Drive for Detroit: Week 5 Preview
September 22, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
There are 100 undefeated Michigan high school football teams at the midpoint of this season. Another 136 teams have only one loss heading into Week 5, which will be played out in most places tonight.
Eventually every fall, the elite emerge from all of those with great starts. And this looks like it's going to be that week for the 2015 season.
A number of our undefeated teams take on those from the group with one loss. Many of those matchups are mentioned below in this week’s Drive for Detroit preview, powered by MI Student Aid. Many more may be discussed in Monday's review of the weekend; be sure to tune back in then.
To see the weekend's full schedule, check out the MHSAA Score Center. All games below are Friday unless noted.
Bay & Thumb
Millington (4-0) at Frankenmuth (4-0)
A year doesn’t go by when this isn’t one of the must-see games from the Saginaw Bay area. There’s just too much history between the two; Millington has handed Frankenmuth its only two Tri-Valley Conference East losses over the last five seasons, and three of the Cardinals’ five league losses over the last five seasons came to the Eagles. Frankenmuth owns the most recent victory, 28-7 last year, and has outscored four opponents by a combined 150-20 this fall. Millington’s margin so far is 182-28 – and this one could see more offense than defense with standout quarterbacks Jared Davis and Bryce Bearss leading the Eagles and Cardinals, respectively.
Others that caught my eye: Brighton (3-1) at Grand Blanc (4-0), Croswell-Lexington (3-1) at Algonac (4-0), Montrose (3-1) at Lake Fenton (4-0), Midland Dow (4-0) at Flint Powers Catholic (2-2).
Greater Detroit
Detroit Catholic Central (4-0) at Birmingham Brother Rice (3-1)
What gives this an edge over the many other 4-0 vs. 3-1 matchups in the Detroit area this week is a few-fold. The winner certainly has an upper hand in the Detroit Catholic League Central, annually one of the state’s most competitive leagues. But it’s also intriguing because of Brother Rice’s bounce-back from 2-7 a year ago – its first sub-.500 finish since 1985. The Warriors’ lone loss this fall was to Indiana power Mishawaka Penn; DCC handed previously-undefeated Cleveland St. Ignatius a first loss last week and also owns an always-impressive win over Toledo Whitmer. The Shamrocks’ 35-7 win over Brother Rice in 2015 was their first against the rival after three straight losses; Rice surely will be looking to start a new streak.
Others that caught my eye: Romulus (4-0) at Dearborn (3-1), Detroit East English (3-1) at Detroit Cass Tech (4-0), Romeo (3-1) at Utica Eisenhower (4-0), Dearborn Fordson (4-0) at Redford Thurston (3-1).
Mid-Michigan
Stockbridge (3-1) at Lake Odessa Lakewood (4-0)
These two have combined to score 73 and then 103 points in their most recent meetings, respectively, and Stockbridge quarterback Mason Gee-Montgomery is coming off throwing eight touchdown passes to pass 100 for his career last week. Lakewood hasn’t scored fewer than 37 points this fall, and both teams are giving up their share as well. In addition to the obvious entertainment factor, this is a big one because it could decide the eventual Greater Lansing Athletic Conference champion. The Vikings are reigning champs, and with Stockbridge and Olivet are 2-0 in league play with two more league games left after this weekend.
Others that caught my eye: Laingsburg (4-0) at Fowler (3-1), East Lansing (2-2) at Holt (2-2), Flint Hamady (2-2) at Durand (4-0), New Lothrop (4-0) at Byron (3-1).
Northern Lower Peninsula
Charlevoix (4-0) at Maple City Glen Lake (3-1)
The Northern Michigan Football Conference Leaders division standings could clear up a little bit this week with this result; the winner will join Frankfort (which plays a crossover) as the only undefeated teams left in league play. This isn’t unfamiliar territory for the Rayders; they finished second in the Leaders in 2014. Glen Lake hasn’t been in contention since the formation of the NMFC that fall – but looks early more like the 2012 and 2013 teams that won Northwest Conference titles. The Lakers’ loss this season was by a mere eight points to powerhouse Traverse City St. Francis, and they beat 3-1 Onekama 42-7 a week ago. Charlevoix has an impressive win though too, by eight over NMFC Legends co-leader Boyne City in Week 2.
