Drive for Detroit: Week 7 Preview
October 10, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Tonight begins the final third of this football regular season.
And two thirds of the 602 teams eligible for this fall’s MHSAA 11 and 8-Player Playoffs still have a chance to earn what for most is a once or twice-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
That percentage, as well as the number of league championships wrapped up this fall, will change drastically by the end of this Saturday night. Below is a look at some of the games that will have the greatest impact on both lists. You can catch a number of those games and 29 total live on MHSAA.tv – click for the listing and links to those games.
"Drive for Detroit" is sponsored by MI Student Aid.
Bay & Thumb
St. Clair (6-0) at Marine City (6-0)
The winner is guaranteed a share of the Macomb Area Conference Silver title, which would be Marine City’s second league title in three seasons and St. Clair’s first in 2014. Although the Mariners are scoring more than 40 points per game, their defense has been arguably more impressive giving up only 49 points over six games and no more than 14 to any opponent. But St. Clair – winner of last year’s meeting 35-21 – will provide the toughest test so far. The Saints have averaged 32 points per game against a schedule that’s included four teams still eligible for automatic playoff bids.
Keep an eye on these: FRIDAY Clare (6-0) at Beaverton (6-0), Port Huron (5-1) at Port Huron Northern (5-1), Freeland (5-1) at Saginaw Swan Valley (4-2), Flushing (3-3) at Fenton (5-1).
Greater Detroit
Almont (6-0) at Richmond (6-0)
A share of the Blue Water Area Conference title will go to the victor of this matchup for the third time this decade, and Almont has won six of the rivals’ last 10 meetings. The Raiders, as usual, are a defensive force giving up only 47 points so far while scoring nearly 50 per game against a group that includes two four-win teams and another at 3-3. Richmond’s scores have been closer against a similarly successful set of opponents – and it’s fair to believe this game will be much closer than last year’s 51-12 Almont win.
Keep an eye on these: FRIDAY South Lyon (6-0) at Walled Lake Western (5-1), Romeo (5-1) at Macomb Dakota (4-2), Orchard Lake St. Mary's (6-0) at Detroit Catholic Central (3-3), Livonia Franklin (6-0) at Dearborn Fordson (5-1).
Mid-Michigan
Carson City-Crystal (4-2) at Breckenridge (5-1)
A 16-6 Week 1 loss to still-unbeaten Beaverton keeps looking better and better for the reigning Division 8 runner-up Huskies, who have yet to be challenged since with a combined 220-14 margin of victory over the last five games. Breckenridge also owns a 3-0 record against Carson City-Crystal since joining the Mid-State Activities Conference, and last year’s 30-12 win clinched the league title. Tonight’s meeting will decide the outright championship again – and all of the above surely is motivation for the Eagles, who quietly will guarantee an eighth-straight winning season with one more victory this fall.
Keep an eye on these: FRIDAY Olivet (6-0) at Lake Odessa Lakewood (2-4), Canton (3-3) at Howell (3-3), St. Johns (4-2) at Fowlerville (5-1), Williamston (4-2) at Mason (6-0).
Northern Lower Peninsula
Harbor Springs (5-1) at Johannesburg-Lewiston (6-0)
It’s hard to beat out a matchup of undefeated league leaders for the week’s top game (see Glen Lake/Kingsley below). But while those two are setting the pace in their divisions of the Northern Michigan Football League – in fact, Glen Lake has clinched a share of the Leaders – this matchup should decide the outright champion of the NMFL Legacy, either tonight or eventually. A victory this evening would give the Rams the championship after they finished second in the Legacy two of the first five seasons since the league was formed. Johannesburg-Lewiston won last season’s title thanks to an 18-15 win over Harbor Springs – and while a victory tonight would earn the Cardinals only a share of this year’s crown, their final obstacle to claiming it outright would be a Week 9 opponent that hasn’t won a game this fall.
