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Drive for Detroit: Week 8 in Review

October 16, 2017

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor 

We’re chewing on a lot of football numbers this week at the MHSAA office with this season’s playoff selection just days away.

Some of the most important after Week 8 are 176 – as in the number of 11-player teams that have earned spots in that 256-team playoff field – and 78, the number of teams one win away from automatic qualification.

But this second-to-last weekend of the regular season gave us plenty of other numbers to enjoy as well. Like 431, the number of career wins and an MHSAA record for Farmington Hills Harrison coach John Herrington after his team defeated Berkley 39-0. Ionia also set an MHSAA record Friday, coming back from 32 points down at halftime to beat McBain 41-40 in the largest football comeback in MHSAA history.

How about 703, the number of running (238) and passing (465) yards combined for Essexville Garber’s Hunter Bridenbaugh in a 60-47 win over North Branch? That total, as reported by the Bay City Times, will rank third in the national record book once submitted and approved. Then there’s 616, the total passing yards for Grayling’s Justin Nicholas in a 58-46 win over Benzie Central as reported by the Traverse City Record-Eagle – which rank as the second-most passing yards in one game in MHSAA history.

Finally, 27. Congrats to Flat Rock, which clinched its first playoff berth since 1990 – 27 years ago – with a 14-7 win over New Boston Huron.

And if that’s not all … check out below the results that jumped out most from all of the statewide action in this week’s “Drive for Detroit” powered by MI Student Aid. 

Bay & Thumb

Algonac 34, Richmond 14

One of the best stories statewide over the last few seasons, Algonac (7-1) clinched its first outright league title since 1972 by downing second-place Richmond in the Blue Water Area Conference after splitting the championship with the Blue Devils (7-1) in 2015. It’s key to recall Algonac was 1-8 in 2014 and hadn’t had a winning season since 2005 before rattling off a combined 28-5 record over the last three. Click for more from the Port Huron Times Herald.

Also noted:

Midland Dow 45, Flint Carman-Ainsworth 14 – Thanks to a one-point loss to Bay City Central in Week 2, Dow (7-1) trailed the Cavaliers (5-3) by a win in the Saginaw Valley League Red entering the conference finale before forcing a shared title.

Midland 35, Lapeer 14 – The Chemics (7-1) finished a perfect run through the SVL Blue while putting third-place Lapeer (5-3) into a must-win situation this week to guarantee a playoff spot.

Saginaw Swan Valley 36, Alma 19 – This was the final obstacle Swan Valley (7-1) needed to navigate to clinch the outright Tri-Valley Conference Central title; Alma (6-2) is one of three teams that tied for second.

Harbor Beach 26, Ubly 14 – The Pirates (7-1) came away with the Greater Thumb Conference East title by downing second-place Ubly (6-2) in their final league game of this season. 

Greater Detroit

Detroit Martin Luther King 17, Detroit Cass Tech 7

With these rivals this season in different divisions of the Detroit Public School League, King (7-1) avenged a pair of 2016 losses to the rival Technicians while holding Cass Tech (5-2) to its fewest points since 2013. But while winning this matchup frequently makes the victor the best in the PSL, King still has a tough one ahead – the Crusaders will face undefeated East English on Friday in the PSL A championship game. Click for more from the Detroit News.

Also noted:

Warren DeLaSalle 20, Detroit Catholic Central 6 – The Pilots (6-2) finished a perfect run through the Catholic League Central, earning themselves a rematch this week with DCC (5-3) this time for the Prep Bowl A-B championship.

Warren Michigan Collegiate 46, Harper Woods Chandler Park 20 – The Charter School Conference title came down to this game as both teams entered undefeated in league play; Michigan Collegiate (8-0) remains undefeated overall while Chandler Park (5-3) must win this week to guarantee a playoff spot.

Grosse Pointe North 45, Roseville 28 – The Norsemen (5-2) and Port Huron both trailed Roseville (5-3) by a win in the Macomb Area Conference Blue entering the weekend, and all three will share the league title thanks to North’s win.

