2014 Week 6 Football Playoff Listing
September 30, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Following is a list of Michigan High School Athletic Association football playing schools, displaying their win-loss records and playoff averages through the fifth week of the season.
Schools on this list are in enrollment order for 11-player teams, with 8-player teams ordered by playoff average. An asterisk (*) beside a record indicates a team has eight or fewer games scheduled. A caret (^) beside a school’s name indicates a team is one win away from playoff qualification.
Those schools with 11-player teams with six or more wins playing nine-game schedules, or five or more wins playing eight games or fewer, will qualify for the MHSAA Football Playoffs beginning Oct. 31. Schools with 5-4, 4-3 or 4-4 records may qualify if the number of potential qualifiers by win total does not reach the 256 mark. Schools with six or more wins playing nine-game schedules or five or more wins playing eight games or fewer may be subtracted from the field based on playoff average if the number of potential qualifiers exceeds the 256 mark.
Once the 256 qualifying schools are determined, they will be divided by enrollment groups into eight equal divisions of 32 schools, and then drawn into regions of eight teams each and districts of four teams each.
Those schools with 8-player teams will be ranked by playoff average at season’s end, and the top 16 programs will be drawn into regions of eight teams each for the playoff in that division, which also begins Oct. 31.
To review a list of all football playoff schools, individual school playoff point details and to report errors, visit the Football page of the MHSAA Website.
The announcement of the qualifiers and first-round pairings for both the 11 and 8-player playoffs will take place on Oct. 26 on the Selection Sunday Show on FOX Sports Detroit. The playoff qualifiers and pairings will be posted to the MHSAA Website following the Selection Sunday Show.
11-Player Playoff Listing
1. Macomb Dakota, 2814, 4-1, 79.200
2. Sterling Heights Stevenson, 2767, 4-1, 75.400
3. Clarkston ^, 2742, 5-0, 107.200
4. Grand Blanc, 2668, 4-1, 72.600
5. East Kentwood ^, 2592, 5-0, 91.200
6. Rockford, 2555, 4-1, 82.000
7. Clinton Township Chippewa Valley, 2538, 3-2, 60.400
8. Dearborn Fordson ^, 2411, 5-0, 91.200
9. Northville, 2298, 4-1, 69.600
10. Holland West Ottawa, 2293, 4-1, 79.000
11. Canton, 2289, 4-1, 75.800
12. Detroit Cass Tech ^, 2277, 5-0, 89.600
13. Brighton, 2133, 3-2, 55.800
14. Plymouth, 2116, 4-1, 66.400
15. Lapeer ^, 2112, 5-0, 89.600
16. Utica Ford, 2090, 3-2, 53.800
17. Hartland, 2007, 4-1, 78.400
18. Monroe, 1992, 4-1, 72.800
19. Grand Haven, 1960, 3-2, 57.400
20. West Bloomfield, 1929, 4-1, 72.800
21. Westland John Glenn, 1872, 3-2, 51.000
22. Warren Mott, 1870, 3-2, 60.200
23. Oxford, 1864, 4-1, 79.200
24. Ann Arbor Pioneer, 1857, 3-2, 53.800
25. Livonia Stevenson, 1848, 3-2, 49.000
26. Saline, 1844, 4-1, 77.933
27. Walled Lake Central, 1815, 4-1, 74.200
28. Romeo, 1770, 3-2, 58.400
29. Hudsonville, 1759, 3-2, 57.200
30. Waterford Mott, 1738, 4-1, 76.000
31. Rochester Hills Stoney Creek, 1711, 3-2, 55.800
32. Livonia Churchill ^, 1696, 5-0, 97.600
33. Grand Ledge, 1689, 3-2, 55.800
34. Waterford Kettering, 1610, 3-2, 52.400