Keep an eye on these: FRIDAY Maple City Glen Lake (6-0) at Kingsley (6-0), Traverse City West (4-2) at Cadillac (4-2), Mancelona (4-2) at Charlevoix (4-2), Traverse City Central (5-1) at Alpena (3-3).
Southeast & Border
Jonesville (5-1) at Reading (5-1)
No one should be surprised Reading is playing tonight for a share of the Big 8 Conference title – the reigning Division 8 champion Rangers are attempting to win their third-straight league championship and have been tripped up by only unbeaten Pewamo-Westphalia in Week 1. Jonesville, meanwhile, is enjoying its most memorable season in years as it pursues its first league title since 2002 after last week guaranteeing its first winning season since 2013. Also not surprising: After being shut out by the Pirates, Reading has averaged nearly 53 points per game in league play. But the Comets have given up only 43 total including just 18 in their opening night loss to still-unbeaten Hillsdale.
Keep an eye on these: FRIDAY Ottawa Lake Whiteford (4-2) at Clinton (6-0), Dexter (5-1) at Pinckney (5-1), Coldwater (5-1) at Parma Western (5-1), Ida (3-3) at Hillsdale (6-0).
Southwest Corridor
Battle Creek Lakeview (6-0) at St. Joseph (6-0)
While this doesn’t mean anything of league significance to the leaders of their respective Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference divisions, it could provide a nice confidence boost as both programs should have an opportunity for a special postseason as well. Lakeview is the best in the SMAC East, having clinched a share of that title after two straight sub-.500 overall season finishes, and the Spartans yet to allow an opponent to get within single digits. St. Joseph is tied with Portage Northern for first in the SMAC West, with its most impressive offensive and defensive output so far since finishing 10-2 in 2015.
Keep an eye on these: FRIDAY Vicksburg (5-1) at Paw Paw (6-0), Delton Kellogg (4-2) at Kalamazoo United (3-3), Decatur (3-3) at Centreville (4-2), Jackson Lumen Christi (6-0) at Battle Creek Harper Creek (3-3).
Upper Peninsula
West Iron County (5-1) at Ishpeming (4-2)
Tonight’s winner moves into first place by a game in the Western Peninsula Athletic Conference Iron with two league games to play. These two decided the title last season, as Ishpeming won their regular-season meeting 14-0 and then came back four weeks later and beat West Iron in their Division 8 District Final 38-0. This latest round might be decided when the Wykons are on offense. They score only 25 points per game, yet Ishpeming has given up more than 30 in four games – but won two of those.
Keep an eye on these: FRIDAY Menominee (4-2) at Marquette (2-4), Hancock (4-2) at Iron Mountain (6-0), L'Anse (4-2) at Ishpeming Westwood (4-2), Gladstone (3-3) at Escanaba (5-1).
West Michigan
Hudsonville (5-1) at Rockford (6-0)
There’s still time for the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red to get shaken up regardless of what happens this weekend – Rockford finishes with third-place Grandville and fourth-place East Kentwood, and the Eagles still face the Falcons and Holland West Ottawa. But this one will play a role regardless of what’s yet to come. The Eagles somewhat stunned previously-undefeated Grandville 44-21 last week, and are only a one-point Week 2 loss to Holt from undefeated – and Holt suddenly looks like one of the Lansing area’s best. The Rams clinched a spot in the playoffs for the MHSAA-record 25th straight season, and this actually has been their best start since 2009 – despite playing nonleague versus Muskegon Mona Shores, Grand Rapids Christian and Lowell, all in contention for their O-K divisions’ titles.
Keep an eye on these: FRIDAY Zeeland East (5-1) at Byron Center (6-0), Cedar Springs (5-1) at Lowell (4-2), Central Montcalm (6-0) at Reed City (4-2), Grand Rapids Catholic Central (5-1) at Spring Lake (4-2).
