1st & Goal: Finals in Review
January 28, 2021
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
With absolute certainty, we can say this recently-concluded football season was like no other during the nearly 100-year history of the MHSAA.
But after just more than five months, and amid COVID-19, it was played to completion – with 8-Player Finals on Jan. 16 at Brighton’s Legacy Center and 11-Player Finals Jan. 22-23 at Ford Field in Detroit.
Second Half again covered all 10 championship games, with quick recaps and links (click on the game scores) to those stories below followed by notations of performances entered into the MHSAA Finals record book and a report on some of the biggest and best stories to emerge from the championship weekends. See also below highlights from State Champs Sports Network.
Finals in Review
11-Player Division 1: West Bloomfield 41, Davison 0
Led by Donovan Edwards’ 257 yards and three touchdowns rushing, West Bloomfield won its first Finals championship with a shutout of the 2019 champion Cardinals. Much more on Edwards below, but the Lakers’ effort on the other side of the ball can’t be overlooked – the shutout was the team’s sixth of the season.
11-Player Division 2: Muskegon Mona Shores 25, Warren De La Salle Collegiate 19
After winning its first championship in 2019, Mona Shores earned another in its encore led again by quarterback Brady Rose. Rose had started last season’s Final in place of an injured all-stater, but he was hardly unknown this time – and still ran for 154 yards and two touchdowns, including a 65-yard sprint during the fourth quarter that helped wrap things up for the Sailors.
11-Player Division 3: DeWitt 40, River Rouge 30
DeWitt finished off the longest football season in MHSAA history with its first championship, earning it against a River Rouge team looking to repeat after winning its first title in 2019. Quarterback play was on display in this finale as well, with DeWitt’s Tyler Holtz and Rouge’s Mareyohn Hrabowski putting up big numbers.
11-Player Division 4: Detroit Country Day 13, Cadillac 0
With youngest son Danny a major contributor, Country Day coach Dan MacLean led the Yellowjackets to their first Finals championship since 1999. Country Day kept first-time finalist Cadillac to just 166 total yards, and the shutout was the Yellowjackets’ third straight.
11-Player Division 5: Grand Rapids Catholic Central 48, Frankenmuth 21
The Cougars added their fourth championship in five seasons, this one their first in Division 5 after winning previously in Division 4. GRCC quarterback Joey Silveri accounted for six touchdowns in a Final for the second-straight season as his team built a big early lead against the first-time finalist Eagles.
11-Player Division 6: Montague 40, Clinton 14
Strong quarterback play and a father-son connection both came into play in Division 6 as well as senior Drew Collins led dad Pat’s team to its first Finals championship since 2009. What Drew said after told the story of the entire season restart: “Everybody on this football team, coaches, players, trainers – everybody on this football team loves high school football. I love high school football. I love these coaches. I love my friends on the team. I love everybody on the team. I love the community. It’s bittersweet when you win a state championship when you’re a senior because it’s all over.”
11-Player Division 7: New Lothrop 42, Traverse City St. Francis 35
The Hornets’ Julius Garza put up one of the most impressive individual performances of the weekend, scoring three ways for a total of four touchdowns. New Lothrop got up early and then held off a St. Francis comeback to claim its second championship in three seasons.
11-Player Division 8: Centreville 22, Ubly 0
Centreville’s shutdown defense put together one more awe-inspiring performance to help the Bulldogs’ to their first championship. Centreville ran its state-best points-allowed-per-game average to 2.9 with its seventh shutout in 10 games played.
8-Player Division 1: Adrian Lenawee Christian 47, Suttons Bay 0
The Cougars put an exclamation point on a dominating first season of 8-player football with their first Finals championship in the sport, either format. Lenawee Christian not only performed well offensively but held Suttons Bay to 52 yards total. The Norsemen finished Division 1 runners-up for the second-straight season.
