2025 MHSAA Football Playoff Pairings Announced
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
October 26, 2025
Here are the pairings for the 2025 MHSAA Football Playoffs, which begin Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 with District Semifinals in the 11-Player Playoffs and Regional Semifinals in the 8-Player Playoffs.
Teams were divided into divisions before the start of play this fall. The top 32 teams in each division in 11-player and top 16 per division in 8-player, based on playoff-point average, were selected to the field. For 11-player, qualifiers were then divided into four regions with eight teams apiece, and for 8-player qualifiers were divided into four regions with four teams in each.
Pairings for the first three weeks of the tournament are based on regular-season playoff point averages, with the highest-ranked team hosting, regardless of the distance between the two schools. For 11-Player District Semifinal and 8-Player Regional Semifinal play, the top-seeded team in each bracket will host the fourth-seeded team, and the second-seeded team will host the third-seeded team.
District Finals for 11-player and Regional Finals for 8-player will follow during the weekend of Nov. 7-8, and the weekend of Nov. 14-15 will have Regional Finals in the 11-Player Playoffs and Semifinals in the 8-Player Playoffs. The 8-Player Semifinals will pair the winners of Region 1 vs. Region 2 and the winners of Region 3 vs. Region 4 at neutral sites assigned by the MHSAA.
Semifinal games in the 11-Player Playoffs will take place Nov. 21-22, pairing the winners of Region 1 vs. Region 2 and the winners of Region 3 vs. Region 4. The MHSAA also will assign 11-Player Semifinals at neutral sites.
All playoff tickets except for Finals (both 11 and 8-player) will be sold online only via GoFan.
For 11-Player, tickets to District Semifinals and District Finals cost $7, tickets to Regional Finals are $9, and tickets to Semifinals cost $10. For 8-player, tickets for Regional Semifinals are $7, tickets for Regional Finals are $9, and tickets for Semifinals cost $10.
The 8-Player Finals will take place Nov. 22 at Northern Michigan University’s Superior Dome in Marquette, and the 11-Player Finals will be played Nov. 28 and 30 at Ford Field in Detroit. An all-day ticket for 8-Player Finals costs $10 and includes admission to both games, and an all-day ticket for the 11-Player Finals costs $20 and includes admission to that day’s four games.
The 11-Player Finals schedule will be as follows:
Friday, Nov. 28
9:30 a.m. - Division 8
12:30 p.m. - Division 4
4 p.m. - Division 6
7 p.m. - Division 2
Sunday, Nov. 30
9:30 a.m. - Division 7
12:30 p.m. - Division 3
4 p.m. - Division 5
7 p.m. - Division 1
Pairings for both the 11 and 8-Player brackets are as follows:
11-Player Pairings
DIVISION 1
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Jenison (4-5) 52.778 at Hudsonville (9-0) 85.556
Grandville (4-5) 56.111 at Rockford (7-2) 75.444
DISTRICT 2
Kalamazoo Central (6-3) 53.778 at Howell (8-1) 80.111
Grand Ledge (7-2) 65.667 at East Kentwood (7-2) 70.222
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Hartland (5-4) 60.000 at Detroit Catholic Central (9-0) 81.056
Brighton (6-3) 69.333 at West Bloomfield (7-2) 72.333
DISTRICT 2
Davison (8-1) 70.000 at Clarkston (8-1) 87.111
Oxford (7-2) 77.556 at Grand Blanc (9-0) 81.444
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Salem (5-4) 57.333 at Saline (8-1) 77.500