Others that caught my eye: Johannesburg-Lewiston (2-2) at Frankfort (4-0), Traverse City Central (4-0) at Gaylord (2-2), Houghton Lake (3-1) at Roscommon (4-0), Lincoln Alcona (3-1) at Whittemore-Prescott (3-1).
Southeast & Border
Adrian Madison (3-1) at Sand Creek (4-0)
Six of eight teams in the Tri-County Conference are .500 or better so far, and the league has a couple of significant matchups this week. Sand Creek gets a chance to prove it will stick in contention with also-undefeated Clinton and Ottawa Lake Whiteford. The Aggies have more wins than they’ve totaled in an entire season since 2011, but Madison – which lost to Clinton by only eight in Week 3 – is halfway to earning its first playoff berth since 2009.
Others that caught my eye: Tecumseh (2-2) at Chelsea (4-0), Springport (4-0) at Homer (2-2), Dundee (2-2) at Ida (4-0), Grand Ledge (3-1) at Jackson (2-2).
Southwest Corridor
Lawton (4-0) at Gobles (4-0)
This rivalry has been on, and then off, and now on again a few times over the last 15 years, but this edition might be the most meaningful in a while – and not just because Lawton won a nail-biter 30-27 a year ago. Both are staring down reigning champion Schoolcraft in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Central, with Lawton getting the Eagles next week and Gobles getting them in Week 7. Both are contenders to take the title away; Gobles has scored at least 50 points three weeks in a row, and Lawton has given up 12 – total – in four games.
Others that caught my eye: Battle Creek Lakeview (3-0) at Portage Central (3-1), Edwardsburg (4-0) at Dowagiac (2-2), Parchment (3-1) at St. Joseph Lake Michigan Catholic (4-0), Bark River-Harris (2-2) at Climax-Scotts (4-0) on Saturday.
Upper Peninsula
Lake Linden-Hubbell (4-0) at Newberry (4-0)
The Mid-Eastern Conference has seen the share of top games in the Upper Peninsula so far, and this one could finish the sorting for this season. Newberry, in fact, can clinch a share of the league title, which would its first since 2005 in the Straits Area Conference. The Lakes won the final Great Western Conference title last fall but have played only one Mid-Eastern game so far. They need to win this one to not only take the lead, but keep alive a 13-game regular-season winning streak that this fall included handing Hancock its only loss so far.
Others that caught my eye: Calumet (3-1) at Hancock (3-1), Norway (4-0) at Ishpeming (2-1), Menominee (4-0) at Kingsford (3-1), Gwinn (3-1) at Negaunee (4-0).
West Michigan
Whitehall (4-0) at Montague (4-0)
This is a rematch of one of the classics from the Muskegon area a year ago; Montague won 29-28 in Week 5, which ended up contributing significantly to the Wildcats winning the West Michigan Conference championship. Comparing results against the same first four opponents from a year ago, Montague has been far more dominant this fall, outscoring those teams by a combined 173-24. Whitehall earned an impressive 50-47 win over much-improved Wyoming Kelloggsville in Week 1 and hasn’t slowed, running for 402 yards against Hart last week.
Others that caught my eye: Zeeland West (3-1) at Byron Center (3-1), Grand Rapids Christian (4-0) at Cedar Springs (3-1), Muskegon Reeths-Puffer (3-1) at Muskegon (3-1), Lowell (4-0) at Greenville (3-1).
8-Player
Battle Creek St. Philip (4-0) at Camden-Frontier (3-0), Saturday
Camden-Frontier made its 8-player debut Week 1 by breaking a 19-game losing streak and has absolutely dominated, outscoring its first three opponents by a combined 194-8 – although two of those wins came against the same team. Regardless, the Redskins will find out Saturday where they might sit when it comes to the state’s elite. St. Philip has had a couple of closer-than-usual wins, two by 10 or fewer points. But the reigning MHSAA runner-up has won 16 of its last 17 games.
