Bush Legacy: Culture of Opportunity
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
April 6, 2018
By Doug Donnelly
Special for Second Half
CHELSEA – For the first time as Chelsea High School athletic director, Brad Bush has to hire a football coach.
What’s more, he has the unenviable task of replacing himself.
“I would say that nobody cares more about Chelsea football than I do,” Bush said. “It’s important to me that we find the very best person we can.”
Bush has coached the Bulldogs for 21 seasons. But, his coaching background goes much deeper than that.
He played at Ypsilanti High School for Hall of Fame coach Bill Giarmo, graduating in 1988. After playing quarterback at Cornell University in the Ivy League, he returned to Michigan, graduating from Eastern Michigan University, and started coaching for Bill Kohn, another inductee to the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Bush then went to East Kentwood to coach with Giarmo.
Through his own playing days, coaching with those legends of the game and absorbing everything he could from afar, Bush has developed an impressive culture at Chelsea.
“Friday nights in Chelsea are a big deal,” he said. “We want to keep that tradition.”
Bush became the varsity head coach at Chelsea in 1997. At the time, Chelsea had only two playoff appearances. Bush’s Bulldogs went 3-6 that first season. After that, Chelsea didn’t have a sub-.500 finish for 15 years. The Bulldogs have been kept out of the playoffs only once since 1998.
Chelsea has had only three head coaches since 1965.
“I’m fortunate,” Bush said. “I went for a few more years than the other guys. It’s a great place to coach.”
Temperance Bedford head coach Jeff Wood was an assistant with Bush at Ypsilanti during the 1990s and said he thought then that Bush was going to develop into a great head coach.
“We knew he was going to accomplish greatness, not only as a football coach, but as a father, husband and professional in education,” Wood said. “Brad has always won and lost with great class and dignity. He’s a true Hall of Famer.”
If Bush never coaches at Chelsea again, his lasting legacy might be that culture surrounding the Bulldogs program. It’s known for its large number of football players, from middle school through the varsity, and a system that ensures every student athlete on every team leading to the varsity will play in every game. Teams at the middle school, freshman and junior varsity levels all start 22 players each game – with no two-way starters. For a Class B/Division 3 school, that isn’t the norm.
“We’ve had the same philosophy for 20 years,” he said. “Everybody plays in every middle school, freshman and junior varsity game. That’s how we do it. We start 22 kids on every level. Our kids know they will have the opportunity to play.
“Every kid on every level is going to play in every game. On most nights, we play more kids than the other team has players.”
While every school loses some athletes, or potential athletes, along the way, Bush said this system helps maintain a student’s interest in the sport. Often, he said, a player who may not necessarily be a starter as a freshman will learn the game, develop and turn into a starter by senior year.
“We feel that, over time, with repetition and practice, a kid will become an expert at his position,” he said. “For us, this is a big piece. … That was my thing here. I didn’t invent it. I absorbed it, watched it at other places.”
It’s tough to argue with the results. Chelsea won or shared Southeastern Conference championships in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016 and 2017. The Bulldogs won seven District championships during the Bush era and played in the 2015 Division 3 championship game, falling to Orchard Lake St. Mary’s at Ford Field
He said he learned how to build a program from Giarmo and how to coach a football team under Kohn. Bush was quick to credit his assistant coaches who have remained with the program for years and helped build the culture. He said the program has sacrificed win-at-all-cost at the lower levels with the goal of developing varsity football players.
“You have to manage it,” he said. “That’s why you need a great staff. We have been lucky here with a great, dedicated group of guys. They always have the ultimate goal in mind.”
Bush said he won’t hamstring the next coach into running his system, but anticipates whoever is hired will buy into the culture after seeing what it’s about.
“The next coach has to run it the way he wants to run it, but I do believe we have created a culture here and we’d like to maintain that. You want to hire the right person who is going to handle the kids the right way.”
In addition to coaching at Chelsea and leading the entire athletic program, Bush also is heavily involved in the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association as a past president, serves on the Michigan High School Athletic Association football committee and has served on the National Federation football rules committee. He’s coached in all-star games and is a true believer in high school sports.
His record at Chelsea is 169-60.
“I have great energy,” Bush said. “I love coaching. I have a great passion for it, but I also know when you need to do certain things. I felt this was just the right time for the athletic department and the football team. It wasn’t one thing that led me to this.
