Early Wins Leader Maskill Built Champions
November 12, 2019
By Ron Pesch
Special for Second Half
The long shadows of “midcentury modern” coaching legends have mostly disappeared from the gridirons of Michigan.
One more vanished in late October at the age of 96.
Bill Maskill was once the winningest football coach in Michigan high school history, chalking up the majority of his victories at Galesburg-Augusta. One of only six who could claim such an honor – coaches are first counted after reaching 200 wins – he received his start in coaching at Sheridan High School (now known as Central Montcalm since the Sheridan and Stanton school districts merged in 1963). In 1980, he became only the second coach to compile 200 varsity victories as a coach, and in the fall of 1982 he surpassed Muskegon Heights’ coaching legend Oscar E. ‘Okie’ Johnson on the victory list.
Maskill’s coaching accomplishments – and their historic significance – are a reminder of a change in eras. Michigan prep sports in the pre-playoff days were filled with coaches with Swiss-Army like skills, as many were expected to coach multiple sports at their respective schools. The gridiron season was unlike today’s in many ways, and the differences are reflected in a variety of manners within the state record books.
Coaching and player season performances up to the creation of the MHSAA Playoffs in 1975 were constrained by the schedule. In general, nine games was the max. (With the playoffs, a season can extend up to 14 games.) Maskill’s victory total now ranks 16th overall in Michigan high school history, as there are 63 coaches with at least 200 varsity wins. Two coaches, John Herrington of Farmington Hills Harrison – the state’s current leader – and Al Fracassa, long of Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice, amassed more than 400 varsity victories during their careers. In both cases, more than 65 victories were earned during the postseason.
The MHSAA postseason was approaching its eighth year of existence when Maskill passed Johnson as the winningest football coach in state history. To that point, Maskill’s Rams had twice qualified for the playoffs – the first time in 1976, and again in 1980 – but had yet to win a game during the postseason.
But he stayed atop the state’s football wins list for more than a decade – and later found playoff successes as well, more crowning achievements for a coach whose many wins came after turning around both programs fortunate enough to employ him over a combined 44 seasons.
A Rough Start
Maskill’s career, at least in his eyes, was nearly derailed during his first season at the helm.
“The year was 1949, and Bill Maskill was in his first year as varsity football coach at Sheridan High, about 50 miles north of Lansing. He thought it would probably be his last. His team did not win a single game. ‘A couple of times, I thought of throwing in the towel,’” Maskill told Mick McCabe of the Detroit Free Press in October 1982, when he surpassed Johnson in victories.
There was little likelihood that Maskill would be dismissed as coach after that disappointing season. But it took a few years for his Redskins to become competitive.
“Previous to his work there, Sheridan had not played football and there was little interest in the game,” noted the Battle Creek Enquirer in the spring of 1957, when Maskill was announced as the new football and baseball coach at Galesburg-Augusta High School. “He built up interest to the point that during the past five years, Sheridan has won the Montcalm County League championship once and finished second for four years. During this period, the team’s overall record was 31 won, 9 lost and 2 tied. In baseball, he had one county championship, finished second twice and third twice.”
A 1941 graduate of Detroit DeLaSalle, Maskill had been a hard-plunging fullback on the football team who also boxed in Catholic Youth Organization tournaments. Following graduation, he initially enrolled at the University of Michigan in 1942, receiving his freshman numerals from coach Wally Weber, but only after a year at prep school near Pittsburgh.
“I screwed around a lot in high school and couldn’t get into Michigan,” he told McCabe years later, laughing. “They sent me to this prep school, and I couldn’t believe all the studying I had to do. It was the best thing to ever happen to me.”
He ended up at Michigan State, where he earned a varsity letter from coach Charlie Bachman in 1944 and his bachelor’s degree.
“He was hard of hearing; he had it bad,” recalled Bob Ludwig of Muskegon, a football teammate with Maskill in the backfield for the Spartans in 1945. “Our quarterback would mouth the words of the play to him.”
Over time, Maskill had multiple operations in hopes of correcting the issue.
The attempts improved his hearing, according to Maskill, “to about six percent. And that’s the truth. But there are some advantages. The kids can cuss at me and I don’t know it.”
The disability never stopped him. He told McCabe that the only thing he ever wanted to be in life was a football coach: “I just liked playing football, and that made me want to coach.”
