1st & Goal: Week 7 Preview
October 8, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The sun sets a little earlier as we move toward mid-October – this year allowing Friday Night Lights to shine as an even more present reminder that teams are enjoying an opportunity to play during an otherwise topsy-turvy fall.
This weekend begins the second half of the shortened regular season, and 2020’s storylines are beginning to take shape – with a number of league title contenders hoping to write in key details over the next two days.
Below is a look at games of particular note in every corner of Michigan – not including a handful played Thursday night, including key southwestern matchups between Centreville and Mendon and Kalamazoo United and Watervliet. Find scores for those and the schedule as we know it, and then results this weekend as they’re reported – via the MHSAA Score Center.
This week’s broadcast schedule includes 55 varsity football games on MHSAA.tv; click the link for listings.
Bay & Thumb
Port Huron Northern (2-0) at Port Huron (3-0)
The last three meetings between these neighbors were decided by six, three and seven points, and this could be a similar classic with the Macomb Area Conference Blue title on the line. The Huskies are riding a three-game regular-season winning streak in the series, but have played just two games this season and won both by seven or fewer points. They’ll have to contend with a Port Huron defense that has given up only a combined 35 points over three wins and won a playoff rematch with Northern in 2019.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Saginaw Swan Valley (2-1) at Freeland (2-1), Clare (3-0) at Gladwin (2-1), Cass City (3-0) at Unionville-Sebewaing (2-1), Richmond (1-2) at North Branch (3-0).
Greater Detroit
Clarkston (3-0) at Lake Orion (2-0)
The Wolves are coming into this matchup off a come-from-behind overtime win over West Bloomfield, avenging a 2019 loss. Clarkston can avenge another tonight after falling to the Dragons 55-21 a year ago. Because of various cancelations, the Oakland Activities Association Red schedule has become unbalanced – but a Clarkston win would put it at 4-0 in the league, while a Lake Orion win would seem to give the Dragons a one-game edge on the other challengers with West Bloomfield still coming up Week 9.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Orchard Lake St. Mary's (1-2) at Detroit Catholic Central (3-0), Grosse Pointe South (2-1) at Clinton Township Chippewa Valley (2-1), Milan (2-1) at New Boston Huron (3-0). SATURDAY DeWitt (3-0) at Warren De La Salle Collegiate (1-2).
Mid-Michigan
Hopkins (3-0) at Belding (3-0)
The Ottawa-Kent Conference circles into Ionia County with Belding, and the Black Knights have an opportunity to bring a league title east with a win tonight clinching at least a share of the Silver championship. Hopkins has won the teams’ last two meetings, including last season’s 32-6. Defense could make this one much closer as the Vikings have given up 10 points over three games and Belding has allowed only 29.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Fowlerville (2-1) at Mason (3-0), Lake Odessa Lakewood (2-1) at Olivet (3-0), Northville (2-1) at Hartland (2-1). SATURDAY Breckenridge (2-1) at Carson City-Crystal (1-0).
Northern Lower Peninsula
Muskegon Catholic Central (3-0) at Manistee (3-0)
Tonight’s winner clinches a share of the Lakes 8 Athletic Conference championship. The Crusaders are seeking their first since 2017 and enter this title decider having outscored their first three opponents by a combined 110-18. MCC also defeated Manistee 49-0 a year ago, but the Chippewas have been on a roll in 2020 – they’ve already equaled their 2019 win total and got a nice nonleague boost downing Harbor Springs 47-20 a week ago.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Frankfort (1-2) at Harbor Springs (2-1), Traverse City West (2-1) at Gaylord (1-2), Cadillac (2-1) at Petoskey (1-2), Evart (1-2) at Lake City (1-2).
Southeast & Border
Marshall (1-2) at Parma Western (3-0)
This should be a much better matchup than records would indicate. Western is off to an excellent start, with most notably its opening-night win over Hastings looking better and better with every Saxons victory. But Marshall isn’t a down-and-out 1-2 team – the Redhawks lost to reigning Interstate 8 Athletic Conference champion Jackson Lumen Christi by just a point, then to 2019 runner-up Coldwater by eight before getting on the board with last week’s big win over Jackson Northwest. The Panthers have won the last two meetings, but last year in a close one 14-13.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Hillsdale (2-1) at Brooklyn Columbia Central (2-1), Britton Deerfield (1-2) at Erie Mason (3-0), Riverview Gabriel Richard (3-0) at Manchester (2-1), Springport (1-0) at Reading (2-1).