Ferndale 20, Hazel Park 17 (2OT) – Ferndale (7-1) also forced a three-way championship in the Oakland Activities Association Blue, giving Hazel Park (5-3) its first league loss to create a first-place tie between these two teams and Auburn Hills Avondale. 

Mid-Michigan

Haslett 20, Williamston 14

Coming off a league title-deciding loss to rival DeWitt, Haslett bounced back to move to 6-2 – two wins better than a year ago and tying their most since 2006. The Vikings’ good fortune was accompanied by more hard luck for Williamston (5-3), which has three defeats by a combined 14 points and must win this week to guarantee a playoff spot against a Lake Fenton team that hasn’t lost since opening night. Click for more from the Lansing State Journal.

Also noted:

Olivet 27, Berrien Springs 17 – The Eagles (8-0) moved to within one more win of their first perfect regular season since 2005 by avenging last season’s 61-7 playoff loss to the Shamrocks (6-2).

East Lansing 9, Lansing Sexton 7 – This shouldn’t result in Sexton (5-3) not earning a playoff bid with winless Eastern up next, but it got East Lansing (6-2) into the playoffs with a more precarious game coming up against playoff hopeful Okemos.

DeWitt 33, Linden 3 – The Panthers (7-1) have won six straight recent meetings with Linden (6-2), including the first two of this string in the playoffs.

Portland 29, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep 27 – In a great playoff prep game for both, Portland (7-1) survived its closest since a Week 2 loss while the Fighting Irish (6-2) have suffered their two defeats by a combined seven points. 

Northern Lower Peninsula

Lake City 35, Lincoln Alcona 34

The Highland Conference champion Trojans (8-0) moved to within one more win of their first perfect regular-season since the start of the playoff era in 1975 and after going only 2-7 a year ago. Alcona (6-2) pulled within a score of the lead multiple times and should be a dangerous playoff team – the Tigers’ losses this season are by a combined three points. Click for more from the Cadillac News.

Also noted:

Boyne City 40, Elk Rapids 10 – The Ramblers (8-0) guaranteed the Northern Michigan Football League Leaders championship will come down to this week’s matchup with undefeated Traverse City St. Francis; Elk Rapids (6-2) can still this week get to seven wins for the first time since 2010.

Gaylord St. Mary 30, Harbor Springs 0 – The Snowbirds (8-0) secured a share of the NMFL Legacy title while sending Harbor Springs (4-4) into second place and hoping for both a split title and an at-large playoff bid.

Whittemore-Prescott 42, Hillman 41 – The Cardinals’ string of 10 straight playoff seasons got additional life as the team moved to 4-4, while Hillman’s streak of 11 straight postseason trips also now will hinge on an at-large bid as the Tigers fell to 4-4.

Oscoda 36, Muskegon Heights Academy 23 – The Owls (5-3) put themselves in position to clinch not only their second playoff berth in three seasons, but also their second over the last 17; Muskegon Heights (3-5) fell out of playoff contention but still has its best record since 2014. 

Southeast & Border

Michigan Center 41, Grass Lake 14

The Cascades Conference ended with three teams sharing the championship, and Michigan Center joined Addison and Napoleon among the celebrators by downing reigning league title winner Grass Lake (4-4). The Cardinals also beat Grass Lake in 2016, but the Warriors were able to win the conference last year with that one defeat. The Cardinals (7-1) have their most wins since 2013 and one more than a year ago heading into this week’s crossover with Big 8 Conference champion Reading.

Also noted:

Adrian Lenawee Christian 21, Athens 20 (OT) – This was something of an undercard in the Southern Central Athletic Association, but key for both teams as Lenawee Christian (6-2) secured a playoff berth and forced Athens (5-3) to now beat Climax-Scotts this week if it is to make the postseason for the first time since 2000.

Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard 16, Detroit U-D Jesuit 14 – After falling to Dearborn Divine Child by a point in Week 7, the Fighting Irish (7-1) pulled out the close victory over a U-D Jesuit team that at 3-5 has four losses by 10 points or fewer.

Hillsdale 27, Ida 8 – The Hornets (4-4) kept themselves in the playoff hunt while dealing the Lenawee County Athletic Association race an unexpected shuffle; Ida was tied for first with Hudson and looking good to share the title, but now the Tigers can clinch it outright this week.

