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Clinton Works to Keep Running, Rising

By Chip Mundy
Special for Second Half

September 22, 2016

By Chip Mundy
Special for Second Half 

CLINTON – In 2012, Clinton football coach Scott McNitt had accomplished enough during his 27-year career that he was inducted into the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Since then, McNitt, now in his 32nd year, has enjoyed the best on-the-field run of his career.

It doesn't happen often that a Hall of Fame coach reaches new heights after induction, but McNitt is proof it can happen.

Over the last three seasons, Clinton is 49-4 with three consecutive finishes with double-digit wins, two trips to the Division 6 championship game at Ford Field and one 40-game regular-season winning streak – the third longest regular-season winning streak by a Lenawee County football team since Hudson won 81 in a row from 1968-77.

All of that success – and especially the recent attention from the 40-game winning streak – has brought some unwanted credit to McNitt, who preaches the team concept and praises the work of his assistant coaches.

“It's a great accomplishment, but I can't stand hearing, 'McNitt did this,' or 'McNitt did that.' It's just that I have to be on the top line, but I've have tremendous assistants and some very, very good players,” he said.

McNitt has similar feelings about his induction into the Hall of Fame.

“The two biggest accomplishments for me have been the Hall of Fame and Ford Field,” he said. “That's every coach's dream. But this is a team thing, and there are coaches on our staff who work a lot harder than I do, and I get all the accolades.

“But it means a lot to me to stay at the same school for 32 years and outlast it. We had some seasons that weren't good. We had three 1-8 seasons in a row. We've been successful – but surviving for 32 years and keeping it going in the right direction, and I think what we have coming from our youth programs and middle school, it can continue – means a lot to me.”

Key to success

When McNitt interviewed for the Clinton job prior to the 1985 season, he was given some advice that has stuck with him for more than three decades.

“When I first got here 32 years ago, during the interview the superintendent said, 'Surround yourself with good people, and you won't have a problem,'” McNitt said. “So it's been a philosophy to put good people into the program.”

As is common with most high school programs, assistant coaches would come and go throughout the years at Clinton. But over the past eight seasons, Clinton has kept its coaching staff together – even down to junior varsity and middle school – and McNitt believes it’s no coincidence that his greatest run has happened under those circumstances.

“We've had changes over the years, and it is what it is, but this last eight years the staff we have in place now seems to jell together,” he said. “Jeremy Fielder came from Adrian College as a football coach and player. He brought a great philosophy and work ethic and new ideas.

“Our line coach, John Schuler, he was a player here in the 1980s and was on one of the best teams we had here. He's back there teaching and coaching, and he's an outstanding line coach. Joe Gillies and our JV coaches do a great job, and we also have volunteer coaches who are very familiar with the program and give us their time and dedication. We all work really well together.”

But coaches can't coach and have great success without talented players, right?

“Having good players is the other key,” McNitt said. “We've had a phenomenal run of outstanding players, and we saw it coming when they were in youth football in fifth and sixth grade. We watched them in seventh and eighth.

“They were a group of very fast kids with unbelievable speed. We watched them, and it was like, 'Holy Toledo, wait until we get ahold of these kids.'”

A trip to Ford Field – and back

From 1985-2009, Clinton made 12 playoff appearances under McNitt. The 1990 team made it to the Class C Semifinals, but more often than not, the Redskins were one-and-done in the postseason. After losing to rival Manchester in the 2012 Pre-District, Clinton was 7-13 in the playoffs.

Since then, Clinton is 9-3 in the postseason.

“I went to the Silverdome I don't know how many years and Ford Field, and we would sit there and go, 'It would be nice to get there,'” McNitt said. “But we were always in such a tough division, we'd always face Monroe Catholic Central in a District, and we could never get over that.

“In 2013, we finally got a good draw, and we felt we could make a good run, and we did (finishing runner-up in Division 6). The next year we were even better, but we drew Catholic Central in the second round, and they kind of blew us out.”

That set the stage for last season. But when the playoff pairings were announced, McNitt and his staff faced an overwhelming road to Ford Field. The first assignment: A road game at reigning Division 6 champion Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central.

A 14-10 victory in the Pre-District proved to be the sparkplug that charged the Redskins’ run.

“To go down there and win a close one gave us great confidence,” Schuler said.

Next was Madison Heights Madison, making its 11th consecutive appearance in the playoffs. On the road again, Clinton scored a huge 43-20 victory to earn a home game in the Regional against eight-time MHSAA champion Jackson Lumen Christi.