“I love the game. I’m going to be very much involved.”
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.
PHOTO: Chelsea's Brad Bush coaches his team during the 2015 Division 3 Final at Ford Field.
2014 Week 9 Football Playoff Listing
October 21, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Following is a list of Michigan High School Athletic Association football playing schools with at least four wins, displaying their win-loss records and playoff averages through the eighth 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 at 7 p.m. 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, 6-2, 84.500
2. Sterling Heights Stevenson, 2767, 6-2, 83.875
3. Clarkston, 2742, 8-0, 111.000
4. Utica Eisenhower ^, 2712, 5-3, 75.500
5. Grand Blanc ^, 2668, 5-3, 63.875
6. Howell, 2595, 4-4, 57.750
7. East Kentwood, 2592, 7-1, 93.500
8. Rockford, 2555, 6-2, 88.375
9. Clinton Township Chippewa Valley ^, 2538, 5-3, 69.750
10. Lake Orion, 2459, 4-4, 50.750
11. Dearborn Fordson, 2411, 8-0, 108.000
12. Northville ^, 2298, 5-3, 63.000
13. Holland West Ottawa ^, 2293, 5-3, 72.500
14. Canton, 2289, 6-2, 85.375
15. Detroit Cass Tech, 2277, 8-0, 106.000
16. Brighton, 2133, 4-4, 52.125
17. Plymouth, 2116, 6-2, 77.250
18. Lapeer, 2112, 8-0, 101.000
19. Utica Ford, 2090, 4-4, 47.125
20. Hartland, 2007, 6-2, 84.125
21. Monroe, 1992, 6-2, 81.625
22. West Bloomfield, 1929, 7-1, 93.875
23. Dearborn ^, 1876, 5-3, 71.375
24. Westland John Glenn ^, 1872, 5-3, 60.875
25. Warren Mott, 1870, 4-4, 58.250
26. Oxford, 1864, 6-2, 78.625
27. Ann Arbor Pioneer, 1857, 4-4, 48.250
28. Livonia Stevenson, 1848, 6-2, 76.125
29. Saline, 1844, 7-1, 92.083
30. Grandville, 1820, 4-4, 56.750
31. Walled Lake Central, 1815, 6-2, 83.250
32. Romeo ^, 1770, 5-3, 66.625
33. Hudsonville ^, 1759, 5-3, 67.875
34. Waterford Mott ^, 1738, 5-3, 69.750
35. Rochester Hills Stoney Creek, 1711, 4-4, 50.625
36. Livonia Churchill, 1696, 6-2, 79.250
37. Grand Ledge ^, 1689, 5-3, 61.875
38. Fraser ^, 1684, 5-3, 61.625
39. Grosse Pointe South, 1674, 4-4, 57.750
40. Traverse City West, 1658, 4-4, 54.625
41. Rochester Adams, 1614, 4-4, 49.375
42. Walled Lake Northern, 1613, 4-4, 54.250
43. Waterford Kettering, 1610, 4-4, 49.250
44. Temperance Bedford, 1600, 4-4, 54.125
45. Warren Cousino ^, 1588, 5-3, 67.250
46. Flint Carman-Ainsworth, 1568, 6-2, 77.375
47. Warren DeLaSalle ^, 1562, 5-3, 59.100
48. Davison, 1531, 4-4, 47.000
49. Detroit Western International, 1521, 4-4, 41.125
50. Detroit Martin Luther King, 1507, 8-0, 109.143
51. Walled Lake Western, 1502, 7-1, 97.500
52. Traverse City Central, 1490, 6-2, 79.875
53. Oak Park, 1486, 6-2, 79.500
54. Brownstown Woodhaven, 1484, 8-0, 107.000
55. East Detroit, 1422, 4-4, 45.750
56. Ypsilanti Lincoln, 1422, 6-2, 74.875
57. Caledonia, 1417, 6-2, 86.875
58. Midland, 1400, 4-4, 48.375
59. Southfield-Lathrup, 1388, 4-4, 49.250
60. Portage Central *, 1384, 6-1, 86.911
61. Detroit Pershing, 1379, 4-4, 40.518