8-Player Division 2: Powers North Central 70, Portland St. Patrick 48
The Jets claimed their third championship in what was the highest-scoring 8-player championship game in the decade-long MHSAA Finals history of this format. More on that below, and also on North Central quarterback Luke Gorzinski and St. Patrick quarterback Connor Cross, who were among those to put up giant numbers. The Jets also feature a father/son combo, with Luke the son of head coach Leo Gorzinski.
Records Report
As one might imagine, the highest-scoring game in 8-Player Finals history was filled with record book accomplishments. North Central’s 70 points were the 8-Player Finals record for one team, and the combined 118 points were 19 more than the previous record set in Peck’s 67-32 win over Rapid River in 2013. The teams’ 933 combined total yards ranks third on that 8-Player Finals list, while North Central’s 22 first downs was tied for second and St. Patrick’s 21 first downs ranked fourth. Neither team punted, making for another first in 8-player championship games. The game was not only the highest-scoring 8-Player Final, but the third-highest scoring 8-player game in MHSAA history (including regular season), missing tying that record by only six points.
Also as noted above, all-state quarterback play was on display for both 8-player Division 2 finalists. North Central QB Luke Gorzinski totaled the second-most rushing yards, 299, in an 8-Player Final, and with 156 yards passing set the total offense record at 455. St. Patrick QB Connor Cross, with 397 total yards, is fourth on that list. Cross’s 374 passing yards were second-most in an 8-Player Final, as were his six passing touchdowns, and he earned the first listings with 25 completions and 38 pass attempts. Shamrocks receiver Shane Cook, meanwhile, set the record with 13 receptions for the second-most receiving yardage, 179. North Central as a team finished with the third-most rushing yards, 373 on 37 attempts, and third-most rushing touchdowns with six. St. Patrick as a team was second for team passing yards and touchdowns.
Gorzinski wasn’t the only offensive star for the Jets; teammate Wyatt Raab finished with the third-most points scored in an 8-Player Final, 32, on four touchdowns, three two-point conversions and a safety. Gorzinski did finish with the fourth-most points, 28, on four touchdowns and two two-point conversions. Both made the total touchdowns list with four apiece.
The 8-Player Division 1 Final made the record book as well, in two categories. Lenawee Christian as a team defense posted the lowest number of yards allowed, just 52. And Cougars quarterback Landon Gallant also made the total offense list with 326 yards – 59 rushing and 267 passing.
New Lothrop’s Julius Garza was among individual standouts from the 11-Player Finals, tying for fourth with 26 points scored – on four touchdowns and a two-point conversion – and also tying for fourth for touchdowns in a game, in Division 7.
West Bloomfield’s Jake Ward made all three kicking lists for 11-player, tying for third with two field goals in a game, ranking fourth for longest with a 45-yarder, and making the extra points list with five in the Division 1 Final. Grand Rapids Catholic Central’s Jack Barlow tied for fourth on that extra points list with six in the Division 5 game.
The Lakers’ Donovan Edwards was another of the stars of the weekend, with his 257 yards rushing ranking eighth all-time for an 11-Player Final – and while coming on just 14 attempts in Division 1.
Montague’s Drew Collins made the 11-player passing yards list with 244, coming on 15 completions in the Division 6 game. Three of those went for touchdowns to teammate Samuel Smith, who tied the record held by nine others for touchdown catches in an 11-Player Final.
DeWitt quarterback Tyler Holtz tied for fifth on the passing touchdowns list with four in Division 3. Opposing quarterback Mareyohn Hrabowski from River Rouge made the total yardage list with 321 – 94 rushing and 227 passing. New Lothrop’s Cam Orr also made the total yardage list with 344 – 122 rushing and 222 passing.