Others that caught my eye: Deckerville (4-0) at Rudyard (3-1), Pickford (3-1) at Posen (2-2).
Second Half’s weekly “Drive for Detroit” previews are powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Student Financial Services Bureau located within the Michigan Department of Treasury. MI Student Aid encourages students to pursue postsecondary education by providing access to student financial resources and information, including various student financial assistance programs to help make college more affordable for Michigan students. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 savings programs (MET/MESP) and eight additional aid programs within its Student Scholarships and Grants division. Click for more information and connect with MI Student Aid on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.
PHOTO: Flint Hamady (blue helmets) downed Byron in Week 2 and takes on Durand this week; Byron takes on New Lothrop, which with Durand is tied for first in the Genesee Area Conference Blue. (Click to see more from Varsity Monthly.)
Pennfield Football 'Family' Ready for Kickoff with New Coach, New Home
By
Pam Shebest
Special for MHSAA.com
August 22, 2023
BATTLE CREEK – New coach, new stadium, new attitude.
The Pennfield football players cannot wait to start restoring Panther Pride.
After suffering through an 0-9 season last year, “All the varsity players who have been here through the bad were skeptical – including myself – of new coaches, new everything, basically,” senior outside linebacker/wide receiver Thomas Kurtz said.
“But once we got familiar with the coaches and got to know them more, it felt like they were always here. It felt like their impact was so profound that it felt right. Me, personally, I’m loving every second of it.”
Architect of the new-look Panthers is head coach Robbie Hattan, who is also loving every second of his new position.
If enthusiasm can inspire players, Hattan’s the guy.
He led Colon to the MHSAA 8-player Division 1 title in 2019 and was named Coach of the Year for the division by the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association. Over his seven years at Colon, Hattan’s Magi also were 2021 Division 2 runners-up and made Regional Finals or Semifinals three more seasons.
He hopes that success translates to Pennfield, which has hovered around .500 most of the last decade after several previous impressive finishes.
A key, Hattan said, is leading with love.
“I’ve always led with love,” he said. “It’s gotten hard to get these kids used to another man telling them, ‘Hey, I love you.’
“We define family in our program as ‘Forget about me, I love you.’ Love is sacrifice. If we can get our kids to be able to sacrifice themselves for the team, for the family, we’ll be very successful.”
Players were a bit skeptical at first, said Hattan, who started work as the district’s facilities and maintenance director Jan. 27.
“I went the first two weeks before (players) would talk to me,” he said. “They kind of gave me the cold shoulder. Then they got to know me a little bit.”
Kurtz said he was “a little scared because this is the new head coach. The more I got to know him, the more approachable he seemed and the more friendly he seemed.”
Interactions with players were important to Hattan when choosing his assistants.
“I need to know, do you love kids, do you love athletes and building a positive culture,” he said. “You can be the best Xs and Os guys, but if you’re not great for kids, I don’t want you.”
Two assistants are Pennfield legends Chris Lok and Jason Livengood, both members of the last Panthers football team to win a state championship. That was in 1991.
“Pennfield has a rich tradition of being successful,” Hattan said. “From 1973 to 2013, they didn’t have losing seasons.
“The history is here; the fans want to support. It’s getting the kids to feel like somebody loves them.”
Talking about Lok and Livengood, “They bleed Pennfield,” said Hattan, who also kept Matt Merlington and Chris Minor from last year’s staff.
The coach has one other legend connection on the team.
Senior Daniel Wells is the grandson of “legendary Pennfield coach Dave Hudson, who coached all those winning seasons,” Hattan said.
Wells said his grandfather is “excited to see that someone with a lot of knowledge is coming in and really trying to educate us on the game of football like if we haven’t seen it before.”
Hattan named Jason Porter, who coached at Kalamazoo College and Kalamazoo Loy Norrix, as his defensive coordinator. Hattan also brought two assistants with him from Colon: Joe Sweeter and Zach Doerr.
“Any school I’ve been at, I’ve asked (Sweeter) to come with me,” Hattan said. “He was with me at Litchfield, he was with me when I coached semi-pro football (Battle Creek Coyotes), he helped me at Gull Lake for a year, he was with me at Colon.”