Brownstown Woodhaven (7-2) 66.111 at Belleville (7-2) 72.889
DISTRICT 2
Northville (7-2) 70.111 at Detroit Cass Tech (9-0) 74.556
Dearborn Fordson (7-2) 70.889 at Farmington (7-2) 71.222
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Rochester (5-4) 53.333 at Rochester Adams (7-2) 76.111
Utica Eisenhower (5-4) 57.000 at Rochester Hills Stoney Creek (6-3) 64.111
DISTRICT 2
Sterling Heights Stevenson (5-4) 54.778 at Romeo (6-3) 69.444
Macomb Dakota (6-3) 63.444 at Utica (7-2) 67.778
DIVISION 2
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Muskegon Mona Shores (5-4) 52.111 at Muskegon (6-3) 64.556
Traverse City Central (5-4) 53.889 at Traverse City West (5-4) 59.222
DISTRICT 2
Lansing Everett (5-4) 55.778 at Portage Central (9-0) 76.111
Portage Northern (7-2) 62.528 at Byron Center (6-3) 66.333
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Waterford Mott (5-4) 53.889 at Midland Dow (8-1) 71.111
East Lansing (4-5) 56.111 at White Lake Lakeland (7-2) 68.000
DISTRICT 2
Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (5-4) 54.611 at Walled Lake Western (7-2) 68.667
Orchard Lake St. Mary's (6-2) 63.083 at North Farmington (6-3) 64.889
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
South Lyon East (4-5) 49.222 at South Lyon (9-0) 78.889
Livonia Franklin (6-3) 62.889 at Dexter (8-1) 76.500
DISTRICT 2
Lincoln Park (5-4) 52.444 at Gibraltar Carlson (9-0) 77.667
Temperance Bedford (4-5) 54.357 at Allen Park (5-4) 55.889
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Warren Mott (5-4) 50.222 at Birmingham Groves (6-3) 61.556
Birmingham Seaholm (5-4) 55.556 at Warren Cousino (6-3) 59.778
DISTRICT 2
Roseville (4-5) 52.889 at Grosse Pointe South (8-1) 70.333
St. Clair Shores Lakeview (7-2) 62.444 at Port Huron Northern (7-2) 69.111
DIVISION 3
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Bay City Western (4-5) 46.556 at Mount Pleasant (9-0) 76.444
Marquette (6-3) 51.889 at Gaylord (9-0) 66.000
DISTRICT 2
Coopersville (4-5) 47.000 at Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills (8-1) 67.111
Cedar Springs (8-1) 60.556 at East Grand Rapids (7-2) 60.778
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Zeeland West (6-3) 50.889 at Niles (9-0) 67.778
Zeeland East (6-3) 51.444 at St. Joseph (5-4) 54.889
DISTRICT 2
Coldwater (6-3) 47.111 at Lowell (7-2) 58.778
Middleville Thornapple Kellogg (6-3) 53.222 at Hastings (7-2) 58.556
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Owosso (6-3) 49.444 at DeWitt (9-0) 79.667
Linden (6-3) 50.222 at Mason (5-4) 55.444
DISTRICT 2
Ypsilanti Lincoln (6-3) 55.111 at Adrian (8-1) 60.333
Holly (6-3) 58.222 at Fenton (6-3) 58.444
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Riverview (6-3) 45.667 at Detroit Martin Luther King (5-4) 59.667
Redford Thurston (6-3) 52.222 at Trenton (5-4) 55.000
DISTRICT 2
Warren De La Salle Collegiate (3-6) 49.306 at Warren Fitzgerald (8-1) 65.889
Marysville (7-2) 54.444 at Port Huron (6-3) 59.889
DIVISION 4
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Freeland (7-2) 49.667 at Escanaba (8-1) 58.222
Big Rapids (8-1) 52.667 at Ludington (9-0) 56.778
DISTRICT 2
Holland Christian (5-4) 43.778 at Hudsonville Unity Christian (8-1) 61.333
Spring Lake (6-3) 45.444 at Wyoming Godwin Heights (7-2) 51.444
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Grand Rapids Christian (5-4) 45.333 at Battle Creek Harper Creek (8-1) 65.333