Ypsilanti Lincoln 23, Temperance Bedford 19 – After two straight four-win seasons and two losses to start this one, Lincoln (6-2) is headed back to the playoffs while Bedford (6-2) already had secured a second straight berth. 

Southwest Corridor

Mendon 34, Cassopolis 24

Mendon (8-0) never really went away, but is looking more and more like the dominant teams that won at least 10 games eight straight seasons from 2007-14. Beating Cassopolis (7-1) cemented that observation, as both teams were undefeated heading into the weekend and a share of the Southwest 10 Conference title was on the line. Mendon had fallen to Cassopolis the last two seasons. Even after giving up 24 points to the Rangers, the Hornets still have allowed just 45 over eight games this fall. Click for more from JoeInsider.com.

Also noted:

Pittsford 28, Climax-Scotts 14 – The Wildcats (7-1) clinched the Southern Central Athletic Association title outright by breaking an 11-game losing streak, including playoffs, to the rival Panthers (6-2).

Ottawa Lake Whiteford 52, Clinton 21 – The Bobcats (8-0) clinched a share of the Tri-County Conference title while sending Clinton (5-3) from a second-place tie into third and needing a win this week to make the playoffs for the sixth straight season.

Edwardsburg 54, Vicksburg 27 – This took the Wolverine B Conference race from three first-place teams down to two with a game to play and Edwardsburg (7-1) sure to watch closely as Vicksburg (6-2) takes on co-leader Three Rivers this week.

Watervliet 36, Schoolcraft 14 – Watervliet (8-0) secured a Southwestern Athletic Conference Valley title even as second-place Schoolcraft (5-3) became the first this season to hold the Panthers to fewer than 50 points. 

Upper Peninsula

Iron River West Iron County 30, Hancock 13

For the second straight season Hancock has been a contender in the Western Peninsula Athletic Conference, but the Wykons (7-1) are again the team to beat. West Iron clinched the league title outright with its sixth straight win over the Bulldogs, who also tied for second in the league last season behind champion Calumet. Hancock (6-2) remains a win better than a year ago with its most victories since 2006, while West Iron can get to eight wins this week for the first time since 2014. Click for more from the Iron Mountain Daily News.

Also noted:

Kingsford 42, Menominee 21 – The Flivvers (6-1) did their part to turn this week’s meeting with Escanaba into a Great Northern Conference championship game as both are undefeated in the league; Kingsford hadn’t beaten Menominee (5-3) since 2012.

Marquette 35, Negaunee 19 – The Redmen (4-4) have a chance at an at-large playoff bid still if they can beat Menominee this weekend, and regardless have as many wins this fall as the last two seasons combined; Negaunee must beat Ishpeming Westwood this weekend to have a chance at extending its five-season playoff streak.

Norway 21, Lake Linden-Hubbell 11 – The Knights (7-1) secured a shared Mid-Eastern Conference title with Newberry; the Lakes (3-4) face winless Manistique this week with a chance still at an at-large playoff bid.

Calumet 30, Bessemer Gogebic – The Miners (3-5) had upset the playoff chances of two hopefuls two weeks in a row, but Calumet (5-3) hung on to earn a chance to clinch a spot this week. 

West Michigan

Grand Rapids Catholic Central 35, Grand Rapids West Catholic 33

Of course it’s rare to have a pair of reigning MHSAA champions meet with a league title on the line. And this time there even was a little revenge to be had. Last year’s Division 4 title winner GRCC (8-0) claimed its second straight game this month by seven points or fewer to clinch a share of the Ottawa-Kent Conference Blue title. The Cougars moved into the Blue last season and finished second to eventual Division 5 champion West Catholic (6-2), which handed GRCC its only loss last season. The Falcons scored late this time to pull within two, but could get no closer. Click for more from the Grand Rapids Press.

Also noted: 

Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central 35, Cedar Springs 20 – The Rangers (8-0) finished a perfect run through the O-K White by handing second-place Cedar Springs (5-3) its first league loss in what also ended up Forest Hills Central’s closest league game. 