35. Flint Carman-Ainsworth, 1568, 4-1, 70.800
36. Warren DeLaSalle, 1562, 3-2, 47.467
37. Detroit Western International, 1521, 3-2, 45.400
38. Detroit Martin Luther King ^, 1507, 5-0, 96.000
39. Walled Lake Western, 1502, 4-1, 72.600
40. Traverse City Central, 1490, 4-1, 78.600
41. Oak Park, 1486, 4-1, 74.400
42. Brownstown Woodhaven ^, 1484, 5-0, 96.000
43. Ypsilanti Lincoln, 1422, 3-2, 52.000
44. Caledonia, 1417, 3-2, 58.200
45. Midland, 1400, 3-2, 51.800
46. Portage Central *, 1384, 3-1, 63.000
47. Detroit Pershing, 1379, 3-2, 44.600
48. Southgate Anderson, 1374, 3-2, 50.800
49. Lansing Everett, 1364, 3-2, 53.800
50. Dearborn Edsel Ford, 1356, 3-2, 55.000
51. Wyandotte Roosevelt, 1351, 4-1, 75.800
52. Detroit East English, 1345, 4-1, 72.800
53. Portage Northern, 1345, 4-1, 78.400
54. Port Huron, 1336, 4-1, 79.200
55. Grosse Pointe North, 1310, 3-2, 58.400
56. Ypsilanti Community, 1300, 3-2, 56.600
57. Birmingham Brother Rice ^, 1298, 5-0, 97.600
58. North Farmington, 1296, 3-2, 50.200
59. Garden City, 1290, 3-2, 44.600
60. Battle Creek Lakeview *, 1278, 3-1, 75.000
61. Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills, 1275, 3-2, 47.200
62. Muskegon Mona Shores, 1274, 4-1, 82.200
63. Bay City Central, 1271, 3-2, 49.200
64. Birmingham Groves ^, 1270, 5-0, 86.400
65. Berkley ^, 1265, 5-0, 86.400
66. Flushing, 1260, 4-1, 78.600
67. Midland Dow ^, 1255, 5-0, 91.200
68. South Lyon ^, 1254, 5-0, 99.200
69. Southfield, 1239, 3-2, 57.400
70. Farmington Hills Harrison, 1212, 4-1, 79.000
71. Fenton ^, 1181, 5-0, 96.000
72. Farmington, 1178, 4-1, 72.600
73. Grand Rapids Northview, 1177, 3-2, 52.400
74. Warren Woods Tower ^, 1175, 5-0, 88.000
75. Muskegon ^, 1157, 5-0, 97.600
76. Lowell ^, 1145, 5-0, 86.400
77. Detroit Renaissance, 1144, 3-2, 45.800
78. Greenville, 1130, 4-1, 62.600
79. Gibraltar Carlson, 1129, 3-2, 52.600
80. Battle Creek Central, 1124, 3-2, 50.700
81. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern ^, 1113, 5-0, 86.400
82. Holland, 1109, 3-2, 52.000
83. Detroit Cody, 1096, 3-2, 44.400
84. Marquette, 1090, 4-1, 65.933
85. St. Johns ^, 1088, 5-0, 89.600
86. Byron Center, 1085, 4-1, 72.800
87. Allen Park, 1069, 4-1, 74.400
88. Auburn Hills Avondale, 1056, 3-2, 49.400
89. Orchard Lake St. Mary's ^, 1054, 5-0, 94.400
90. Mt. Pleasant, 1050, 3-2, 60.800
91. St. Joseph, 1028, 3-2, 58.600
92. East Grand Rapids, 986, 3-2, 57.600
93. Petoskey, 965, 4-1, 66.400
94. Trenton, 955, 3-2, 54.000
95. Romulus, 950, 4-1, 56.600
96. Riverview, 935, 4-1, 69.400
97. DeWitt ^, 930, 5-0, 91.200
98. Gaylord, 927, 4-1, 63.000
99. Linden, 921, 3-2, 51.000
100. Detroit Mumford, 919, 3-2, 47.400
101. Clio, 918, 3-2, 50.400
102. Cedar Springs, 910, 4-1, 65.800
103. Grand Rapids Christian, 895, 4-1, 74.400
104. Stevensville Lakeshore, 887, 4-1, 81.700
105. Niles, 885, 4-1, 66.200
106. Carleton Airport, 879, 3-2, 44.600
107. Coldwater ^, 876, 5-0, 70.400
108. Tecumseh, 869, 3-2, 57.200
109. New Boston Huron, 867, 4-1, 71.200
110. Warren Fitzgerald, 857, 3-2, 49.000
111. Zeeland West ^, 850, 5-0, 80.000
112. Dearborn Divine Child, 848, 4-1, 63.600
113. Bay City John Glenn, 847, 3-2, 43.200
114. Battle Creek Harper Creek, 845, 3-2, 44.400
115. St. Clair, 844, 4-1, 68.000
116. Edwardsburg, 839, 4-1, 67.800
117. Chelsea, 838, 4-1, 74.000
118. Detroit Old Redford, 837, 3-2, 44.000
119. Plainwell, 812, 4-1, 66.200