8-Player
Brethren (4-2) at Mesick (5-1)
Like the stories for many 8-player teams, 11-player football was not frequently kind to either of these teams for quite a few years before they made the switch – Brethren in 2016 and Mesick a year later. But the Bobcats are the reigning West Michigan D League champions, and Mesick was runner-up its debut season and is playing this fall for its first league title since 1998. Aside from a 44-38 loss to Mio in Week 1, Mesick has been a rare 8-player defensive force giving up 26 points total over the last five weeks with three shutouts. Brethren has scored 60 or more points three times over the last five weeks, making those units the likely key matchup.
Keep an eye on these: FRIDAY International Academy of Flint (4-2) at Morrice (6-0), Pickford (5-1) at Gaylord St. Mary (6-0), Kinde-North Huron (5-1) at Deckerville (6-0). SATURDAY Onekama (5-1) at Portland St. Patrick (6-0).
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PHOTO: Howell players charge onto the field prior to Friday’s game against Salem, an eventual 65-7 win. (Photo by Cara Kamps.)
In the Long Run: Only 15 Rushers Share State Record with 99-Yard Scoring Sprint
By
Steve Vedder
Special for MHSAA.com
August 26, 2024
Jakob Price remembers the defense forcing him into a subtle change of plans at the line of scrimmage, then about a dozen seconds later finishing his run into the MHSAA record book.
It's a rare story that only 15 football players in MHSAA history can tell, most involving similar circumstances. A couple of key blocks, the opening of but a sliver of a hole, a fortuitous breakdown on defense including a broken tackle or two, capped, in many cases, by simple luck.
When it comes to a rusher busting loose on a 99-yard run, there is much that has to fall into place. In the case of Price, a sophomore at Muskegon when he became the last player to make that rare record-tying dash on Oct. 8, 2021, it was all the above.
"I remember we ran what we called a "power 6" and I hit the line hard," Price said. "I saw that the hole off the center was clogged, and I thought I was going to get hit, but I made a move. Three guys had a shot at me, but someone took out the tackle with a block and I saw nothing but green. It was almost a safety, but then this hole opened up and I was gone."
In comparison, for instance, there have been 81 players who've thrown for at least six touchdowns in a game. But only 15 players in Michigan history have snatched a handoff and sped 99 yards to pay dirt. It's a wide cast of characters that stretches from one player who has played in 12 major league baseball games to another who collected three times as many receiving yards as rushing and whose previous longest run had been a modest 25.
The first 99-yard run chronicled in the MHSAA record book was by James Edington of Morrice, who raced 99 yards against Kingston on Oct. 29, 1999. Edington's run was one of his last during an outstanding four-year career that included being named all-state three times. He remembers the play, which came late in a playoff game, being an inside trap where he broke at least two tackles. Edington said the play wasn't designed for anything more than to keep the defense from notching a safety.
"I was just trying to get out of the end zone, get us some room," said Edington, who remembers having 4.7 speed in the 40-yard dash. "I remember it was at the end of the game and I was so tired. I was a two-way player who rarely came off the field. I know that in a 99-yard run the blocks have got to be there when the defense hits the box. I knew if I could just get past this linebacker, there was a lot of green grass in front of me."
Morrice, coincidentally, also is the only program to have a 99-yard runner in 8-player football. Morrice switched from 11 to 8-player with the start of the 2014 season, and Jake Rivers made the 99-yard sprint twice in 2015.
Saugatuck coach Bill Dunn is the only coach to have two players on the list, including his son Blake, on Sept. 25, 2015, against Decatur.
From a coaching standpoint, Bill Dunn said there is nothing like a crushing 99-yard burst to change a game's momentum. When a team is clinging to the ball at its 1-yard line, the possible outcomes are seemingly dark – from surrendering a safety to a punt that puts the opposition in prime position to score.
"A lot of things have to happen in a 99-yard run," Dunn said. "There can absolutely be luck. And it can be a backbreaker. You got a team at the 1-yard line, and the defense knows it's going to get good field position with a punt. But instead you get a guy who breaks one for 99."