Grand Rapids South Christian (4-5) 47.444 at Portland (9-0) 58.444
DISTRICT 2
Three Rivers (5-4) 46.389 at Paw Paw (6-3) 56.111
Vicksburg (5-4) 48.556 at Edwardsburg (6-3) 51.222
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Lansing Sexton (6-3) 45.667 at Williamston (9-0) 69.500
St. Johns (5-4) 48.889 at Haslett (7-2) 61.111
DISTRICT 2
Lake Fenton (4-5) 43.000 at Goodrich (9-0) 68.000
Fowlerville (5-4) 44.444 at Chelsea (8-1) 67.778
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Tecumseh (6-3) 50.222 at Dearborn Divine Child (8-1) 59.667
Redford Union (7-2) 55.111 at Madison Heights Lamphere (6-3) 57.889
DISTRICT 2
Macomb Lutheran North (7-2) 44.111 at Harper Woods (9-0) 88.222
Center Line (7-2) 48.222 at Harper Woods Chandler Park (7-2) 49.222
DIVISION 5
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Negaunee (6-3) 40.875 at Ogemaw Heights (8-1) 54.389
Gladwin (5-4) 43.111 at Kingsford (6-3) 43.222
DISTRICT 2
Clare (6-3) 43.111 at Saginaw Swan Valley (8-1) 54.778
Howard City Tri County (5-4) 43.556 at Whitehall (5-4) 46.333
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Wyoming Kelloggsville (6-3) 40.778 at Grand Rapids Catholic Central (9-0) 74.206
Muskegon Oakridge (6-3) 43.000 at Grand Rapids West Catholic (8-1) 62.111
DISTRICT 2
Hopkins (5-4) 41.222 at Kalamazoo United (7-2) 43.286
Dowagiac (5-3) 41.827 at Berrien Springs (5-2) 42.802
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Detroit Cody (5-4) 37.222 at Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard (9-0) 52.667
Romulus (4-5) 41.111 at Michigan Center (8-1) 43.000
DISTRICT 2
Detroit Voyageur College Prep (4-5) 36.889 at Romulus Summit Academy North (7-1) 54.125
Flat Rock (6-3) 47.889 at Monroe Jefferson (8-1) 52.111
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Hazel Park (6-3) 39.333 at Pontiac Notre Dame Prep (7-2) 62.444
Detroit Denby (7-2) 46.556 at Detroit Southeastern (6-3) 49.000
DISTRICT 2
Yale (5-4) 39.000 at Frankenmuth (8-1) 57.778
Armada (6-3) 46.444 at Richmond (8-1) 55.222
DIVISION 6
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Calumet (7-2) 40.500 at Kingsley (7-2) 48.167
Boyne City (6-3) 41.944 at Traverse City St. Francis (6-2) 44.472
DISTRICT 2
Sanford Meridian (6-3) 36.111 at Reed City (7-2) 47.667
Montague (5-4) 36.444 at Central Montcalm (7-2) 37.444
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Ovid-Elsie (7-2) 42.000 at Belding (8-1) 57.222
Kent City (9-0) 49.667 at Olivet (8-1) 51.333
DISTRICT 2
Flint New Standard Academy (8-1) 34.264 at Montrose (9-0) 45.889
Durand (7-2) 40.222 at Flint Hamady (6-3) 40.444
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Onsted (4-5) 32.778 at Jackson Lumen Christi (6-3) 61.889
Buchanan (6-3) 34.357 at Napoleon (6-3) 38.556
DISTRICT 2
Adrian Madison (5-4) 33.889 at Ecorse (7-2) 48.000
Dearborn Heights Robichaud (6-3) 40.984 at Ida (7-2) 41.778
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Detroit Central (6-3) 34.889 at Detroit Edison (7-2) 53.056
Warren Michigan Collegiate (5-4) 37.556 at Detroit Pershing (6-3) 40.111
DISTRICT 2
Clinton Township Clintondale (5-4) 33.889 at Almont (9-0) 61.667
Clawson (6-3) 41.000 at Marine City (6-3) 47.222
DIVISION 7
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Manton (6-3) 28.000 at Menominee (9-0) 52.486
McBain (7-2) 36.667 at Charlevoix (8-1) 41.556
DISTRICT 2
Morley Stanwood (3-6) 25.556 at Harrison (7-2) 33.333
