11-Player Football Semis Sites UPDATED

November 16, 2014

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Sites and game times have been announced for the MHSAA Football 11-player Semifinals.

Friday's 8-player Final will kick off at 7 p.m. Friday at Greenville High School, with Cedarville and Lawrence both making their first 8-player championship game appearances.

Below are sites for the 11-player games; all are 1 p.m. Saturday unless noted, with Wednesday updates in bold (click for all previous results, team records and playoff points from this fall):

DIVISION 1

East Kentwood vs. Clarkston at Brighton High School
Saline vs. Detroit Cass Tech at Troy Athens High School

DIVISION 2

Muskegon Mona Shores vs. Farmington Hills Harrison at Howell High School
Southfield vs. Warren DeLaSalle at Novi High School

DIVISION 3

Muskegon vs. Zeeland West at Greenville High School
Orchard Lake St. Mary's vs. New Boston Huron at Dearborn High School

DIVISION 4

Grand Rapids South Christian vs. Edwardsburg at Jackson High School, 3 p.m.
Lansing Sexton vs. Detroit Country Day at Fenton High School

DIVISION 5

Menominee vs. Grand Rapids West Catholic at Northern Michigan University Superior Dome, 11 a.m.
Lansing Catholic vs. Almont at Ortonville-Brandon

DIVISION 6

Boyne City vs. Ithaca at Midland Community Stadium, 2 p.m.
Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian vs. Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central at Battle Creek Harper Creek High School

DIVISION 7

Ishpeming vs. Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary at the Superior Dome, 2 p.m.
Pewamo-Westphalia vs. Detroit Loyola at Jackson High School, 11 a.m.

DIVISION 8

Munising vs. Beal City at the Superior Dome, 7 p.m. Friday
Muskegon Catholic Central vs. Harbor Beach at Alma College

PHOTO: Detroit Cass Tech defeated Clinton Township Chippewa Valley on Saturday to return to the Semifinals. (Photo courtesy of the Detroit Public School League.)

Bowl Games Are Bad

October 6, 2014

The idea to conduct one or more high school football bowl games in Florida in late December is a bad idea on every possible level of consideration. The idea will triumph only if greed trumps good sense.

A misguided marketing firm is trying again, this time attempting to bribe schools and state high school associations to bend or break their rules. A national media chain is trumpeting the plan to give some legs to its foolish national rankings. So there is some buzz about the plan, but no brains.

At a time when concerns rage for excessive head contact and concussions in football, no responsible party would for a single second think seriously about adding more football practices or games for school-age players.

Well before late December, high school football has ended, and winter sports are well underway with practices and competition that are far more important than several more weeks of practice and another game of football.

How could we ever allow one team to have an extra month more of football practice than all others? How is that fair to all the other football teams?

The answer is that it’s not fair to the football programs of other schools; it’s not fair to the other sports at the school involved; and it’s not healthy for the football players involved.