“To play the Regional Final at home against Jackson Lumen Christi was just a thrill ride,” Schuler said of the 49-20 victory that earned a Semifinal matchup with undefeated Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian, which was making its fifth consecutive appearance in the playoffs.

Clinton’s 42-20 victory over NorthPointe brought it back to Ford Field for its biggest test of all: Ithaca, which had won four of the previous five Division 6 titles and defeated Clinton 41-22 in the 2013 championship game.

“It was a murderer's row of opponents, and we did not want to play Ithaca,” McNitt said. “We wanted Traverse City St. Francis just for something new.

“We knew Ithaca and who they were, but we were hoping for something different. But we had a chance, we were up 13-0 in the third quarter, and Ithaca took over.”

Ithaca dashed Clinton's title hopes with a 27-20 victory, but the experience Clinton had gained two years earlier resulted in a calming effect.

“Personally, I thought we'd get one shot at Ford Field because normally these small towns get one shot, and it's over with,” McNitt said. “I wasn't sure we would get back. And then last year when we got there, it was just like another game.

“It wasn't as big of a hype as it was the first time, and the community loved it.”

It also added to the momentum that has been building.

“It was a momentum-builder for us, and if we stay as a team, we can make it back there,” senior running back Steve Laurell said. “It's just team effort and coaching for sure. It was a good feeling.”

New challenge

The good news at Clinton is that the Redskins are 4-0 and rolling again. The bad news is that the talented speed group has graduated. The 2016 Redskins lack the flashy skill players from the past but are a senior-orientated team boasting an experienced line.

Any coach will tell you that having an experienced, talented line is a big step toward success.

“We have some interior linemen back, but we're brand new everywhere else,” McNitt said. “We do have some senior players who have waited their turn, and we knew we'd be OK up front because we're big.”

Center Alex McIntosh is a third-year varsity player and is joined by Austin Popp and Josh Brown as key players in the trenches, while the senior backfield of Laurell at tailback and Cordell Hernandez at fullback has been “outstanding,” according to McNitt.

“We just don't have the burners, but we have solid, good players,” he said.

Clinton has outscored its opponents by a combined 164-65 this season, with its next game tonight against a 2-2 Morenci team. It's easy to look at a matchup of a 4-0 team and a 2-2 team and assume the outcome, but that sort of mentality makes McNitt a little uneasy. The community has embraced the program, and its expectations can sometimes be a little too much too soon.

“It is erupting into a very big animal,” McNitt said. “We have to be careful, and we have to corral it before it gets too out of control. But it's nice for the football program, based on our current success – getting to Ford Field two out of three years – that is where the excitement comes from.

“The community support really has been incredible.”

The season already has had one milestone. Two weeks ago, McNitt reached 200 career victories, becoming the 61st high school football coach in Michigan to reach that number. He also is 12th among active coaches with 201 wins. His overall record is 201-113-1 for a .640 winning percentage.

“I remember when I got my 100th win. Some community supporters and fathers said, ‘That's quite a big deal, but if you get to 200, that puts you in a whole different group.’ It kind of stuck with me, but I never thought I'd get there,” McNitt said, “but the past four or five years did it.”

The future at Clinton

McNitt is very realistic about what lies ahead for Clinton. But he isn't discounting anything, either.

“Can we get back to Ford Field again? The chances are probably no, but we've gone twice in three years, so it's possible,” he said. “We focus on our rival up the road here, Manchester, just seven miles away, and then try to win our league. If you do those two things, you're going to be in the playoffs and then see what happens.”

It is a sensible approach that has worked at Clinton. He has surrounded himself with good assistants and let them do their thing on the field.

“Our assistant coaches do a phenomenal job, and there are times when I just sit back and watch them do their thing,” he said. “I'm very fortunate to have people like that around us.”

Fielder was hired in as defensive coordinator nine years ago, and he recognizes that there were some up-and-down moments along the way.

“To be given that trust was huge because he's a Hall of Famer,” Fielder said. “He hired me, and I had a big role, and there were some growing pains early on. I will always be thankful for him sticking with me once we got the system figured out and once we figured out how we were going to execute.”

The players come to the varsity having learned the system at a younger age, and their coach is a man who was coaching the varsity more than a decade before they were born. And he wins. That commands respect.

“We know that the coach knows what he's doing, and he's going to make the right call at the right time, and we just need to follow what he does,” said McIntosh, the senior center. “We have no question about it. He knows what he's doing.

“I think what it is is that our coaches push us. Through practice, they expect us to do things right, and if we don't get it right the first time, they expect that we won't make the same mistake twice.”