Southwest Corridor
Paw Paw (3-0) at Vicksburg (2-1)
The Red Wolves have opened by outscoring their first three opponents by a combined 136-7. But these next three weeks will provide a greater measuring stick after the team finished 10-2 last season and 8-3 the year before. First up is Vicksburg, which hasn’t given up a point since falling to reigning Wolverine Conference champion Edwardsburg in the season opener. Then comes Detroit Country Day before Paw Paw finishes the regular season against the Eddies in what could decide the league title – although Vicksburg can still have a say by coming up big tonight.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY St. Joseph (3-0) at Stevensville Lakeshore (2-1), Comstock (2-1) at Buchanan (3-0), Delton Kellogg (1-2) at Saugatuck (2-1), Coldwater (3-0) at Battle Creek Harper Creek (1-2).
Upper Peninsula
Gladstone (2-0) at Kingsford (2-1)
The Braves have been one of the most intriguing stories of this abbreviated season, for reasons covered a few times on this site over the last two weeks. And Gladstone would seem like the league favorite as it begins Great Northern Conference play tonight – but up first is Kingsford, which owns a 21-game winning streak in the series. Kingsford fell to Marquette 10-0 last week, but could shake things up among the Upper Peninsula’s best by running that streak to 22 tonight.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Marquette (2-1) at Menominee (2-1), Benzie Central (2-1) at Sault Ste. Marie (2-1), Ishpeming Westwood (2-1) at L'Anse (1-2), Negaunee (2-1) at Bessemer Gogebic (0-2).
West Michigan
Byron Center (3-0) at Lowell (3-0)
This is the kind of game the Red Arrows surely have been looking forward to for a few seasons as they’ve built back up into league contenders. The O-K White title could eventually come down to this matchup, as new league member Byron Center – last year’s Green champ – is riding a 13-game regular-season winning streak and coming off a major success last week against Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central. Lowell has proven itself with a win over East Grand Rapids – and another tonight would be a major step toward a possible first league title since 2016.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Grand Rapids South Christian (3-0) at Cedar Springs (2-1), Newaygo (2-1) at Reed City (3-0), Muskegon (2-1) at Zeeland East (2-1), Jenison (2-1) at East Kentwood (1-2).
8-Player
Mayville (3-0) at Deckerville (3-0)
The Eagles have won 18 straight regular-season games and five straight league championships, but this matchup starts a challenging 2020 run. Mayville tonight, Genesee next week and Morrice in Week 9 all are still undefeated (Genesee plays Morrice this weekend). Mayville has been overshadowed a bit but quietly is coming off three straight playoff seasons and is averaging 62 points per game this fall as it looks to take the next step
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Morrice (3-0) at Genesee (3-0), Pellston (3-0) at Gaylord St. Mary (3-0), Munising (3-0) at Stephenson (3-0), New Buffalo (3-0) at Bridgman (2-1).
PHOTO by Robert Batzloff.
Bedford Follows Mifsud's Hall-of-Fame Formula to 7-0 Start, SEC Red Title Game
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
October 15, 2026
The rumors of Dave Mifsud living across the street from Temperance Bedford High School or being able to see the school from his kitchen window are greatly exaggerated.
Mifsud, in his first year coaching the Kicking Mules, actually lives about five minutes from the stadium. And, no, he can’t see the glow from the Friday night stadium lights from his house.
All joking aside, Mifsud may have found the perfect spot to continue his hall of fame career. After stops at Dearborn, Parma Western, Monroe and Brownstown Woodhaven, Mifsud took over the Bedford program in January and has the Mules off to a remarkable 7-0 start heading into Friday night’s Southeastern Conference showdown with powerhouse Saline.
“I feel like I'm at home right now,” Mifsud said this week. “I feel working and coaching at Bedford, being around this community, I feel like I'm at home.”