Blake Dunn, now a prospect in the Cincinnati Reds system, was an all-state sprinter in high school as part of earning 16 varsity letters across four sports. Dunn said he made a "mid-line read" after the fullback dove into the line. The defense collapsed on him, Dunn cut back against the grain and was off to the races.
"Our fullback dove down the mid-line, and my read crashed down to him," said Dunn, whose 101 career touchdowns are fourth in state history while his 6,954 rushing yards rank eighth.
"When I followed my blocks through the hole, there was a bunch of open grass. I think there might have been a linebacker that almost tripped me up from the backside, but nobody was able to get me and then 99 yards later it ended in a touchdown. It was pretty cool fun in the moment and fun to look back on it now."
Kyle Raycraft of Frankenmuth made his 99-yard run against Caro on Sept. 5, 2003. Like many of his brethren’s stories, Raycraft, who remembers running for more than 200 yards and three or four touchdowns in the game, said the play came down to a couple of blocks, shaking off potential tacklers, and having daylight in front of him.
"I went up the middle and got good blocking at the line and broke a couple tackles," said Raycraft, also an all-state sprinter and currently an emergency room doctor in Sault Ste. Marie. "I really didn't think that much of it at the time. I think it got us the lead at a key time and that was exciting, but I didn't think it was so rare. There's been a lot of high school football and only (15) kids have done this, so that's a pretty short list."
Matthew Hoffman of Sanford Meridian, by his own admission, wasn't particularly fast. So speed played a minimal part in his run Sept. 11, 2015, against Beaverton.
Hoffman ran track in the spring, but not as a sprinter; he ran distances. His piece of football history was more a result of getting a couple of key blocks, breaking through the line, making a cut and finding running room along the sideline.
"I broke to the line and swerved to the left to the sidelines," said Hoffman, now a certified rescue boat operator working on the Gordie Howe International Bridge for the Bridging North America company. "I was quick and shifty and I'd get a few breakaways, but I wasn't fast. I think the defense was looking for me on the right side, and it was a counterplay to the left. The offensive line did a great job on that play.
"It was exciting, but (instead of records) it was more it just happened so quickly. People met me in the end zone after the play was over, but then we were just focused on defense and the next play."
Coleman's Mitch Franklin has another different slant on his 99-yard story. He was primarily a receiver who recorded 1,014 yards at that position as opposed to around 300 as a running back. But on Sept. 13, 2014, against Charlevoix, Franklin took advantage of a rare handoff after a quarterback sneak had netted virtually no gain on first down.
"Best blocking we had all year. A hole opened up, I stiff-armed a guy and just ran," said Franklin, a former Gladwin County sheriff’s deputy. "I remember I was fortunate to run on our right side where we had bigger guys. It was fortunate that we caught the defense off guard. I think it was about our first power run that game and a lot of fortunate things had to happen.
"One of the things I remember is our principal patting me on the back and telling me what a good run it was."
While the members of the select 99-Yard Club may have different memories as to how they successfully dashed from their team's 1-yard line into the other team's end zone, their goals were the same: Just somehow move their team from the shadow of their own goalposts into more favorable territory.
And one last goal, recalled Franklin.
"Hey, you just don't want to make that long drive home with a big, fat ‘L,’” he said. "You want to win the game. That's what was important."
The MHSAA is continuously adding to its record books, and there is no deadline for an accomplishment to be submitted. Find directions to do so and the football record books in full at this link.
PHOTOS (Top) Coleman's Mitch Franklin (right) turns upfield during a 99-yard scoring run against Charlevoix on Sept. 13, 2014. (Middle) Muskegon's Jakob Price (left) makes a move on the way to a 99-yard touchdown run against Muskegon Mona Shores in 2021. (Below) Saugatuck's Nick Stanberry breaks away for a 99-yard TD run against Kent City in 2018. (Photos provided by Franklin, Price and the Saugatuck football program.)