Doerr lives in Battle Creek, and when the commute to Colon became a bit much, he stepped away. Now he is back with a much shorter drive.
Talking about that makes Hattan laugh since he currently lives in Colon and makes the drive to Battle Creek each day.
“My kids still go to school (at Colon) while we look for houses in Battle Creek,” Hattan said.
“We want to be in this community, because for me building a family and a culture that kids want to be a part of requires around-the-clock availability as a football coach.”
And experience abounds among the leadership.
“I look at my offensive staff and we have guys who have 25, 30 years coaching experience,” Hattan said. “When you add all of the years our staff has coaching, I don’t think there’s a staff in the state that has as much credentials as this staff has.”
Community & Communication
The first year Hattan was at Colon, the team played 11-player football. The Magi then switched to 8-player for the last six.
Going back to 11-player is much easier, Hattan said.
“The biggest difference is the speed,” he said. “In 8-man, if you are fast, you can be good, where 11-man, there are more guys. Yes, it’s good to be fast, but you also have to have some size to make some holes.
“Eight-man’s tough because you’re always like, ‘I wish I had one more player. If I have one more player, I could fill that hole better or I could do this.’”
One highlight this season is a brand-new football stadium and Hattan said he was amazed watching every step of the artificial turf installation.
“It was an incredible process,” he said. “Once the different shades of green were rolled out, all the white was cut in. The numbers, the lines, the hash marks, the logo, the letters were cut in and sewn in by this crew.
“There’s also new bleachers, track, lights, concessions. It’s going to be a wonderful complex for our community.”
Hattan added that everything but the field itself was a small part of a $30-million bond passed in 2020. The turf will be paid for through fundraising efforts.
Hattan noted the field also has lines for lacrosse and soccer sewn in, and an eight-lane track will be installed.
“Our band is going to be able to be out here. We’re putting in a video board, so maybe we can do some movie nights out here. There are a lot of different things we can do for our community.”
The football team is also a community, Wells said.
The biggest difference this year is “community and communication,” the senior linebacker/guard said. “A lot more conversation with coaches.
“This year I’ve already talked to Coach more than I talked to my last coach in three years. The communication is on a whole new level.”
As for learning a new system, “It’s pretty tough having to relearn everything including the basics, but it’s not hard as long as you are willing to constantly learn more and better yourself as a team,” Wells added.
Communication and love were on display early.
When an upperclassman wanted to join the team late, Hattan allowed the players to decide.
When some of the players balked, Kurtz spoke up.
“I believe that everybody deserves a chance to do something they love,” he said. “I wouldn’t want to deny somebody the chance of making memories and maybe even creating new bonds with people they never would have imagined they would.”
The player is on the team and fitting in well.
“That really moved me,” Hattan said. “That’s how you build culture. As you get kids to understand that, at the end of the day, if you can say, ‘Forget about me, I love you.’"
Players had their first taste of competition during a non-scored scrimmage at Sturgis.
“I think we competed very well,” Hattan said. “Our kids were flying around the field and very enthusiastic about football. Our defense was a very strong point of our team.
“Kids were rallying to the football and trusting their teammates to do their job. Offensively, we looked like we were new to the system we are just putting in. We had some hiccups but had a lot of positive things.”
Pennfield begins the season Thursday at Lake Odessa Lakewood. Home opener is Sept. 8 against Parma Western.
“We might be tightening down a couple screws (at the new stadium) Sept. 7,” Hattan said. “But we’ll be ready to play.”
Pam Shebest served as a sportswriter at the Kalamazoo Gazette from 1985-2009 after 11 years part-time with the Gazette while teaching French and English at White Pigeon High School. She can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Calhoun, Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Jabrael Powell cuts into an opening during Pennfield’s intrasquad scrimmage this month. (Middle) From left: Thomas Kurtz, coach Robbie Hattan and senior Daniel Wells stand together in the team’s new stadium. (Below) Isaiah Adams, carrying the ball, works to get to the edge with a defender in pursuit. (Action photos courtesy of Pennfield Sports Nation; stadium photo by Pam Shebest.)