Lawrence's Schuman Sets Example for Well-Rounded Success
By
Pam Shebest
Special for MHSAA.com
December 14, 2022
LAWRENCE — If redshirting was a thing in high school, at least two coaches at Lawrence would stick that label on senior John Schuman.
“We don’t want to lose this kid ever,” said Derek Gribler, the Tigers’ first-year varsity football and baseball coach.
“If we could put a red shirt on this kid every year, we would.”
Athletic director John Guillean, who also coaches varsity basketball, agreed.
“He is what we strive to have all our student-athletes achieve: high GPAs, multi-sport athletes, good, overall well-rounded human beings,” Guillean said.
Schuman has participated in five of the seven boys sports Lawrence sponsors.
As a freshman and sophomore, Schuman played football, wrestled, ran track and played baseball.
He had wrestled since he was 4, and went from the 119-pound weight class as a freshman to 145 the following year. That sophomore season he qualified for his Individual Regional. But as a junior, he traded wrestling for basketball.
“My older brother wrestled at Lawrence, so I would come to practices,” he said. “I quit for a couple years (in middle school) because I liked basketball, too. It was hard to do both. Obviously, in high school, I still struggled with choosing,” he added, laughing.
Guillean is thrilled Schuman made the switch.
“He’s 6-(foot-)4, he’s super athletic, defensively he’s a hawk, offensively he can put the ball in the bucket. But really, aside from his skills, just that positive attitude and that positive outlook, not just in a game, but in life in general, is invaluable,” the coach said.
Last season, Schuman earned honorable mention all-league honors in the Berrien-Cass-St. Joseph Conference, averaging 9.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game.
Lawrence left the BCS for the Southwest 10 Conference this year, joining Bangor, Bloomingdale, Hartford, Decatur, Comstock, Marcellus, Mendon, Centreville, White Pigeon and Cassopolis. Schuman and senior Tim Coombs will co-captain the Tigers, with Guillean rotating in a third captain.
At a school of fewer than 200 students, Schuman will help lead a varsity team with just nine – joined by seniors Andy Bowen and Gabe Gonzalez, juniors Christian Smith, Noel Saldana, Ben McCaw and Zander Payment, and sophomore Jose Hernandez, who will see time with the junior varsity as well using the fifth-quarter rule.
“I attribute a lot of (last year’s successful transition) to my coach, helping me get ready because it wasn’t so pretty,” the senior said. “But we got into it, got going, and my teammates helped me out a lot.”
Great anticipation
Gribler is one coach already looking ahead to spring sports after seeing what Schuman did during football season.
In spite of missing 2½ games with an injury, the wide receiver caught 50 receptions for 870 yards and 11 touchdowns.
“I just like the ability to run free, get to hit people, let out some anger,” Schuman laughed.
Gribler said the senior is “an insane athlete.
“On top of his athletic ability, how smart he is in the classroom (3.88 GPA), he helped mold the culture we wanted this year for football. He got our underclassmen the way we wanted them. He was a big asset in many ways.”
Schuman earned all-conference honors for his on-field performance in football as well.
“I would say that my main sport is football,” the senior said. “That’s the one I like the most, spend the most time on.”
In the spring, Schuman competed in both track and baseball, earning all-conference honors in both.
“Doing both is tough,” he said. “I have to say my coaches make it a lot easier for me. They help me a lot and give me the ability to do both, so I really appreciate that.
“Throughout the week you’re traveling every day, it seems like. Baseball twice a week and track, but it’s worth it.”
Schuman’s commitment is so strong that he made a special effort not to let his teammates down last spring.
“He qualified for state in the long jump and did his jumps up in Grand Rapids, then he drove all the way to Kalamazoo to play in the District baseball game,” Guillean said. “That speaks volumes about who this kid is. He did his jumps at 9 a.m. (but did not advance) and made it back to Kalamazoo for a 12:15 game.”
Big shoes to fill
As the youngest of four children of Mark and Gretchen Schuman, the senior was following a family tradition in sports.
Oldest brother Matthew played football, basketball and baseball as well as competed in pole vault and wrestling.
Middle bother Christopher competed in football, wrestling and baseball.
Sister Stephanie played basketball, volleyball and softball.
“I like to say they blazed a pretty good trail for me at this high school,” Schuman said.