Shelby (5-4) 26.667 at LeRoy Pine River (6-3) 32.111
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Ravenna (4-5) 28.889 at Pewamo-Westphalia (8-0) 41.889
Saranac (7-2) 30.778 at North Muskegon (6-3) 35.514
DISTRICT 2
Ithaca (6-3) 34.222 at Saginaw Valley Lutheran (9-0) 40.333
Cass City (6-3) 35.667 at Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port Laker (7-2) 37.778
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Galesburg-Augusta (4-5) 26.000 at Schoolcraft (7-2) 39.333
Constantine (6-3) 38.667 at Lawton (7-2) 39.000
DISTRICT 2
Union City (5-4) 28.222 at Hanover-Horton (7-2) 42.889
Jonesville (6-3) 30.222 at Bronson (7-2) 35.222
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Leslie (5-4) 28.778 at Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central (7-2) 49.667
Ottawa Lake Whiteford (8-1) 36.667 at Clinton (7-2) 40.556
DISTRICT 2
Burton Bendle (6-3) 29.333 at Millington (7-2) 41.000
Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest (5-4) 29.873 at Detroit Community (6-3) 30.762
DIVISION 8
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
West Iron County (4-4) 25.361 at Bark River-Harris (7-1) 37.375
L'Anse (5-4) 25.417 at Iron Mountain (5-3) 27.528
DISTRICT 2
Mancelona (5-4) 29.361 at Maple City Glen Lake (7-1) 40.528
Frankfort (6-3) 29.917 at East Jordan (6-3) 32.625
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart (5-4) 26.206 at Beal City (9-0) 42.111
Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary (6-3) 33.000 at Saginaw Nouvel Catholic Central (7-2) 33.556
DISTRICT 2
Reese (5-4) 27.111 at Harbor Beach (9-0) 42.556
Genesee (4-5) 27.556 at Unionville-Sebewaing (6-3) 32.889
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Centreville (5-4) 29.778 at Hudson (9-0) 49.857
White Pigeon (7-2) 35.222 at Decatur (7-2) 38.222
DISTRICT 2
Manchester (5-4) 28.444 at Springport (9-0) 38.931
Fowler (6-3) 34.111 at New Lothrop (6-3) 37.778
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Auburn Hills Oakland Christian (5-4) 25.611 at Madison Heights Madison (8-1) 44.556
Clarkston Everest Collegiate (5-4) 28.667 at Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes (5-4) 30.444
DISTRICT 2
Riverview Gabriel Richard (4-5) 29.111 at Melvindale Academy for Business & Tech (9-0) 45.667
Southfield Bradford Academy (6-3) 31.889 at Allen Park Cabrini (8-1) 38.889
8-Player Pairings
DIVISION 1
REGION 1
Gogebic (8-1) 32.264 at Norway (9-0) 37.625
Pickford (7-1) 32.542 at Indian River Inland Lakes (9-0) 36.667
REGION 2
Breckenridge (6-3) 30.250 at Blanchard Montabella (8-1) 35.222
Central Lake (6-3) 30.333 at Merrill (7-2) 31.778
REGION 3
Marcellus (6-3) 28.417 at Martin (9-0) 38.667
Climax-Scotts (7-2) 32.486 at Gobles (7-2) 33.194
REGION 4
Bay City All Saints (7-2) 31.319 at Kingston (8-1) 36.222
Capac (7-2) 33.111 at Brown City (7-2) 33.444
DIVISION 2
REGION 1
St. Ignace (6-3) 29.250 at Felch North Dickinson (9-0) 34.708
Powers North Central (7-2) 31.444 at Lake Linden-Hubbell (7-2) 31.444
REGION 2
Hillman (6-3) 29.208 at Onekama (9-0) 36.667
Gaylord St. Mary (7-2) 29.778 at Mio (8-1) 32.472
REGION 3
Marion (6-3) 29.333 at Portland St Patrick (9-0) 37.750
Grand Rapids Sacred Heart (8-1) 34.972 at Mendon (9-0) 37.375
REGION 4
Pittsford (7-2) 32.111 at Britton Deerfield (8-1) 36.889
Morrice (8-1) 32.222 at Deckerville (8-1) 36.556
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,500 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.
