentage, 1,117 yards and an 8:1 touchdown to interception ratio thus far on the year, while sophomore wideout Jahdae Walker (19 catches, 388 yards, four touchdowns) is emerging into a star after playing sparingly on the field a season ago. 

But, make no mistake about it, this year's regular-season showdown against Ferris State is going to be a defensive stare down, in which whatever team blinks first might be on the losing sideline. 

GVSU's 11.6 points allowed per game is fifth in the country, as eight players have recorded an interception on the year, giving the Lakers plenty of ballhawks meant to cause disruption downfield and make quarterbacks' and receivers' lives that much more difficult. 

The stakes can't really be clearer for GVSU - beat Ferris State for the first time in seven tries, and it'll be the nation's No. 1-ranked team and the new favorite to win a national championship. 

For a historic program that has gone a little while, by its standards, without a national title, that may be all the motivation the Lakers need.