Muskegon 35, Muskegon Mona Shores 24 – Ladarius Jefferson ran 34 times for 285 yards and four touchdowns as the Big Reds (8-0) earned a share of the O-K Black title by downing rival Mona Shores (7-1) for the third time in a row.

Rockford 24, East Kentwood 10 – The Rams (5-3) have a chance to make it to the playoffs for the 23rd straight season thanks to this bounce-back win over the Falcons (5-3), who also can earn an automatic berth this week.

Wyoming Kelloggsville 27, Belding 3 – The Rockets (8-0) faced what have ended up the second, third and fourth-best teams in the O-K Silver three weeks in a row and claimed a share of the league title by knocking Belding (6-2) out of their tie for first.

8-Player

Central Lake 42, Onekama 28

As noted in Friday’s preview, these two both could end up in MHSAA Finals at the Superior Dome, but Central Lake has claimed the first of their possible championships this fall with this win deciding the Midwest Central Michigan Conference title. New to 8-player this season, the Trojans (8-0) were 2-7 last season in 11-player and last won a league title in 2008. Onekama moved to 7-1 after going 6-4 in 11-player last season. Click for more from the Traverse City Record-Eagle. 

Also noted:

Pickford 47, Cedarville 8 – Pickford (8-0) claimed a share of the Bridge Alliance championship after finishing second last season and while dealing Cedarville (6-2) a second straight defeat.

Mayville 46, Bay City All Saints 34 – Mayville (5-3) can’t win the North Central Thumb League Stars championship, but dealt a loss to the Stripes’ co-leading Cougars (6-2).

Powers North Central 36, Rapid River 0 – Just when it looked like reigning MHSAA champion North Central (5-2) might go quietly into the offseason, the Jets stunned the state’s 8-player scene handing Western Eight Conference leader Rapid River (7-1) its first defeat a week after the Rockets handed a first loss to Stephenson.

Portland St. Patrick 24, Marion 8 – The Shamrocks (7-1) are playing in a two-team league but now also have a win over Marion (6-2), which ran the table in the West Michigan Conference.

Second Half’s weekly “Drive for Detroit” previews and reviews 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: Farmington Hills Harrison coach John Herrington enjoys the postgame fanfare with his team after setting the MHSAA record with his 431st career victory. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)

Inside Selection Sunday: Mapnalysis '16

October 24, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

There was a wheel and something that looked like a magic wand. Another started out looking like the head of a caterpillar.

A number of Michigan football teams realized their sky-high dreams with Sunday’s playoff selection announcement on Fox Sports Detroit. 

But earlier that day, as is the case at the end of each fall, shaping this season’s tournament at times looked a little like finding pictures in the clouds.

Beginning last night and into this morning, MHSAA staff have been busily gathering game days and times for this weekend’s opening round. We’re assigning officials for those contests. Schools are preparing for what likely will be one of their biggest crowds of the season. And, of course, teams are preparing for what surely will be one of their most memorable games.

But before all of that could begin, we met Sunday morning with nine maps of Michigan and 272 dots that needed to be organized to set another playoffs in motion.

As we’ve done the past five seasons, we’ll explain our most difficult decisions in this Mapnalysis 2016 breakdown of how we paired 272 teams that will play next month for championships across nine divisions. For those familiar with our playoff selection process, or who have read this report in the past and don’t want a refresher on how we do what we do, skip the next section and go directly to the “Observations & Answers: 2016.” For the rest, what follows is an explanation of how we selected the playoff pairings during the morning hours Sunday, followed by how we made some of the toughest decisions and a few thoughts on the breakdown of the field. 

Ground Rules

Our past: The MHSAA 11-player playoff structure – with 256 teams in eight divisions, and six wins equaling an automatic berth (or five wins for teams playing eight or fewer games) – debuted in 1999. An 8-player tournament was added in 2011, resulting in nine champions total each season.

The first playoffs were conducted in 1975 with four champions. Four more football classes were added in 1990 for a total of eight champions each fall. Through 1998, only 128 teams made the postseason, based on their playoff point averages within regions (four for each class) that were drawn before the beginning of the season. The drawing of Districts and Regionals after the end of the regular season did not begin until the most recent playoff expansion.