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Undefeated, Unscored-Upon Ironwood Journeys Downstate to Complete 1925 Run
By
Ron Pesch
MHSAA historian
November 20, 2025
Port Huron’s bold challenge of Flint Central and Grand Rapids Union for acclaim as “Michigan’s best high school football team” during the fall of 1925 meant an unexpected opportunity in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
During the first fall season of school sports under Michigan High School Athletic Association leadership – and half-century before the MHSAA Football Playoffs were introduced – small towns with schools possessing smaller enrollments also cried for recognition and aimed to join in the fun.
For schools, fans, and newspapers, MHSAA classifications conveniently offered a means to subdivide claims on the state title. Acknowledging that they could seldom compete successfully against the larger schools in football, that certainly couldn’t stop them from declaring themselves Class B or Class C gridiron champs.
Undefeated in contests since the middle of the 1923 season, Ironwood High – located in the Upper Peninsula in Michigan’s western-most city – ran through final preparations for the upcoming season with a game against the local alumni. A common practice at many schools, the preseason matchup gave head coaches like Ironwood’s veteran Robert O. ‘Bob’ Black a peek at his squad’s potential against a “friendly” opponent. The preps downed the “Old Timers,” 19-6.
Among Black’s weapons was his team captain, John ‘Cutz’ Cavosie, a 6-foot-1, 190-pound senior with impressive skills in all aspects of the game.
“Capt. Cavosie was true to the form of the last two seasons and gives indications of coming through this season with even greater flying colors than he did a year ago,” noted the Ironwood Daily Globe in coverage of the contest. “He punished the alumni with his driving attack.”
The Red Devils officially opened their 1925 slate with a game at Superior, Wis., on Friday, Sept. 25. Missing from the roster, however, was Cavosie. While the news was, no doubt, gossiped about on the streets of town, there was no explanation in the Globe.
Meanwhile, seven miles away on the front page of the local newspaper, The Bessemer Herald, readers learned some detail:
“John Cavosie, captain and star fullback of the Ironwood high school football team, left the squad this week after an altercation with the coach and has turned in his uniform.”
His absence from the team was apparent.
According to the hometown Globe, “Neither team showed anything but early season football,” but the Superior Evening Telegram’s coverage told another story:
“A field goal missed by inches cost Superior Central High school victory in the opening game of the season here yesterday and the two teams struggled to a scoreless tie.”
“Superior’s attempt to score … came in the final quarter after the two teams had battled on even terms through 45 minutes of play.”
With the ball on Ironwood’s 20-yard line, the Superior quarterback stepped back for a dropkick, but the ball sailed just left of the left upright.
According to Evening Telegram coverage, late in the second quarter, Ironwood had overlooked a prime chance to dropkick a field goal inside Superior’s 25, opting instead for an end run that failed: “That was Ironwood’s one and only chance to score. … Never again did (they) get within striking distance of the Superior goal.” An earlier attempt at a placement kick had gone wide. Cavosie’s absence was likely the reason for the dismal showing by the Red Devils. His importance to the team would soon be vividly illustrated.
A Legend is Born
While no details of mended fences appeared in print, according to the Globe, “the ‘Red’ Grange of the Upper Peninsula” was back for the team’s second game of the season against Menominee, two weeks later. Cavosie put on a show, notching four touchdowns on the afternoon including on runs of 42, 51, and 67 yards. Late in the game, facing a third-and-25 from just beyond the 50, Cavosie took a pass from center, “stepped back, apparently to punt,” but instead booted a stunning 55-yard dropkick for the game’s final three points in a 41-0 win. The news of the kick, which tied a national record for distance, would travel far beyond the Peninsula.