62. Southgate Anderson ^, 1374, 5-3, 59.000
63. Lansing Everett ^, 1364, 5-3, 63.125
64. Dearborn Edsel Ford, 1356, 4-4, 51.250
65. Wyandotte Roosevelt, 1351, 6-2, 77.625
66. Detroit East English ^, 1345, 5-3, 62.768
67. Portage Northern ^, 1345, 5-3, 69.571
68. Port Huron, 1336, 6-2, 80.375
69. Grosse Pointe North ^, 1310, 5-3, 66.625
70. Ypsilanti Community ^, 1300, 5-3, 59.500
71. Birmingham Brother Rice, 1298, 8-0, 109.000
72. Swartz Creek ^, 1285, 5-3, 61.875
73. Battle Creek Lakeview *, 1278, 6-1, 90.071
74. Muskegon Mona Shores, 1274, 7-1, 95.625
75. Okemos ^, 1273, 5-3, 66.750
76. Bay City Central, 1271, 4-4, 51.750
77. Birmingham Groves, 1270, 6-2, 76.375
78. Berkley, 1265, 6-2, 75.125
79. Flushing, 1260, 6-2, 79.250
80. Midland Dow, 1255, 8-0, 101.000
81. South Lyon, 1254, 7-1, 94.250
82. Southfield, 1239, 6-2, 78.500
83. Farmington Hills Harrison, 1212, 7-1, 94.625
84. Mattawan ^, 1184, 5-3, 64.929
85. Fenton, 1181, 8-0, 107.000
86. Farmington, 1178, 7-1, 94.750
87. Grand Rapids Northview, 1177, 6-2, 76.375
88. Warren Woods Tower, 1175, 6-2, 76.500
89. Muskegon, 1157, 8-0, 105.000
90. St. Clair Shores Lake Shore, 1153, 4-4, 48.375
91. Lowell, 1145, 7-1, 85.625
92. Detroit Renaissance ^, 1144, 5-3, 58.893
93. Greenville, 1130, 4-4, 43.125
94. Gibraltar Carlson, 1129, 4-4, 45.750
95. Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills, 1125, 4-4, 49.750
96. Battle Creek Central, 1124, 4-4, 49.339
97. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern, 1113, 6-2, 78.375
98. Holland, 1109, 4-4, 46.000
99. Detroit Cody ^, 1096, 5-3, 58.893
100. Marquette, 1090, 7-1, 81.292
101. St. Johns, 1088, 7-1, 90.875
102. Byron Center, 1085, 6-2, 74.500
103. Allen Park, 1069, 7-1, 88.875
104. Richland Gull Lake, 1064, 4-4, 46.964
105. Auburn Hills Avondale ^, 1056, 5-3, 58.000
106. Orchard Lake St. Mary's, 1054, 7-1, 85.875
107. Mt. Pleasant ^, 1050, 5-3, 59.125
108. Mason ^, 1032, 5-3, 61.125
109. St. Joseph, 1028, 4-4, 50.214
110. Redford Thurston ^, 1024, 5-3, 62.875
111. East Grand Rapids ^, 986, 5-3, 69.250
112. Petoskey, 965, 6-2, 77.375
113. Trenton ^, 955, 5-3, 60.250
114. Romulus, 950, 6-2, 65.500
115. Riverview ^, 935, 5-3, 55.250
116. DeWitt, 930, 8-0, 107.000
117. Gaylord ^, 927, 5-3, 59.875
118. Linden, 921, 6-2, 74.500
119. Detroit Mumford ^, 919, 5-3, 61.125
120. Middleville Thornapple Kellogg, 914, 4-4, 46.000
121. Cedar Springs, 910, 7-1, 87.500
122. Grand Rapids Christian ^, 895, 5-3, 65.125
123. Fruitport, 890, 4-4, 48.625
124. Stevensville Lakeshore, 887, 6-2, 80.071
125. Sault Ste. Marie, 886, 4-4, 46.750
126. Niles ^, 885, 5-3, 60.589
127. Coldwater, 876, 7-1, 73.875
128. Haslett, 874, 4-4, 55.750
129. Tecumseh ^, 869, 5-3, 62.125
130. New Boston Huron, 867, 7-1, 78.875
131. Warren Fitzgerald ^, 857, 5-3, 55.625
132. Zeeland West, 850, 8-0, 95.000
133. Dearborn Divine Child, 848, 6-2, 66.857
134. Bay City John Glenn, 847, 6-2, 59.500
135. Battle Creek Harper Creek ^, 845, 5-3, 53.250