So, the obvious question looms. How much longer does McNitt expect to coach? He didn't dodge the question.

“I could be easily done this year, or I could go another 10 years,” he said. “I want to be able to turn it over to Jeremy Fielder, our really good defensive coach. He has waited, and he is probably going to take it farther than we ever dreamed of.

“Jeremy is a phenomenal football coach.”

Although Fielder likely would be thrilled to someday succeed McNitt, he seems comfortable in his current role, too.

“Times have changed for head coaches, and it is kind of nice to know your role and coach with people you trust and just be able to do your job,” said Fielder, who also is an English teacher at the high school. “When you look at coaching, yes, the head coach is the position and it's the title, but when you get down to the nitty gritty, you're a team within a team.

“If you have an outstanding team and coach with people you respect and admire, you're happy there no matter what your role is.”

Chip Mundy served as sports editor at the Brooklyn Exponent and Albion Recorder from 1980-86, and then as a reporter and later copy editor at the Jackson Citizen-Patriot from 1986-2011. He also co-authored Michigan Sports Trivia. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.

PHOTOS: (Top) Clinton’s Steve Laurell (left) and Cordell Hernandez, shown this season against Manchester, are two of the top returning players from the 2015 Division 6 runner-up. (Middle) From left: Clinton assistant coach John Schuler, head coach Scott McNitt, defensive coordinator Jeremy Fielder. (Below) Clinton also returns multiple contributors from the offensive line that took on Ithaca during last season's Final at Ford Field. (Top photo by John Discher/Adrian Daily Telegram.)

Drive for Detroit: Playoff Week 3 Review

November 18, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Only 36 teams remain from the original 602 that opened this fall with hopes of reaching the biggest stages in Michigan high school football.

Suttons Bay, Colon, Pickford and Portland St. Patrick earned the first championship opportunities with 8-Player Semifinal wins over the weekend. And 32 more 11-player teams are one more victory from booking Thanksgiving trips to Detroit.

Below is a glance at all 36 games played during the third round of the MHSAA Playoffs. There’s plenty coming up on Second Half later this week as well as we’ll preview both 8-Player Finals and all 16 11-Player Semifinals, followed by coverage of both Saturday championship games from The Superior Dome.

"Drive for Detroit" is sponsored by MI Student Aid.

8-Player

Division 1

HEADLINER Suttons Bay 45, Kingston 14 The Norsemen (12-0) earned their first trip to the MHSAA Finals since 2004, putting up their most points since Week 6 while holding the Cardinals (9-3) to their fewest since Week 1. Suttons Bay scored 33 unanswered points to close the game, while holding Kingston scoreless during the second half. Click for more from the Traverse City Record-Eagle and see below for highlights from MI Sports Now.  

HEADLINER Colon 27, Morrice 8 The Magi (12-0) are headed to the MHSAA Finals for the first time. As expected, Colon got its toughest challenge this season from the reigning Division 1 champion Orioles – but still managed to extend its season-long streak of all 12 wins by double digits while holding Morrice (10-2) to its fewest points since the 2017 Regional Final. Click for more from the Battle Creek Enquirer and see below for highlights from JoeInsider.com.

Division 2

HEADLINER Pickford 40, Hillman 8 The 2018 Division 1 runner-up Panthers (11-1) earned another chance to play for a first championship with one of their best defensive showings of the fall. Quarterback Jimmy Storey ran for two touchdowns and threw for another score, and the Panthers held Hillman (10-2) to its fewest points since Week 2 of its final season of 11-player in 2017. Click for more from the Sault Ste. Marie Evening News and see highlights below from State Champs Sports Network.

HEADLINER Portland St. Patrick 49, Climax-Scotts 6 The Shamrocks (12-0) have put up at least 42 points in every game this season. But the story Saturday may have been the defense, which gave one of its best showings of the fall in locking down a Climax-Scotts offense averaging 34 points per game. The Panthers finished their first season of 8-player 9-3. Click for more from the Lansing State Journal.

11-Player

Division 1

HEADLINER Belleville 27, West Bloomfield 22 These two were seen as Division 1 favorites before the first kickoff this fall, and as anticipated the Lakers gave Belleville one of only two single-digit games of an otherwise dominating run this season. West Bloomfield (10-2) scored the game’s first 15 points and led into the third quarter, but the Tigers (12-0) came back and then held off a final rally to advance to the Semifinals for the second straight season. Click for more from State Champs Sports Network.