While quarterbacks starred in many cases, the run game was hardly left behind. In addition to Edwards’ performance for West Bloomfield, Clinton had the fifth-most rushing attempts in 11-player championship game history with 65, for 358 yards. Clinton also tied the record with just one pass attempt, with West Bloomfield tying for fifth on that list with two throws. Those two and Cadillac all tied the 11-Player Finals record by recording zero completions – they brought that all-time list to 21 teams that didn’t complete a pass in an 11-player title game.
Grand Rapids Catholic Central in Division 5 also became the 28th 11-player finalist to go an entire game without punting.
The Division 6 Clinton/Montague matchup also finished as one of the least-penalized in MHSAA 11-Player Finals history. The two teams combined for just 10 penalty yards, coming on one Clinton penalty. Montague was not penalized in the game.
Stories Behind the Scores
The Longest Season: Due to COVID-19, this season started on time, stopped, restarted, stopped again in mid-November, and restarted one more time with rapid testing the final week of December with playoffs ending over two weekends in mid-January. There are many reasons to want to forget the last year, and many much sadder circumstances. But the perseverance of all Fall athletes and families, coaches, administrators and support staff; along with the testing program provided by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, made for a memorable story that surely will be recalled for years to come.
First finishing 1st: West Bloomfield in 11-Player Division 1, DeWitt in Division 3 and Centreville in Division 8, and Adrian Lenawee Christian in 8-Player Division 1 all won their first MHSAA Finals in this sport. Cadillac in Division 4 and Frankenmuth in Division 5 made their first championship game appearances.
Edwards’ excellent ending: Edwards was slated to join University of Michigan’s football program as an early enrollee in January. But first, he wanted to finish his high school season, and career, with the Lakers. He led them to their first championship, with one of the top rushing performances in Finals history, and as arguably the biggest headliner from the weekend at Ford Field – likely gaining a few more fans along the way as well.
Many ways to win: As noted above, defense still works – four of 10 Finals were shutouts, and Centreville’s season-long performance was incredible. Also noted above, champions won both running and passing. But a final fun note on offense – seven of 10 champions this season scored 40 or more points in their championship games. That’s compared to two in 2019, five in 2018 and five in 2017.
(Click for more photos from Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)
Lansing Catholic Comes Back to Claim D5
November 30, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
DETROIT – Zach Gillespie was just part of what was out of rhythm for Lansing Catholic during the first half of Saturday’s Division 5 Final against Almont.
The senior quarterback headed into the break 2-of-6 passing for 16 yards with an interception, and had eight carries for nine yards – not at all characteristic for a standout who had thrown for nearly 2,500 yards and run for more than 550 through his first 13 games this season.
But somehow, the Cougars and Raiders were tied. And that meant Lansing Catholic was in position to win.
Gillespie stormed back with a big second half, the offense meeting halfway a defense that had kept the Cougars in the game, and the lessons of comebacks earlier this season made the difference in Lansing Catholic finishing a 31-17 win over Almont to earn its first Finals championship since 1985.
“I probably shouldn’t say that with these guys here, but I don’t think this team is the most talented team from top to bottom that we’ve ever had,” said Cougars coach Jim Ahern, who also brought Lansing Catholic to Ford Field in 2011 and 2014. “But I’ll tell ya, I don’t think I’ve had a team that has more chemistry and more heart than this group of kids did. We’ve been behind in a lot of games this year and they never quit, and I think that’s why.”
They call it a “21-7 mentality” and it was born from a loss this season, the sixth-straight over four seasons to rival Portland.
The Cougars (13-1) trailed in that Week 5 matchup 21-7 at halftime, and lightning forced the second half to be played the next day. Lansing Catholic came back to make the final score 21-20 – but even in defeat, the message hit home that the team can change the course of a game over the final two quarters. (And Lansing Catholic went on to defeat Portland 21-0 in the District Final.)
“We write it on the board at halftime – 21-7 mentality in the second half – and I think that was a big turning point coming out firing that game,” Cougars senior linebacker Sam Edwards said. “We’ve just carried that with us since, and it’s made us better.”