136. St. Clair, 844, 6-2, 76.375
137. Edwardsburg, 839, 7-1, 84.625
138. Chelsea, 838, 6-2, 75.125
139. Detroit Old Redford ^, 837, 5-3, 47.889
140. Charlotte, 836, 4-4, 41.500
141. Milan, 828, 4-4, 40.750
142. Plainwell, 812, 7-1, 77.750
143. Ada Forest Hills Eastern, 808, 4-4, 46.750
144. Marysville ^, 806, 5-3, 62.250
145. Spring Lake ^, 802, 5-3, 56.625
146. Detroit Denby, 800, 4-4, 54.375
147. Ionia, 796, 4-4, 46.375
148. Vicksburg, 794, 6-2, 68.250
149. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood ^, 790, 5-3, 44.750
150. Eaton Rapids ^, 773, 5-3, 55.000
151. Cadillac, 747, 8-0, 103.000
152. Goodrich, 737, 7-1, 76.875
153. Ferndale, 723, 4-4, 47.500
154. Three Rivers ^, 722, 5-3, 62.000
155. Dearborn Heights Robichaud, 717, 7-1, 79.786
156. Yale, 716, 6-2, 61.625
157. Comstock Park, 703, 4-4, 46.875
158. Hudsonville Unity Christian, 693, 4-4, 46.000
159. Harper Woods Chandler Park Academy, 691, 6-2, 67.875
160. Detroit Country Day, 690, 4-4, 46.500
161. Allendale, 689, 4-4, 46.250
162. Muskegon Orchard View ^, 662, 5-3, 50.750
163. Williamston, 659, 6-2, 69.250
164. Paw Paw ^, 657, 5-3, 53.875
165. Grand Rapids Catholic Central ^, 655, 5-3, 60.000
166. Lansing Sexton, 652, 8-0, 111.000
167. Whitehall, 644, 6-2, 59.500
168. Grosse Ile, 640, 6-2, 67.625
169. Kalamazoo Hackett ^, 635, 5-3, 45.536
170. Detroit Collegiate Prep, 634, 4-4, 42.250
171. Richmond, 630, 7-1, 77.875
172. Imlay City, 629, 4-4, 36.500
173. Grand Rapids South Christian, 623, 6-2, 74.125
174. Wyoming Kelloggsville ^, 610, 5-3, 51.750
175. Wyoming Godwin Heights ^, 609, 5-3, 44.625
176. Saginaw Swan Valley, 602, 8-0, 89.000
177. Clawson ^, 589, 5-3, 49.125
178. North Muskegon, 577, 4-4, 36.250
179. Birch Run, 575, 7-1, 75.750
180. Essexville Garber ^, 574, 5-3, 51.250
181. Remus Chippewa Hills, 567, 6-2, 70.250
182. Flint Powers Catholic, 553, 6-2, 68.500
183. Marine City, 553, 8-0, 96.000
184. Freeland, 549, 7-1, 74.875
185. Kingsford, 546, 4-4, 45.667
186. Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, 545, 6-2, 56.786
187. Stanton Central Montcalm ^, 539, 5-3, 55.750
188. Portland, 538, 4-4, 48.875
189. Menominee, 532, 8-0, 91.730
190. Detroit University Prep, 530, 6-2, 60.264
191. River Rouge, 530, 7-1, 73.143
192. Frankenmuth, 528, 7-1, 75.750
193. Gladwin ^, 528, 5-3, 47.000
194. Ida, 527, 6-2, 58.500
195. Hopkins, 522, 7-1, 74.804
196. Grayling, 517, 4-4, 41.643
197. Lansing Catholic, 515, 8-0, 94.000
198. Almont, 512, 8-0, 85.889
199. Carrollton, 511, 4-4, 37.250
200. Newaygo, 506, 7-1, 73.625
201. Olivet, 505, 6-2, 64.125
202. Berrien Springs ^, 501, 5-3, 53.500
203. Muskegon Oakridge, 501, 7-1, 72.875
204. Onsted ^, 499, 5-3, 41.125
205. Ovid-Elsie ^, 487, 5-3, 53.000
206. Chesaning, 480, 4-4, 41.375
207. Detroit Central Collegiate ^, 479, 5-3, 52.018
208. Manistee, 479, 4-4, 40.375
209. Stockbridge ^, 462, 5-3, 50.625
210. Reed City, 461, 7-1, 77.750
211. Clare, 445, 6-2, 65.625