Another Rough Start
At Galesburg-Augusta, he inherited a team that finished with a single tie amid eight losses the year prior to his arrival. Improvement certainly wasn’t reflected in the standings in Maskill’s first year in charge. The Rams completed the eight-game season without a victory or a tie to show for their efforts. That changed in year two, as G-A finished with a 7-1 mark. The only loss was to unbeaten Bangor, 40-21, in the season finale. In 1959, Maskill and his stable of assistants had completely flipped the table, as the Rams ended with a perfect 8-0 mark.
“Galesburg-Augusta blasted Bangor, 27-0, before a crowd of more than 2,500 fans at jam-packed Angell Field in Kalamazoo … in a battle between the Kalamazoo Valley’s unbeaten football teams. Bangor’s great 21-game winning streak simply collapsed before the high-powered running attack as the Rams rolled to their seventh straight victory of the season,” wrote Dick Kishpaugh in his coverage for the Enquirer. Kishpaugh would later be known as Michigan’s authority on high school sports.
A week later, the Rams trounced a solid Paw Paw team on the road, 33-7. They finished third in the United Press International season-ending Class C-D rankings behind Charlevoix and Cassopolis.
Statewide Success
That was the first of eight G-A squads to finish the regular season undefeated for Maskill. The next four would each be named mythical state champions according to the polls.
His 1962 team allowed only 14 points across eight games to end the year as Class C-D champion ahead of St. Joseph Catholic according to The Associated Press poll of Michigan sportswriters and sportscasters.
Maskill’s 1966 and 1967 Rams squads each finished unbeaten and untied in nine contests. The 1967 team scored a school-record 389 points on the year, and held opponents to a mere seven points – a touchdown and an extra point scored by Springfield in a midseason 27-7 triumph. The 1970 team also finished with a flawless 9-0 mark, topping the 1967 team’s offensive output with 408 points on the season.
Maskill’s 1976 team ended the regular season 9-0 and was one of only four teams to advance to the Class C postseason in place during those earliest days of the MHSAA playoff system. G-A immediately was eliminated by Flat Rock, the eventual champion.
The media spotlight came to Galesburg-Augusta in 1980 for a regular season-ending contest with Constantine. A victory would give the veteran coach another perfect regular season and push Maskill’s career win total to 200. The week played out under television station coverage and multiple newspaper reports.
“More than 120 of Maskill’s former players were on hand, some wearing varsity letter jackets that were nearly 20 years old. All trotted onto the field, according to their graduation years, during halftime festivities,” said Bob Byington in the Enquirer. “… The warmest embrace and greeting were reserved for Maskill’s son, Bill Jr., an assistant coach at the University of Louisville. The younger Maskill drove in from Kentucky to surprise his dad …”
The Rams won 28-6 to finish 9-0, qualifying for the MHSAA Playoffs for the second time in school history. The team ranked fifth in the final AP poll. A loss to White Pigeon in the opening round capped the season.
Despite impressive 8-1 records in 1981, 1982 and 1983, the Rams didn’t return to the playoffs until 1985. There, they won their first postseason contest, downing Hudson, 21-6, in a Pre-Regional. G-A fell the next weekend to eventual Class C titlist Lansing Catholic Central.
Lansing Catholic would again eliminate the Rams from the postseason the following year.
We Have a Lot of Heart
The MHSAA approved an expansion to the football playoff system in 1990, doubling the classifications from four to eight, which in turn doubled the number of annual qualifiers. While the Rams finished the regular season with a single defeat, they were unranked in the weekly press polls. Thanks to the changes to the playoff system, they were in the tournament, but weren’t expected to go far.
Rumors had circulated that this – Maskill’s 40th year as a head coach – would be the last go-around for the 67-year-old veteran coach. The first-round opponent was No. 4-ranked Dansville. With the Rams trailing 17-0 with 8:33 remaining in the third quarter, the result didn’t look promising.
But Jason Meek would have none of that. The Rams started their comeback with a trick play – a halfback pass by Meek off a lateral for a touchdown reception by Rusty Smith. It was followed on the next possession by a 27-yard TD reception by Meek from reserve quarterback Dave Lemmien. A pair of 2-point conversions by Rick Tyson had cut the lead to 17-16. Tyson scored the game winner on a one-yard touchdown run, set up by an interception by Meek that capped a 14-play, 59-yard drive – all rushes – that burned 6:53 off the clock. The defense shut down Dansville for the remaining six minutes of the contest.
A week later, the Rams lined up against No. 1 Schoolcraft, the two-time reigning Class C champion which was riding a 16-game win streak. The Eagles had lost only three of their last 57 games.
Galesburg-Augusta stunned all prognosticators with a 15-13 win before nearly 5,000 fans.