As for feeling pressure to live up to his siblings, “I used to when I was younger, but now I feel like I’ve made my own way and done enough things to be proud of that I’m happy with it.”
His own way led him to achieve something none of the others did.
He was named the Tigers’ Male Athlete of the Year, just the third junior to earn the boys honor over the last 25 years.
“I was very honored to win that as a junior,” Schuman said. “There were good athletes in the grade above me. I guess hard work pays off.”
Guillean said while Schuman is “darn good at every sport here,” an athlete does not have to be a “top dog” in every sport.
“Learn how to take a back seat,” he said. “Learn how to be a role player. That will make you a better teammate and a well-rounded human being.
“Johnny has that work ethic, in the classroom, on the field, on the court, on the track. It doesn’t go unnoticed and, obviously, he’s reaping the benefits now.”
Pam Shebest served as a sportswriter at the Kalamazoo Gazette from 1985-2009 after 11 years part-time with the Gazette while teaching French and English at White Pigeon High School. She can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Calhoun, Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Lawrence’s John Schuman has participated in five varsity sports during his first 3½ years of high school. (Middle) Lawrence athletic director John Guillean. (Below) Lawrence football and baseball coach Derek Gribler. (Action photos courtesy of John Schuman; head shots by Pam Shebest.)
Gaffney Returns to Basketball Court for Opening Night, Continuing Incredible Recovery
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
December 5, 2025
Joe Gaffney was in a familiar spot Tuesday night when Charlevoix opened the basketball season at home against Ellsworth.
The all-state guard was in the starting line-up.
But as the game was wrapping up, the four-year starter was in an unfamiliar spot.
“He was the loudest one on the bench cheering,” said Charlevoix coach Anthony Troshak. “He was coaching, giving out reminders and that's awesome for a kid that normally, in the last three years, he's out there in crunch time. Instead, he's still like, ‘Hey, I can make an impact,’ and that was a really awesome thing to see.”
The fact Gaffney was in the game at all is arguably a miracle. Gaffney nearly lost his life this spring. He was in a car crash along with the entire Charlevoix boys golf team and coach Doug Drenth.
The team was on its way to spend the night at Crystal Mountain, returning from the first day of a two-day tournament at Arcadia Bluffs. Emergency personnel transported Gaffney, his coach and the entire golf team to Munson Medical Center. Gaffney sustained a ruptured diaphragm and shattered pelvis.
Gaffney had emergency surgery to repair his diaphragm April 27 and underwent a nine-hour surgery the next day. Munson Orthopedic Institute surgeons Michael McDonald and Matthew Schuch placed 76 screws in his pelvis and femur.
“The trauma team and the general surgeons are the ones who repaired his diaphragm, and they're the ones that saved his life – that wasn’t me,” Dr. McDonald pointed out. “Joe’s done a lot of hard work. All credit to him, because it's tough to go through what he went through and come to where he has.”
Gaffney spent nine days in Munson’s Intensive Care Unit and then stayed in Munson’s Mary Free Bed rehab facility until May 9. He was non-weight bearing until July 9.
Many wondered if Gaffney would ever get back on the basketball court. Few thought it would be as early as the opening night win over Ellsworth. Gaffney played just more than two quarters and hit two of three shots from 3-point land. He also contributed two rebounds before sitting out the Rayders’ all-out press in the fourth quarter – but instead led the bench’s support.
“That’s the type of person he is,” Troshak said. “He's one of the most, if not the most determined individuals I've ever come across.”
The crash and initial rehabilitation left Troshak thinking he’d likely have his star guard available only for something like a Senior Night appearance. But incredible community and medical support, and Gaffney’s hard work gradually changed Troshak’s hope.
“In the summer, I thought it might be maybe in January or February, and maybe a couple of minutes here and there,” Troshak said. “I never dreamed it would be game one – that's just how hard he's worked.”
Gaffney never lost sight of getting back on the court. He started physical therapy and occupational therapy in Traverse City three days a week until July and then transitioned closer to home for therapy in Charlevoix.
Gaffney was walking with a cane when he left Aug. 1 with his parents, Aaron and Karrie, for the Barwis Sports Performance Center in Deerfield Beach, Fla. He underwent therapy five days a week in Florida before returning to Charlevoix on Sept. 22.