This time, as in many before, Gillespie led the way. He found his footing and touch after the break, completing 9-of-17 passes for 171 yards and two touchdowns over the final two quarters and running for two scores as well.
Almont carried a 17-7 lead into the final two minutes of the third quarter. But Lansing Catholic scored 24 unanswered points to finish the game, with Gillespie shutting the door with a four-yard scoring run with 1:39 to play.
That followed touchdown passes of seven yards to senior Vince Salquist and 23 to senior Mitch Raphael, a soccer player last year who showed some delicate footwork getting one down before exiting the side of the end zone. Raphael’s score put the Cougars ahead 24-17 with 3:41 to play.
“We just knew. We knew we could come out and score with anyone,” Gillespie said. “We knew we had a couple three-and-outs, and it wasn’t going our way. We kinda just had all gas, no brakes, and weren’t just satisfied with going up seven there. We wanted to score again.
“I don’t think I could’ve had a worse first half. Especially in the state championship game, I went in at halftime and I was pretty down on myself. I (restored) the confidence in myself that I can make the throws, and I’ve got great playmakers that are going to catch it. Our line blocked pretty good in the second half … and everyone just got open for me and I was able to deliver.”
Almont (13-1) was making its first trip to the Finals for football, concluding an impressive run that saw it win on the road three of the first four weeks of the playoffs.
But the first half Saturday was frustrating, as the Raiders ended two drives throwing interceptions and a third giving up a fumble. The only first-half possession that didn’t end in a turnover finished with a touchdown.
Almont then scored on a field goal and touchdown on the first two possessions of the second half. But the Raiders threw another interception and fumbled the ball away again on the next two, allowing Lansing Catholic opportunities to catch up.
Senior Jack Paupert and junior Michael Lulgjuraj scored those Almont touchdowns, and Paupert ran 18 times for a team-high 78 yards. Senior Colby Schapman caught five passes for 80 yards. Senior Ryan Miller booted a 31-yard field goal to round out the team’s scoring.
Senior linebacker Jacob Hausmann with seven tackles led a defense that again this season measured up with the state’s best. The Raiders gave up just 11.6 points per game, holding teams below 15 per game for the sixth time in seven seasons. Lansing Catholic’s 31 points were the most surrendered by the Raiders since the 2017 playoffs.
“The backbone of our team is our defense. Coach (Ritchie) Feys does an excellent job preparing these guys, and these guys execut(e) the game plan,” Almont coach James Leusby said. “When we came out (after halftime) we were 0-0 ballgame, and we were going after it.”
Sophomore Alex Watters caught five passes for 107 yards for Lansing Catholic as Gillespie finished with 187 total through the air. Edwards had 19 tackles, recovered both fumbles and snagged an interception, and senior Daniel Magaway had 10 tackles as the Cougars locked down an offense that averaged 39.5 points this fall. Ahern directed the credit to assistants Kelly Carrier, Mike Doran and Pat Barner, who handle all of the defensive play-calling and made adjustments at halftime to slow down Almont’s outside running attack.
Ahern, meanwhile, claimed his first championship five decades after he began his head coaching career at Gobles in 1969. He spent more than three decades at Ithaca and came back from Florida in 2009 to take over at Lansing Catholic – going over 300 career wins this season and moving up to 11th on the in-state career list with a 301-152-6 record while coaching at those three Michigan high schools.
“When you get here and you don’t win, you don’t realize until I think months after that you had a great season. This is definitely a different feeling,” Ahern said.
“The message all week was let’s get him to 301,” Edwards said. “It means the world to me to be able to put on the jersey and play for this guy. It’s kinda bittersweet that I won’t get to do it again, but to end it on a high – there’s no one that deserves this more than this guy right here.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Lansing Catholic quarterback Zach Gillespie follows his blockers during Saturday’s Division 5 Final. (Middle) Mitch Raphael (7) helps bring down Almont’s Michael Lulgjuraj.