In early years of the current process, lines were drawn by hand. Dots representing qualifying schools were pasted on maps, one map for each division, and those maps were then covered by plastic sheets. Districts and Regionals literally were drawn with dry-erase markers.

Our present: After a late Saturday night tracking scores, we file in as the sun rises Sunday morning for a final round of gathering results we may still need (which can include making a few early a.m. calls to athletic directors). Re-checking and triple-checking of enrollments, what schools played in co-ops and opted to play as a higher class start a week in advance, and more numbers are crunched Sunday morning as the fields are set.

This season, there were 218 automatic qualifiers by win total – only two more than the record low set a year ago – with the final 38 at-large qualifiers then selected, by playoff-point average, one from each class in order (A, B, C, D) until the field was filled. For the second consecutive season there were only four Class D additional qualifiers with 5-4 or 4-4 (playing eight games) records from which we could choose – so after those four we added 12 teams from Class A and 11 each from Class B and Class C.

Those 256 11-player teams are then split into eight equal divisions based on enrollment, and their locations are marked on digital maps that are projected on wall-size screens and then discussed by nearly half of the MHSAA staff plus a representative from the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association. Only the locations themselves are marked (by yellow dots) – not records, playoff point averages or names of the schools or towns. In fact, mentions of those are strictly prohibited. Records and playoff points are not part of the criteria. Matchups, rivalries, previous playoff pairings, etc. also DO NOT come into play.

The same process is followed for organizing the 8-player bracket, with the difference that the 16 teams are selected purely on playoff-point average.

Geography rules: This long has been rule number one for drawing MHSAA brackets in any sport. Travel distance and ease DO come into play. Jumping on a major highway clearly is easier than driving across county-wide back roads, and that’s taken into consideration. Also, remember there’s only one Mackinac Bridge and hence only one way to cross between peninsulas – and boats are not considered a possible form of transportation. When opponents from both peninsulas will be in the same District, distance to the bridge is far more important than as the bird flies.

Tradition doesn’t reign: Every group of 32 dots is a new group – these 32 teams have not been placed in a bracket together before. How maps have been drawn in the past isn’t considered – it’s hard to say a division has been drawn in a certain way traditionally when this set of 32 teams is making up a division for the first time.

Observations & Answers: 2016

First things, first: Congratulations to five first-time playoff qualifiers – Bloomfield Hills, Detroit Delta Prep, Southfield Arts & Technology, Southfield Bradford and Wyoming Tri-unity Christian. Bloomfield Hills (Lahser and Andover) and Southfield Arts & Technology (Southfield and Southfield-Lathrup) were created by mergers of previous schools. Southfield A&T and Detroit Delta Prep are eligible for tournament play this season for the first time. Bradford and Tri-unity Christian both started programs during the latter half of the 2000s; Tri-unity qualified in 8-player after moving back to that format from 11-player this fall. Of 617 varsity football programs that played games this season (including five not eligible for the playoffs as either a first-year program or with an enrollment too high for 8-player), all but 18 have made the playoffs at least once going back to the first series in 1975.

Tie it up: We had a few ties in a few ways this season. In two situations, we had multiple teams with the same enrollment at a line between divisions. In those cases, the teams with the higher playoff point averages go to the larger divisions – so Ferndale went to Division 2 and East Lansing to Division 3 to settle one tie, and Lansing Sexton went to Division 4 and Dowagiac to Division 5 to settle the other. The additional tie came in 8-player football, with Portland St. Patrick and Wyoming Tri-unity Christian both having the same playoff point average, the same opponents’ winning percentage and drawn into the same District. A coin flip was used to determine St. Patrick as the top seed and home team both this week and next if it advances and plays the Defenders.