120. Marysville, 806, 3-2, 52.600
121. Spring Lake, 802, 3-2, 49.200
122. Detroit Denby, 800, 3-2, 58.800
123. Vicksburg, 794, 4-1, 67.800
124. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood, 790, 3-2, 41.000
125. Eaton Rapids, 773, 3-2, 45.800
126. Cadillac ^, 747, 5-0, 88.000
127. Goodrich, 737, 4-1, 68.000
128. Three Rivers, 722, 3-2, 50.600
129. Dearborn Heights Robichaud ^, 717, 5-0, 75.600
130. Yale, 716, 4-1, 56.600
131. Harper Woods Chandler Park Academy, 691, 3-2, 52.200
132. Detroit Country Day, 690, 3-2, 51.200
133. Muskegon Orchard View, 662, 4-1, 58.000
134. Williamston ^, 659, 5-0, 80.000
135. Paw Paw, 657, 3-2, 47.600
136. Lansing Sexton ^, 652, 5-0, 102.400
137. Whitehall ^, 644, 5-0, 70.400
138. Grosse Ile, 640, 3-2, 46.200
139. Kalamazoo Hackett, 635, 4-1, 54.800
140. Richmond, 630, 4-1, 69.600
141. Grand Rapids South Christian, 623, 3-2, 49.000
142. Wyoming Kelloggsville, 610, 3-2, 44.600
143. Wyoming Godwin Heights, 609, 4-1, 49.800
144. Saginaw Swan Valley ^, 602, 5-0, 70.400
145. Clawson, 589, 3-2, 40.800
146. North Muskegon, 577, 3-2, 38.200
147. Birch Run ^, 575, 5-0, 72.000
148. Remus Chippewa Hills ^, 567, 5-0, 81.600
149. Flint Powers Catholic, 553, 3-2, 57.400
150. Marine City ^, 553, 5-0, 78.400
151. Freeland ^, 549, 5-0, 78.400
152. Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, 545, 4-1, 53.600
153. Stanton Central Montcalm, 539, 3-2, 44.200
154. Portland, 538, 3-2, 50.800
155. Menominee ^, 532, 5-0, 83.867
156. Detroit University Prep, 530, 3-2, 46.000
157. River Rouge, 530, 4-1, 67.200
158. Frankenmuth, 528, 4-1, 60.000
159. Gladwin, 528, 4-1, 55.200
160. Ida ^, 527, 5-0, 70.400
161. Hopkins, 522, 4-1, 61.400
162. Grayling, 517, 3-2, 40.850
163. Lansing Catholic ^, 515, 5-0, 80.000
164. Almont ^, 512, 5-0, 73.600
165. Carrollton, 511, 3-2, 37.400
166. Newaygo, 506, 4-1, 61.600
167. Olivet, 505, 4-1, 53.000
168. Berrien Springs, 501, 3-2, 43.800
169. Muskegon Oakridge, 501, 4-1, 55.200
170. Onsted, 499, 4-1, 45.600
171. Chesaning, 480, 4-1, 56.800
172. Manistee, 479, 4-1, 53.400
173. Gladstone, 473, 3-2, 35.000
174. Stockbridge, 462, 4-1, 58.200
175. Reed City, 461, 4-1, 56.600
176. Leslie, 454, 3-2, 37.800
177. Clare, 445, 3-2, 43.200
178. Harrison ^, 444, 5-0, 62.400
179. Kingsley, 439, 3-2, 39.600
180. Grand Rapids West Catholic ^, 438, 5-0, 83.200
181. Lakeview, 426, 4-1, 48.000
182. Beaverton, 422, 3-2, 36.200
183. Calumet, 419, 3-2, 48.133
184. Jonesville, 419, 3-2, 39.800
185. Jackson Lumen Christi ^, 417, 5-0, 76.800
186. Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central ^, 417, 5-0, 84.800
187. Negaunee, 417, 3-2, 36.000
188. Millington ^, 414, 5-0, 76.800
189. Warren Michigan Collegiate ^, 414, 5-0, 72.000
190. Fennville, 407, 3-2, 34.600
191. Ithaca ^, 405, 5-0, 72.000
192. Sanford Meridian Early College, 404, 4-1, 45.200
193. Hillsdale, 401, 4-1, 52.000
194. Hanover-Horton, 399, 4-1, 40.600
195. Boyne City ^, 395, 5-0, 65.600
196. Grass Lake ^, 395, 5-0, 56.000
197. Madison Heights Madison, 393, 4-1, 71.200
198. Montrose, 392, 4-1, 53.400
199. Tawas, 385, 4-1, 54.800
200. Elk Rapids, 384, 3-2, 43.000
201. Niles Brandywine, 383, 4-1, 57.800
202. Manchester, 379, 4-1, 55.200
203. Watervliet, 378, 4-1, 47.000
204. Quincy, 375, 3-2, 28.400
205. Vassar, 375, 3-2, 36.800
206. St. Charles, 373, 3-2, 46.200