Regional Roundup Brighton 35, Hudsonville 20 The Bulldogs (10-2) are headed to the Semifinals for the first time since 2005. Brighton got up 21-0 early, and the Eagles (8-4) were unable to catch up. Davison 35, Utica Eisenhower 7 The Cardinals (10-2) will play in their first Semifinal since 2008 after holding Eisenhower (9-3) to its first single-digit scoring output since Week 1. Sterling Heights Stevenson 9, Detroit Cass Tech 7 Both entered the playoffs as additional qualifiers, but Stevenson (8-4) is carrying a five-game winning streak into its first Semifinal since 2009 after ending a five-game winning streak for the Technicians (7-5).

Division 2

HEADLINER Muskegon Mona Shores 28, Portage Northern 23 The Sailors (10-2) have had to defeat three league champions to get within another win of returning to Ford Field after finishing Division 2 runners-up a year ago. Portage Northern (10-2) led into the third quarter before a Mona Shores comeback brought the Huskies’ first double-digit wins season to a close. Click for more from the Muskegon Chronicle and see highlights below from WZZM.

Regional Roundup Walled Lake Western 21, Livonia Churchill 14 A Warriors defense giving up only 14 points per game held on through a late rally to end a six-game winning streak for Churchill (7-5) and get Western back to the Semifinals for the third time in five seasons. Detroit Martin Luther King 49, Detroit U-D Jesuit 21 This matchup of league champions went to the Detroit Public School League’s Crusaders (10-2), who won their fifth straight Regional title in ending the winningest season for Jesuit (8-4) since 2001. Birmingham Seaholm 44, Port Huron 28 The Maples (9-3) are headed back to the Semifinals for the first time since 1997 after jumping out to a big lead and holding off the Big Reds (8-4), who closed their winningest season and longest playoff run since 2011.

11-Player

Division 3

HEADLINER DeWitt 35, Edwardsburg 14 As a set, Division 3 might have had the most captivating games in the state this weekend. DeWitt (10-2) earns the “headliner” by ending a 25-game winning streak for the Eddies (11-1), who won Division 4 a year ago. Edwardsburg had given up only 69 points over its first 10 games on the field (not counting a 2-0 forfeit win Week 5), but DeWitt’s defense also earned some of the spotlight holding the Eddies to their fewest points since a 2016 Semifinal. Click for more from the Lansing State Journal.

Regional Roundup Muskegon 49, East Grand Rapids 10 After getting past East Grand Rapids just 28-23 in Week 3, the Big Reds (12-0) held the Pioneers to their season-low points total and scored the most that EGR (8-4) gave up this fall. Chelsea 28, Allen Park 27 A blocked extra point followed by a late score and conversion sent Chelsea to 12-0 for the first time and the Semifinals for the second-straight season, while Allen Park ended 9-3 for the second-straight year. River Rouge 49, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 14 The Panthers (11-1) are headed to the Semifinals for the fourth time in five seasons after scoring the most points the Eaglets (10-2) had given up since Week 2 of 2018.

Division 4

HEADLINER Detroit Country Day 24, Milan 6 The Yellowjackets (12-0) won this matchup of undefeated contenders on the strength of a defense that has held every opponent this season to 12 points or fewer and lowered its average with this win to 5.6 points allowed per game. Milan (11-1) hadn’t been held to single-digit scoring since Week 5 of 2017. Click for more from the Oakland Press.

Regional Roundup Grand Rapids Catholic Central 42, Cadillac 7 The Cougars (11-1) are in the Semifinals for the fourth-straight season after a fifth-straight game giving up seven points or fewer, as Cadillac (7-5) closed its longest playoff run since 2013. Hudsonville Unity Christian 38, Paw Paw 17 Last season’s Division 5 champion Unity (9-3) is one more win from playing for the Division 4 title this time after putting up the second-most points Paw Paw (10-2) had surrendered this fall while giving up only 11.9 per game. Flint Powers Catholic 12, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep 9 The Chargers (10-2) won their first Regional title since 2015 with the go-ahead touchdown midway through the fourth quarter, ending Notre Dame Prep’s first 10-win season since 2011 at 10-2.

Division 5

HEADLINER Detroit Denby 40, Dearborn Heights Robichaud 18 The Tars (10-2) reached double-digit wins and won a Regional title both for the first time, continuing a run that has seen them lose this season only to Division 2 contender King (twice). Robichaud (9-3) closed its winningest season since 2012. Click for more from the Dearborn Press & Guide.