Local really is the rule: Division 3 provided us with a fine example to help show that we work to draw maps locally and beginning with the earliest rounds. There were at least three ways to separate the schools in Region 3 District 1: East Lansing, DeWitt, Fowlerville and Mason. DeWitt, as the westernmost of the group, could’ve been drawn southwest with R2D2’s Vicksburg, Battle Creek Harper Creek and Coldwater, replacing Chelsea. Doing so would’ve literally split the state’s regions down the middle along U.S. 127, which is a favorable picture. But protocol is to favor local matchups at the earliest rounds, and it just didn’t make sense to take DeWitt away from three schools mere minutes away when subbing it in for Chelsea would’ve created a wash in terms of travel for the other three teams in R2D2.

Sometimes, there’s no choice: But keeping a group of four local teams together often is impossible. Remember, 32 dots usually are spread out at least all over the Lower Peninsula. In Division 4, we had Grand Rapids Catholic Central, Wyoming Godwin Heights, Wyoming Kelloggsville and Grand Rapids South Christian stacked nicely along U.S. 131 – but had to send southernmost South Christian down with Benton Harbor, Three Rivers and Hudsonville Unity Christian because there was no other grouping for Allendale, which is about 20 miles west of Grand Rapids. Another incident of splitting up near-neighbors happened in Division 2; we had Lowell and Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central next door to each other, but no other Grand Rapids area teams qualify. By only a few miles, Forest Hills Central is south of Lowell – so although the Rangers had shorter drives than Lowell to possible opponents both north and south, they went into a group with Portage Northern, Portage Central and Battle Creek Lakeview, and Lowell went north to join Greenville, Traverse City West and Traverse City Central.

Why coast to coast: It wasn’t lost on the committee that teams waking up looking at Lake Huron traveling to play on Lake Michigan isn’t the greatest scenario. But it was the best of the options, and we stayed consistent by setting up a possible two District trips across the Lower Peninsula. Tawas will journey to Maple City Glen Lake in Division 6 this week. With wins this week, Lincoln Alcona could end up heading to Frankfort for a Division 8 District Final. Those trips aren’t ideal, but they did allow us to keep northern Lower Peninsula teams together – and in reality, aren’t too different than when teams from the Lower Peninsula and Upper Peninsula match up the first week, as will be the case in Division 4 (Whitehall to Escanaba), Division 5 (Kalkaska to Menominee and Grayling to Kingsford), Division 6 (Charlevoix to Negaunee and Boyne City to Calumet) and Division 8 (Gaylord St. Mary to Newberry).

It’s just the math: The one unexpected oddity of this week’s matchups is Canton going back to Northville for the second week in a row, and after beating Northville 42-27 last week. But math does rule, and Northville does have a higher playoff point average despite that Week 9 loss; the Mustangs beat five teams that finished with winning records, while Canton beat three – which of course is no fault of the Chiefs. It's just the way – rarely – things work out.

At the end of the day …

In six years of being part of these discussions, this weekend’s at least seemed to be the most extensive. We had two and three versions of multiple divisions before deciding which we believed to be the best.

Only one division map – 8-player – was an absolute slam dunk. The rest received plenty of scrutiny from a committee that now includes veterans going back to the beginning but also has had some new eyes join in over the last couple of years. That variety of viewpoints certainly pays off.

And wow, did we fall into some incredible first-week matchups:

• Rockford and Hudsonville in a rematch of the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red-deciding game of Week 9 (a Hudsonville 14-7 win).

• Traverse City West vs. Traverse City Central for the first time in playoff history (Central won 10-8 in Week 3).

• Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood at Detroit Country Day in a homecoming for longtime Yellowjackets coach Joe D’Angelo.

• Constantine at Schoolcraft in a matchup of longtime southwestern rivals (Schoolcraft won 20-10 in Week 8).

• Cedarville at Engadine in arguably the most intriguing of three all-U.P. 8-player matchups (Engadine won 52-42 in Week 7).

Truly, at the end of November, the best teams will have to beat the rest to finish as champions – regardless of maps, matchups, weather and anything else that won’t really factor into what eventually is settled on the field.

For many high school sports fans, it’s the favorite time of year. Join us now as we prepare for kickoff.

The MHSAA Football Playoffs are sponsored by the Michigan National Guard.

PHOTOS: (Top) The Division 1 bracket mapped out on the Lower Peninsula. (Middle) The Division 3 map keeps four mid-Michigan teams together.