207. Bad Axe, 371, 3-2, 38.200
208. Constantine ^, 371, 5-0, 66.000
209. Clinton ^, 367, 5-0, 65.600
210. Vandercook Lake, 366, 4-1, 42.200
211. Laingsburg, 361, 4-1, 48.800
212. Schoolcraft, 361, 3-2, 48.400
213. Flint Beecher ^, 350, 5-0, 73.600
214. Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian, 347, 4-1, 55.000
215. Kent City, 344, 3-2, 34.600
216. Leroy Pine River, 343, 3-2, 41.400
217. Ravenna, 342, 4-1, 48.600
218. Carson City-Crystal, 330, 3-2, 36.000
219. Bridgman *, 327, 3-1, 48.600
220. Ishpeming Westwood, 318, 3-2, 33.200
221. Marlette, 316, 4-1, 49.800
222. Homer ^, 312, 5-0, 57.600
223. Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port Laker ^, 308, 5-0, 62.400
224. Ishpeming *, 307, 5-0, 68.800
225. Traverse City St. Francis, 305, 3-2, 41.600
226. Burton Atherton, 304, 4-1, 53.600
227. Pewamo-Westphalia, 302, 4-1, 45.400
228. Dansville, 301, 3-2, 41.400
229. Gobles, 301, 4-1, 55.200
230. Iron Mountain, 298, 3-2, 40.000
231. Riverview Gabriel Richard, 297, 3-2, 49.400
232. Flint Hamady, 295, 4-1, 42.200
233. Union City ^, 294, 5-0, 56.000
234. Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest, 289, 3-2, 36.400
235. Ecorse, 288, 3-2, 38.800
236. Whittemore-Prescott ^, 283, 5-0, 67.200
237. Mancelona, 282, 3-2, 28.400
238. Saugatuck, 281, 3-2, 38.200
239. Detroit Loyola ^, 278, 5-0, 85.200
240. Manton, 276, 3-2, 34.600
241. Royal Oak Shrine Catholic, 273, 4-1, 49.800
242. Hudson, 271, 4-1, 45.600
243. Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett, 270, 4-1, 48.600
244. Decatur ^, 262, 5-0, 70.400
245. Lincoln Alcona, 260, 3-2, 35.000
246. Iron River West Iron County ^, 259, 5-0, 67.200
247. New Lothrop ^, 259, 5-0, 68.800
248. Blanchard Montabella, 256, 4-1, 48.200
249. Breckenridge, 247, 3-2, 38.000
250. Reading, 246, 3-2, 33.200
251. Norway, 244, 3-2, 32.767
252. Onekama, 244, 3-2, 28.400
253. Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary, 243, 4-1, 48.800
254. Suttons Bay, 243, 4-1, 51.050
255. Indian River Inland Lakes, 242, 4-1, 42.400
256. Ottawa Lake Whiteford, 238, 3-2, 34.800
257. Johannesburg-Lewiston, 237, 4-1, 44.000
258. Petersburg-Summerfield, 233, 3-2, 38.400
259. Harbor Beach ^, 232, 5-0, 65.600
260. Bessemer *, 231, 3-2, 28.467
261. L'Anse, 230, 3-2, 36.600
262. White Pigeon, 226, 3-2, 35.700
263. Beal City ^, 222, 5-0, 68.800
264. Lutheran Westland, 221, 4-1, 50.200
265. Coleman, 217, 4-1, 45.800
266. Mendon, 214, 4-1, 51.800
267. St. Ignace ^, 211, 5-0, 59.200
268. Pittsford, 205, 4-1, 36.800
269. Bark River-Harris, 194, 4-1, 37.300
270. Munising, 194, 4-1, 41.200
271. Central Lake, 190, 3-2, 28.600
272. Fowler ^, 189, 5-0, 62.400
273. Morenci ^, 184, 5-0, 67.200
274. Muskegon Catholic Central ^, 183, 5-0, 81.600
275. Sterling Heights Parkway Christian, 171, 3-2, 40.800
Nightmare Ends with Shanks' Dream Finish
December 6, 2017
By Tom Kendra
Special for Second Half
The media were fixated on La’Darius Jefferson, and who can blame them?
The senior quarterback validated his recent selection as the MLive statewide Football Player of the Year by rushing 32 times for 245 yards and all four of Muskegon’s touchdowns in a 28-10 victory over Farmington Hills Harrison in the MHSAA Division 3 Final on Nov. 25 at Ford Field. He followed that up by giving the dejected Harrison players a classy postgame pep talk.
