Britton Deerfield Finding Fast Success After Move to 8-Player Football
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
September 28, 2021
BRITTON – Britton Deerfield’s football team is learning to win again.
The Patriots have transitioned from 11-player to 8-player football this season in a big way. Playing their first season under Michigan’s 8-player format, the Patriots are 5-0 through five weeks and already clinched the program’s first league championship since 2000.
“I think it’s been great for our program,” said senior quarterback Nicolas Johnson. “We’re having a lot of success. I think the team is really focused. All I care about is us winning.”
After struggling mainly due to low numbers at the varsity, junior varsity and middle school levels the last several years, BD is doing a lot of winning this year. In fact, the Patriots have been dominant. After accepting a forfeit in Week 1, BD has won by scores of 64-8, 38-12, 68-0 and 54-16. They are 3-0 in the new Tri-River 8 Conference with one league game remaining. Every other team has at least one loss, meaning they can do no worse than share the league title.
“The league championship is nice,” he said. “I think some of our guys kind of forgot what it felt like to be a contender.”
The last time BD won a league championship was during a run of three straight Tri-County Conference titles from 1998 to 2000.
Technically, this is the first conference championship in school history.
Britton and Deerfield are two small communities in Lenawee County. The Deerfield school building opened in 1874 and the Britton building in 1893. They were two distinct school districts for more than 100 years.
During the early 1990s, both schools were struggling with low participation in some varsity sports. In 1993-94, the varsity football and track teams formed co-ops and played as Britton-Deerfield. The Britton-Deerfield football program had some outstanding teams, winning multiple conference titles and sending several players into the college ranks. Two of those are head coaches at Division III Michigan colleges today – Dustin Breuer at Albion and Dan Musielewicz at Olivet College – and several others are head coaches at the high school level.
As more and more sports became co-op programs, the schools continued to operate separately until 2011 when the school boards of both communities voted to adopt a shared service plan. On July 1, 2011, just before Independence Day, voters in the two communities approved consolidation of the two schools into one – Britton Deerfield.
Erik Johnson took over the BD football program in 2017. The Patriots went 1-8 in back-to-back years but made the playoffs in 2019. Last year BD went 1-6. Soon after the season ended, school officials announced the team would be moving to 8-player football this year.
“I spent most of the winter watching YouTube videos and talking to 8-man coaches,” Johnson said. “I love information. I was curious about how some schools ran practices and what offenses they run and what the difference was on the 40-yard-wide field. I talked to coaches all over the place, asking questions.”
BD had played a couple of seasons of 8-player junior varsity football because of low numbers, but the varsity level was all new this year.
“We hit the ground running,” Johnson said. “It was great to have the summer workouts where we could build some camaraderie. We had some new guys that we needed to get up to speed. We had some six-on-sixes and seven-on-sevens too. That helped.”
BD committed to two years of 8-player football, and then will evaluate the program and where it is headed. Johnson said it all depends on numbers.
“If we get to a point where we are back to a 20-25 player roster, 11-player is what we’ll play,” he said. “But if we only have 12-13 kids in the entire middle school program, we won’t be playing 11-man. That’s not feasible.”
While trying to build a schedule from scratch, Johnson found other schools in the same boat. Five decided to form the Tri-River 8 Conference – Britton Deerfield, Concord, Vandercook Lake, Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian and Vermontville Maple Valley.
Playing nine new opponents added an extra dimension to preparation for the season.
“I watched a lot of film, but it was from previous years,” Johnson said. “I just tried to learn as much about the opponents as I could.”
The season got off to a slow start when BD’s first opponent – an Ohio school – canceled due to lack of available players. Since then, the Patriots have been unstoppable, rolling to four on-the-field wins. They have had several big moments, but last week’s performance by Nicolas Johnson was eye-popping.
The quarterback ran for 251 yards and four touchdowns and passed for 101 yards and another score. Over four games, he has 623 yards rushing and 375 passing. He’s accounted for 17 touchdowns.
Nicolas, known as “Nico,” is the son of Erik – who also serves as athletic director - and BD superintendent Stacy Johnson. Nico’s brother Carson is a sophomore on the Patriots JV team, and his grandfather John is an assistant coach. John and Erik have coached together for nearly 20 years.
Nico is a three-sport star at BD and a member of the MHSAA’s Student Advisory Council.
“It’s always fun to watch him,” Erik Johnson said. “I thought he would have a really good year. Once he gets in the open, he can make guys miss.”
Nico said the biggest difference between 11 and 8-player football is having room on the field to run.
“Once you beat the linebacker, there is usually no one else behind them,” he said. “I feel I have the ability to see the cutback lanes better. It’s a lot different.”
Johnson hopes to play college football.
“My passion is definitely football,” he said. “That one thing I have talked to (college) coaches about is whether or not playing 8-player affects my chances of playing in college, and they say no.”
Coach Johnson said when it comes down to it, football is football – no matter how many players are on the field.
“It’s still blocking and tackling,” he said. “It comes down to execution on offense and defense and being prepared in all three phases of the game.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Britton Deerfield quarterback Nico Johnson launches a pass during a Week 4 win over Vandercook Lake. (Middle) Johnson and BD head coach Erik Johnson (also his father) discuss strategy. (Below) Nico Johnson follows his blockers against the Jayhawks. (Photos by Deloris Clark-Osborne.)