His parents took turns flying back and forth to Florida every two weeks. They carried with them tremendous community support and prayers. When he left Florida Gaffney was able to jog about 100 yards. Therapy continued in Charlevoix, along with a home exercise program from Barwis.
“I had full confidence I would play again, and I didn't know exactly when,” Gaffney said. “As the season got closer, that date when I thought I could play got earlier and earlier until it was the first game. I really had confidence that this was going to happen very early on.”
Gaffney was aware of the tremendous support the community was providing him and the entire golf team. But his awareness was heightened further when he realized starters would soon be introduced and the national anthem was playing Tuesday night.
“I've heard the hundreds if not thousands of prayers for the whole golf team and everything and all the letters,” Gaffney said. “I could really feel all the prayers and just everything people had done. And, I would say the moment, the game meant a lot more to everybody watching than it did to me.”
The Charlevoix gym was filled with supporters bearing signs for Gaffney. The team – except Gaffney – wore “Team Joe” warm-up T-shirts. Gaffney wore a “Team Doug” warm-up T-shirt in honor of his golf coach Doug Drenth, who spent months recovering in the hospital and also was in the crowd for the first basketball game.
At least one supporter was unable to attend the game. Logistic problems prevented Dr. McDonald from fulfilling his intent to make the trip from Traverse City. The surgeon is amazed, but not surprised Gaffney returned for opening night.
“I think most probably would not have been able to do that,” McDonald said. “I think he put in the work, and he really had good community support that allowed him to do that. I think it's very, very impressive.”
Aaron Gaffney – who serves as superintendent for Ellsworth Community School – had thoughts on his mind from early conversations with McDonald as he watched his son get emotional before the contest. Seven months ago, Gaffney acknowledged, he didn’t think he’d see his son play basketball again. He also noted he never saw his son cry during those same seven months – until the tip-off neared.
“It was just great to see him back out there,” Aaron Gaffney said. “My wife asked the surgeon if he was ever going to walk again. He said, ‘Yeah, he's going to walk again.’ I asked him if he would ever play golf again, and the surgeon said, ‘Maybe.’ And then I asked him if he would ever run again, and he said, ‘Maybe.’”
The Gaffneys got answers Tuesday night as the Rayders started the season on a winning note. Talan Jacobs led Charlevoix with 12 points. Carter Greenacre added 11. Jason McNamara scored nine, and Peter Yanchulis chipped in seven.
Moments before the game, Gaffney returned a good luck charm his basketball coach had given him at a breakfast meeting as he was headed for Florida. It was bracelet bearing the words “Never Give Up.”
It was a gift Troshak’s brother had given him as he battled to recover from an eye injury he suffered while playing college basketball.
“I told Joe, ‘I want you to give this back to me when you check into a game, because in high school basketball you can’t wear bracelets,’” Troshak recalled.
Gaffney played Tuesday with empathy for the fans in attendance. The accident taught him more about the hard things going on in people's lives.
“The people there I could tell were there to support me, but there were probably people in that gym tonight that knew somebody or know somebody going through something themselves that was just as hard or harder than what I went through,” Gaffney said. “If people in the world can give them half the love or a quarter of the support that I got, I think that would just make this world a better place.”
Now that he is back on the court, the 1,000-point career milestone lies just ahead for Gaffney – he scored 952 heading into this weekend’s Will Lynch Invitational at Benzie Central. He’s happy about that but is more focused on his newer role. He is the only starter back from last year’s 16-8 team.
“That (1,000-point club) would definitely be a nice bonus, but I'm really just focused, trying to do my best to leave all the sophomores we have on the team with a little taste of what Charlevoix basketball is and what it feels like to win and what it feels like to be on the basketball team. I'm not the same player I was a year ago, but I can help mentor and lead these younger guys to be very successful when they become seniors.”
McDonald did watch a live stream of Tuesday night’s game. He’s making plans to attend another game this season.
Perhaps it will be the game Gaffney enters the 1,000-point club.
Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Charlevoix’s Joe Gaffney elevates on a jumpshot Tuesday in his team’s season opener against Ellsworth. (Middle) Gaffney works to get past an Ellsworth defender. (Below) Gaffney is interviewed by a local TV station after his return to the court. (Photos by In Motion Images.)