The funny part is, he wasn’t looking for one.
Mifsud said he moved to Temperance about five years ago to be closer to his son and three grandchildren in Toledo. He became the head coach at Brownstown Woodhaven and thought he had found his last coaching stop.
“When I took the Woodhaven job, I said, ‘This is it – I’m not going to change jobs again.’ But I put a disclaimer on there – and that was unless the Bedford job opened up.”
This past offseason, it did.
Mifsud said the distance driving to and from Woodhaven was the difference.
“I was driving 39 miles each way to work and spending an awful lot of time in the car,” he said. “I didn’t get to enjoy as many community events as I wanted to be involved in, even just going to basketball games or baseball games and things like that. It was just too far from home. So, this job was definitely a big attraction to me.”
He was hired.
By no means was he taking over a bad program. Quite the opposite. Bedford has been a perennial playoff team – they’ve qualified 14 times since 2009 – and contended among the top half of the SEC Red most of those years.
When Mifsud arrived, however, he had a blank slate. He had to bring in an almost entirely new football staff, overhaul the offense, and create a new-look defense.
“I spent hours and hours and lots of late, late nights interviewing coaching candidates,” he said. “I didn’t really know any of them ahead of time. There was one coach, Sean Stephens, that I had met and talked to a couple of times, but really, I didn’t know any of them.
“The foundation was, the thing that I started off explaining to each and every one of them, was my philosophy and what my goals were and where I was coming from. I wanted them to know how we were going to treat the kids and treat the program.”
Football, he said, teaches great life skills and life lessons.
“Our No. 1 goal is for the kids to have the best memories and the most positive memories from their high school days as being part of the football program,” he said.
He hired coaches from Toledo and the Downriver area, a former Bedford player and one coach who was on a previous Bedford staff. He named a football operations coordinator to handle things like media requests and statistics.
The offense, he said, is a combination of all of the offenses he’s run over the years while building a solid resume at Dearborn and Parma Western.
“We adapted and evolved a little,” he said. “I think we’ve cleaned up some of the things we were doing at Woodhaven.
His defense was constructed with the help of Mike Parker, who had coached at Toledo Whitmer, one of the largest schools in northwest Ohio.
The formula has worked wonders. The 7-0 start is something even Mifsud didn’t see coming.
“Going into it, of course you have high hopes,” he said. “I feel like there was the hope or possibility of being 7-0, but there was also this reality that we could be 3-4 or 4-3. You just don’t know how games are going to play out and how kids are going to respond.”
The biggest win was probably the first, a 20-13 victory over Sterling Heights Stevenson.
“The kids played their hearts out that game, and a really great win,” he said.
What’s followed have been six more in much the same fashion.
“We’ve continued on with the thinking that we just need to go 1-0 each week,” he said. “We’ve had to battle and compete in each game.”
Not only did Mifsud have to create a new coaching staff, but few of last season’s ball carriers were back this fall. One who might have been expected to be a starting running back, for example, transferred to an Ohio school. Other players moved positions and into new roles.
Masyn Moran has emerged as the top ball carrier with 636 yards and 12 touchdowns over seven games. Luke Whetstone has thrown for 841 yards while completing 64 percent of his passes. He’s also rushed for more than 500 yards. Jaxson Lestock has 20 catches for more than 300 yards. The Mules offense has been balanced with 263 rushes and 100 passes.
Bedford’s 7-0 start is the first for the program since 2013 and just the third in school history. Mifsud said the same formula that got Bedford to this point is what he plans on using this week against the also-undefeated Hornets. The winner will own the SEC Red title outright.
“There are some really good kids at Bedford, and they have bought into and committed to the new coach and system,” he said. “The school community has been awesome.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a news and sports reporter at the Adrian Daily Telegram and the Monroe News for 30 years, including 10 years as city editor in Monroe. He's written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. He is now publisher and editor of The Blissfield Advance, a weekly newspaper. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Temperance Bedford football coach Dave Mifsud instructs player Brady Boisselle during a game this season. (Middle) Mifsud monitors the action from the sideline. (Photos by Jaymee Beard/Temperance Bedford athletics.)