Next up were shutouts of Hurley, Wis., 47-0, and Hancock, 19-0.
Proud of the local team’s accomplishment, in early November, George Haggerson – president of the University of Michigan Alumni Club of the Gogebic Range – contacted state director of athletics Alden W. “Tommy” Thompson. Seeking broader recognition for Ironwood, he inquired about the possibility of the Red Devils playing a worthy opponent in a season-ending contest. Thompson suggested contact with Detroit, Jackson, Flint, or Grand Rapids high schools.
Ashland, Wis., was defeated 24-0 on Saturday, Nov. 7. Ironwood then squared off with Norway on Armistice Day. Expecting a tight matchup, an outstanding crowd turned out at Oliver Field in Ironwood for the game. Instead, Ironwood trounced the visitors, 34-0.
Ironwood was unbeaten and unscored upon, and three days later the Globe announced a firm date for a game downstate. Coach Black’s team would play Redford High School at Northwestern Field in Detroit on Thanksgiving Day.
The choice to travel to the Lower Peninsula to seek out statewide recognition would be an expensive one. Donations to cover the trip – approximately $1,200 – came from local businesses and professional men. They included a donation from a Menominee resident. In a long-distance phone call from the head of a large wholesaling house, Frank St. Peter wanted to relay a specific message to Haggerson, some 200 miles away:
“The Ironwood team will be representing more than Ironwood when it goes to Lower Michigan on Thanksgiving. I consider she will be representing the entire Peninsula. Put me down for $50 to help cover the expenses.”
The trip to Detroit
This was a historic trip – the first for an Ironwood gridiron team to the Lower Peninsula. For locals, train travel would be from Ironwood to Chicago, then after a brief wait, to Ann Arbor, where they stayed Wednesday night. On Thursday morning, the team would head to Detroit by bus.
Among those traveling to Detroit for the game was Haggerson. Many other current residents, as well as former Gogebic Range citizens “living in Detroit, Lansing and Ann Arbor” were expected to make the trip. A crowd of 1,500 was at Ironwood’s Chicago and Northwestern railway station Tuesday night for a rousing sendoff for the 18 members of the team, Coach Black, assistant Max Newcomb, and various school personnel.
According to the Detroit News, Redford had “lost its first game of the season to Detroit Northeastern, 12-6, but since then has been unbeaten in nine games,” with a scoreless tie against Birmingham. Redford had scored 203 points against 24 for its opponents, with Northeastern and Detroit Southwestern “the only schools to score on the suburban eleven.”
“The only record that surpasses that boasted by Redford is the achievement of Ironwood,” stated Thursday morning’s Detroit Free Press, “and the meeting of these two teams should be one of the outstanding high school games in the state.”
The contest was to determine the Class B championship of Michigan.
Back in the U.P.
Those staying in Ironwood could get game detail at the Ironwood Memorial building. A crowd of 1,800 to 2,000 were on hand as returns were relayed by telephone from the Globe office, where Associated Press play-by-play bulletins would arrive quarterly by telegraph, instead of as the game progressed.
“The students gave their cheers the same as they did on the field at games here this season,” stated the Globe, “and the audience was keyed up to high pitch throughout the game.”
The exploits of Cavosie were on the lips of everyone.
Newspaper reports claimed Ironwood supporters said he was as great as the immortal George Gipp – an All-American on Knute Rockne’s famous undefeated 1920 Notre Dame team – when “The Gipper” played in the Peninsula at Calumet High School.
Quoting Detroit Times reports on the game, the Globe reported the crowd was so large, “that the supply of tickets gave out, and many fans were admitted without the necessary pasteboards, fully 6,000 witnessing the contest.”