Reading 'Nightmare' 2-Way Gamechanger
November 8, 2019
By Doug Donnelly
Special for Second Half
READING – Nick Affholter didn’t score a point for the Reading Rangers this season. No touchdowns, no extra points, no 2-point conversions.
But, when it came time to vote for the Most Valuable Player in the Big 8, the conference coaches left no doubt that Affholter – an offensive and defensive lineman – was the best player in the conference.
“As a coach, he has been my nightmare,” Concord coach Max Clark said.
“When game-planning for the last three years, we’ve had to begin our planning based on how we can avoid him,” said Matt Schwartzkopf, head coach at Springport.
Frank Keller of Jonesville recalled a specific play that painted the picture of Affholter’s impact.
“I remember one time we ran a sweep on the other side of the field, and he tackled our running back for a two-yard loss – on a sweep,” Keller said. “He was just dominant on both sides of the ball. He’s the best kid on the field.”
Those coaches are happy they won’t have to worry about Affholter anymore. Tonight, he’ll lead his 9-1 Rangers in a District Final against the undefeated Cassopolis Rangers. For Reading, it’s a chance to continue a journey that could the program back-to-back Division 8 championships. Both coaches will tell you the game starts up front, and that’s where Affholter excels.
“He’s been dominant the last couple of years,” Reading head coach Rick Bailey said. “I think last year our running back (Ethan LoPresto) stole a lot of the spotlight, but people knew how good Nick was. He’s the most dominant one-on-one football player that I’ve ever seen at the high school level. This is the first time I can remember in my 35 years that an offensive lineman was selected the league MVP.”
Affholter is a multi-sport, four-year varsity football player, a class officer at Reading – where he carries a 4.0 grade point average – and a member of the National Honor Society and leader of the school’s chapter of Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
“He’s humble and kind,” Bailey said. “He’s a total team player.”
Clark also saw something else in Affholter.
“He has never been anything but an amazing sport and leader,” the Concord coach said. “He stayed after, cleaning up the bench after a basketball game at our court when most of his team was all out chatting with family and friends.”
Reading is in the midst of a dominant run in football. When Affholter was a freshman, the Rangers had their second consecutive 3-6 season. As a sophomore they improved to 8-3, before bowing out of the Division 7 playoffs with a loss to Cassopolis. Last season, Reading ran the table, going 14-0 while scoring 678 points and giving up just 114 in finishing the season at Ford Field.
This year, Reading had to replace last year’s league MVP in LoPresto and started the season with a 14-0 loss to 2018 Division 7 champion Pewamo-Westphalia. Since then, however, the Rangers have been incredible, winning nine straight games while shutting out four opponents and outscoring all of them by a combined 449-38. Reading averages 420 yards rushing a game.
Affholter is a two-way starting lineman. On offense, he plays tackle and gives Bailey the closest thing to a sure thing.
“We’ve been able to dominate teams on his side. We just count on Nick’s block as a win,” Bailey said. “His technique is good, but I think people would be surprised of how athletic he is. If they watch him, they’ll see he can run. People are always surprised with his quickness and foot speed. It’s hard to simulate what he’s going to do.”
Affholter is also a difference-maker on defense.
“Two of our opponents simply chose not to run the football, and only a few tried to run it on his side,” Bailey said. “One team just lined up and threw the ball on every single play, except the last play of the game when they ran the ball when he was out.”
Clark said Concord tried something completely different against Reading.
“I showed up to Reading with a completely different offense because of him and his brother,” Clark said.
Reading still pulled out a 44-12 win.
Affholter has taken the postseason accolades in stride.
“I worked really hard for it,” he said. “It’s nice to see offensive lineman get some love. Just because we don’t touch the ball doesn’t mean we aren’t impacting the game.
“I don’t know how many offensive linemen get recognized like that. I figured I’d get all-conference, and that would be that. Seeing other people notice me and not just a running back or quarterback is pretty awesome.”
Affholter said he is 6-foot-3, 300 pounds, which makes him a half-inch taller and 20 pounds heavier than his twin brother Ben.
“I love playing football with my brother,” Nick said. “We do everything together. My little brother is up on the team now. He’s 6-foot, 230. He’s still growing.”
Their dad was an All-American offensive lineman at Hillsdale College, and their mom played volleyball there. Nick started playing football in grade school, where his grandfather began teaching him footwork.
“I love finishing my blocks,” he said. “I get excited when I get a pancake block. That was always special to me.”
He’s a student of the game, too, spending hours each week studying film of his opponent.
“I watch a lot of film of the defensive linemen or the offensive linemen,” Affholter said. “You can figure out what they are going to do in certain situations, see what their favorite move is. You know what to look for when the play starts. It definitely gives you an edge.”
Reading is sure to lean on Affholter tonight. The visiting Rangers have been just as stout as the home Rangers, outscoring opponents 403-17 this season.
“It’s going to be a great game,” Bailey said. “They are a big play waiting to happen.”
Affholter says the Reading home crowd will be rocking at Barre Field.
“Being out there on the football field is home,” he said. “It’s amazing. Every Friday night the stands are always full. I think it rivals any small-town football community anywhere.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
FOOTBALL: (Top) Reading’s Nick Affholter lines up against Mendon during last week’s 38-0 playoff win. (Middle) Affholter, who also has a twin and younger brother on the varsity. (Photos courtesy of the Reading athletic department.)