If it wasn’t Jefferson, the cameras were focused on eighth-year Muskegon head coach Shane Fairfield, who overcame four losses in the title game by finally taking the final step and hoisting the championship trophy,
But the best story coming out of Muskegon’s recently-won title belonged to senior cornerback Willie “Bo” Shanks – a tale that started with heartbreak, which morphed into an ongoing nightmare, which had to be confronted and converted into motivation, then mixed in with relentless hard work before finally culminating with redemption. Sweet redemption.
“It felt great; it felt right,” said Shanks, the soft-spoken leader of the Big Reds’ secondary. “I guess the lesson in my story is that with focus and hard work, you can overcome anything.”
The heartbreak occurred one year ago, when Shanks was playing cornerback on the final play in Muskegon’s heartbreaking 2016 Division 3 Final 29-28 loss to Orchard Lake St. Mary’s. Shanks was running with receiver Ky’ren Cunningham, who abruptly turned in at the goal line. Before Shanks could react, the ball was in Cunningham’s arms on the ground in the end zone with six seconds showing on the clock, courtesy of a perfectly-timed pass from quarterback Caden Prieskorn.
Even though player after player, coach after coach, fan after fan, and family member after family member pointed out that it wasn’t just one play which cost Muskegon the championship, Shanks couldn’t shake it off.
"I think about it every play," the soft-spoken Shanks said earlier this season. "I think about it every day in practice. I think about it every time we go out and play a game. I even think about it when I`m asleep. I have nightmares about it, so it just motivates me a lot to not let it happen again."
Fairfield decided right away that the best way to deal with the pain of that loss was to bring it out in the open – confront it and then work to overcome it.
“We got beat with six seconds left, so everything ever since has been six more reps, six more sprints, six more drills,” said Shanks, a 6-foot-2, 180-pound senior who is also a starting guard on Muskegon’s basketball team, which opens its season Friday at home against Rockford.
The hard work by Shanks and fellow seniors Clinton Jefferson and Marvin Harwell and junior Lamarion Sherrill turned Muskegon’s perceived Achilles heel – pass defense – into a strength.
In both of Muskegon’s losses in 2016, against visiting Chicago Lincolnshire Stevenson (38-35) in Week 2 and the Final against St. Mary’s, the Big Reds were torched through the air. Led by Shanks in the secondary, the Big Reds fielded a defense for the first time in years this fall that was equally good against the run and the pass – with only Muskegon Mona Shores having even a modicum of success passing.
“He was our solid rock all year back in the secondary,” Fairfield said of Shanks, who is now hoping to play defensive back at the college level.
Shanks had his individual highlight in the Regional championship game against DeWitt on Nov. 10 at Grand Haven, when he intercepted three passes (including one he took back for a touchdown) as Muskegon rolled to a shocking 49-0 victory. Those three interceptions gave him 10 for the season, breaking the school record of eight held by three players, including ex-Southern Cal standout and NFL player Ronald Johnson.
If the story ended right there, it would have been a much happier ending than most ever get in the sports world. Sports Illustrated and others have told countless stories of wayward kickers, not to mention recognizable figures like Bill Buckner and Steve Bartman, who never quite recovered from a single play during a game.
But this story had a perfect ending not only for Shanks, but for the Muskegon football program as well.
After dispatching overmatched Battle Creek-Harper Creek, 42-0, in the Semifinals, Muskegon returned to the familiar confines of Ford Field, almost one year to the day of its last-second defeat.
No worries this time around. When the scoreboard clock reached :06 this year, the Big Reds were comfortably in celebration mode.
6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 …0.
For Jefferson, Fairfield and the entire Muskegon football family, it was a dream come true.
And for one Big Red in particular, it also was a nightmare vanquished.
Tom Kendra worked 23 years at The Muskegon Chronicle, including five as assistant sports editor and the final six as sports editor through 2011. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Muskegon, Oceana, Mason, Lake, Oceola, Mecosta and Newaygo counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Muskegon senior cornerback Willie Shanks tackles Farmington Hills Harrison receiver Joe Stevens during the Division 3 Final. (Middle) Shanks defends Grand Rapids Christian's Duane Washington during last year's Class A Regional at Grand Haven. Muskegon entered the game undefeated, before falling to the Eagles. (Below) Muskegon football coach Shane Fairfield, left, and Muskegon basketball coach and athletic director Keith Guy pose with the Class A District championship trophy after the Big Reds defeated Zeeland West this fall. Fairfield and Guy sharing great athletes like Shanks has put Muskegon’s programs among the state's elite in both football and basketball. (Photos by Tim Reilly.)