Weather conditions were ideal. According to A.P. reports, “overcast sky and southerly wind combined” with “solid underfooting to assure a snappy contest” – with “no alibis for the loser.”
Cavosie lived up to the hype. Pregame, the A.P. stated he wowed the crowd during warm-ups “toeing numerous punts against the wind. Many of them drove 55 yards against the breeze.”
Ironwood scored on its opening drive but was held at bay for the remainder of the first half. The second half was a different story.
A long touchdown pass from Cavosie started the scoring. The Red Devils scored four times during the fourth quarter, twice the results of intercepted passes. In the end, Ironwood destroyed Detroit Redford, 47-0.
“The story of the game is largely a story of John Cavosie,” stated the Free Press. “He hurled passes from any angle and almost any kind of a formation for long gains and was instrumental in every score credited to his team.”
“Cavosie can run and plunge. He can kick and pass. He can tackle and block,” stated the A.P. reporter, “… his kicking was a revelation to the fans. One time standing on the six-yard line he kicked over the safety man’s head at the 40-yard line and the ball rolled dead on the one-yard strip. His passes were accurate and well timed.
“The team it showed Redford at Northwestern field, Detroit yesterday deserves consideration as one of the best in Michigan in any class.”
At the end, Ironwood claimed the Class B state championship of Michigan with a 6-0-1 mark, outscoring opponents 212-0. A new standard for the school’s athletic teams was set.
Ironwood’s share of receipts for the game totaled $681.90. “The small quota,” according to the Globe, “was due to the fact that the game was played on municipal property and a charge could not be made on the property itself. A shortage of tickets further accounted for the small gate receipts.”
Upon its return home, the team was honored across multiple receptions. Details not captured in game reports were shared with classmates, former Red Devils athletes, and local fans, as the town celebrated its football heroes. A special focus was shone upon the linemen by A.D. Chishom, a member of the board of education, in his speech honoring the team. Praise for Coach Black and Assistant Newcomb flowed freely.
Come December, George M. Lawton named Cavosie to the Detroit Times first-team all-state squad. The A.P. placed him on its all-state second team, naming Cecil Turner of Port Huron on its first team.
Cavosie’s dropkick, notched against Menominee, was listed among American football historian Parke H. Davis’s “National List of Record Scoring Plays of 1925” - the lone high school entry on the list. “There is not a college team in the country that he could not make as fullback,” raved Davis - the nation’s ‘godfather of sports statistics.’
Ironwood students had started the school year on Sept. 6, wandering the halls of a freshly-built school building. Yearbook staff kindly chronicled the happenings of the school year with a fantastic sense of humor.
“September 7: Students learn more about the building. It takes them only fifteen minutes to find right classrooms.”
“September 26: The teachers, like children with new toys, use their new telephones all the time.”
“October 10: Gym students make appearance in the corridor in middies and bloomers. They are kindly presented with a piece of Miss Dougan’s mind.”
“November 30: Students hold assembly to rejoice over victory over Redford.”
Come the end of the school year, the senior members of the team, and their classmates, became the first to graduate from the new Luther L. Wright High School.
“June 14-18: Senior week. Class Play, Class picnic ‘n everything. Commencement. We say goodbye to the school, the students, the faculty.”
The district’s first superintendent, Wright had recently completed a term as Michigan’s State Superintendent of Schools. Ground had broken for the new building on May 1, 1924. Designed by Croft & Boerner of Minneapolis, Minn., it replaced the first building named in Wright’s honor.
Over 100 years later, it is proudly still in use today.
PHOTOS (Top) The Ironwood Daily Globe announces the local team’s win over Detroit Redford as the paper’s lead headline. (2) Ironwood’s John Cavosie. (3) Ironwood football coach R.O. Black, from the school’s 1925 yearbook. (4) Ironwood fans celebrate after the win over Redford. (5) A drawing of two students playing football, from Ironwood’s 1926 yearbook. (Photos gathered by Ron Pesch.)