Regional Roundup Kingsley 43, Freeland 21 The Stags (12-0) are headed to the Semifinals for the first time since 2005 after scoring the most Freeland (9-3) gave up in a game this fall. Kingsley has won all of its games by 12 or more points. Lansing Catholic 40, Kalamazoo United 13 The Zac Gillespie-to-Alex Watters connection played a major part in getting the Cougars (11-1) back to the Semifinals for the first time since 2015, as they connected for three of Gillespie’s four touchdown passes. The 40 points tied the most United (7-5) had given up this season. Almont 25, Saginaw Swan Valley 14 After opening the playoffs with two road games, Almont (12-0) came home to earn its first Regional title since 2014 as Swan Valley (8-4) was seeking to make the Semifinals for the third-straight season.

Division 6

HEADLINER Onsted 12, Hillsdale 0 This no doubt was the biggest stunner statewide of the weekend, as Onsted (10-2) – which three weeks ago won a playoff game for the first time since 2008 – avenged a Week 4 loss to unbeaten Hillsdale to claim its first Regional title since 1993. The Hornets (11-1) hadn’t been shut out since Week 2 of 2016 and won that first meeting with Onsted this fall 28-19. Click for more from the Adrian Daily Telegram.

Regional Roundup Maple City Glen Lake 15, Calumet 14 The Lakers (11-1) are headed to the Semifinals for the second time in four seasons after winning by the slimmest of margins, with a second-quarter 2-point conversion run the eventual decider. Calumet (10-2) suffered its two defeats this season both by 15-14 scores against teams still alive in the playoffs. Montague 48, Sanford Meridian 14 The reigning Division 6 runner-up Wildcats (10-2) have won six straight since back-to-back close league defeats, and the 14 points scored by Meridian (8-4) tied the most given up during Montague’s current run. Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central 36, Montrose 7 After Regional Finals losses the last two years by a combined three points, St. Mary (10-1) is headed back to the Semifinals for the first time since 2014 after handing Montrose (10-2) its first loss since Week 4.  

Division 7

HEADLINER Pewamo-Westphalia 36, New Lothrop 35 In what might be remembered as the top non-Finals matchup of these playoffs, the Pirates (12-0) – Division 7 champions in 2016 and 2017 – got out to a three-touchdown lead and held on to edge last season’s champion New Lothrop (11-1). The Hornets had won 11 straight games and defeated P-W 26-14 in last year’s Regional Final. Click for more from the Lansing State Journal and see below for highlights from FOX 17.

Regional Roundup Iron Mountain 21, Traverse City St. Francis 7 The Mountaineers (12-0) won their first Regional title since 2011 and reached 12 wins for the first time since 2000 by ending St. Francis’ quest for a third straight Semifinals berth. Iron Mountain held the Gladiators (8-4) scoreless into the fourth quarter. Jackson Lumen Christi 35, Schoolcraft 30 The Eagles (10-2) rallied from more than three scores down but couldn’t catch up to the reigning Division 6 champion Titans (11-0), who ran their winning streak to 24. Cass City 6, Detroit Loyola 0 The Red Hawks’ fifth shutout this season came with historic rewards as Cass City (11-1) added its first Regional title to its most successful season, with a fourth-quarter score the difference against the defensively-tough Bulldogs (6-5).

Division 8

HEADLINER Reading 26, Adrian Lenawee Christian 21 The reigning Division 8 champion Rangers were trailing into the fourth quarter before scoring the go-ahead points with just over eight minutes to play. Both teams’ defenses bent just a bit: Reading (11-1) hadn’t given up more than 14 points all season, and Lenawee (10-2) hadn’t given up more than 14 since its Week 2 loss to Sand Creek. The Cougars concluded their winningest season, which included their first playoff victory two weeks ago. Click for more from the Hillsdale Daily News.

Regional Roundup Beal City 27, Ishpeming 14 The Aggies (11-1) won their first Regional title since 2014, scoring all of their points before Ishpeming (9-3) got on the board. The Hematites were making a second-straight Regional Final appearance. Ubly 56, Saginaw Nouvel 36 The Bearcats (10-2) went over 50 points for the fifth time this season to win their second Regional title in four years and despite giving up a season-high point total to Nouvel (7-5). Fowler 33, Royal Oak Shrine 0 The Eagles (11-1) won their first Regional title since 2011, continuing a bounce-back run after two straight 4-5 finishes. Shrine finished 9-3, also with more wins than the last two seasons combined.

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PHOTO: Pewamo-Westphalia's Ethan Thelen (10) breaks multiple New Lothrop tackles during Friday's Division 7 Regional Final win. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)