The Rams ran the ball 52 times, with Tyson handling the ball 28 occasions for 78 yards including a 19-yard TD that opened the game’s scoring. Schoolcraft tied the game at 7-7 just before the half, then opened a 13-7 lead on its second drive of the second half.
“It took all of us to do it,” said G-A junior fullback Paul Zimmerman, who scored the game-tying touchdown, and winning 2-point conversion on nearly identical plays with 4:01 remaining in the game.
Again, like the previous week, the Rams’ defense rose to the occasion, shutting down the Eagles for the remaining minutes.
“They kept the football,” said Larry Ledlow, coach of Schoolcraft about the second half. “Our defense was on the field much too long.”
G-A would win its Week 12 Semifinal contest with Clinton, 22-7, to advance to its first MHSAA Final. Corky Meinecke wrote a career-respective feature on Maskill that appeared in the Free Press on the day of the game:
“Just about everyone who loves, respects and admires Bill Maskill … figures he’ll announce his retirement sometime after the Rams play Muskegon Catholic Central … in the Class C championship game at the Silverdome. The timing couldn’t be better. Getting the Rams (11-1) to the Silverdome was the last notch on a heavyweight coaching belt that includes four mythical state titles … and five playoff appearances. He is the winningest football coach in state prep history …”
Weighing into the pending decision was a surprising aspect few ever considered.
“Maskill never figured he’d run out of players before he ran out of desire,” wrote Meinecke, “but that appears to be the case. Of G-A’s 24 players, only six are underclassmen. The school did not field a freshman team and the junior varsity – comprised of mostly freshmen – forfeited its last two games because it could not suit up enough players.”
“A normal person would retire,” said Ken Buelow, Maskill’s assistant for all but three of the coach’s seasons at G-A and Sheridan. “But you have to remember, Bill is not a normal person. You’re talking about one hell of a human being here.”
“We don’t have size, we don’t have quickness and we don’t have speed,” Maskill said to Meinecke about this team that was perhaps the most satisfying of his career. “But we have a lot of heart.”
The Rams lost to MCC.
Changing landscapes
Maskill’s decision still took time. In August 1991, the G-A administration officially announced that the district would not field a varsity football team that coming fall.
“We do not have the numbers,” said athletic director Alex Forrester at the time. “It has nothing to do with money. … We do not have enough players.”
G-A chose to sponsor only a JV team that season. Instead of walking away, Maskill chose to stay on.
“I’ve never not coached a varsity,” he told Mark Bradley of the Enquirer. “I won’t know how to coach at the junior varsity level. But coaching is coaching, whether it be at the varsity or junior varsity level.”
He had retired from teaching following the 1980-81 school year and was one of 30 individuals inducted into the inaugural class of the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association’s Hall of Fame in April 1983. In October 1986, the school district honored him by naming the G-A football field in his honor. Without Maskill walking the halls and recruiting, fewer and fewer kids came out for football. After a year leading the JV, in July of 1992, he officially stepped aside from coaching. Forrester, one of his longtime assistants, took charge.
Maskill had purchased a tire company after he retired from teaching, and that became his focus.
In October 1994, over 12 years after Maskill had passed Johnson on the win list, Marysville’s Walt Braun passed Maskill in total wins. Leo “Smokey” Boyd of Saginaw Nouvel overtook Braun on the list in 1996. In turn, Fracassa topped Boyd in 2001, and Herrington bettered Fracassa’s total in 2017.
The “Ram Family”
The floor-to-ceiling mementos from his career that Maskill shared with Meinecke during their conversation were a feature of a party that Maskill would host annually.
“… It was not unusual to have 200-plus (former players, coaches, and new and old friends) there to celebrate the man they knew as ‘Coach’,” wrote Bill Broderick in a heartfelt article in the Enquirer, announcing Maskill’s passing.
Several years back, Buelow, his old assistant coach, had organized a group to create “a would-be Galesburg-Augusta football museum” in Maskill’s basement.
“… I was shocked when I heard,” said Bill Maskill, Jr., to Broderick concerning his Dad’s passing. Head football coach at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas, since 2002, Bill Jr. had earned all-state honors at quarterback as a senior at G-A in 1966. "He went out and walked a mile on Monday. We all thought he would live forever."
Ron Pesch has taken an active role in researching the history of MHSAA events since 1985 and began writing for MHSAA Finals programs in 1986, adding additional features and "flashbacks" in 1992. He inherited the title of MHSAA historian from the late Dick Kishpaugh following the 1993-94 school year, and resides in Muskegon. Contact him at [email protected] with ideas for historical articles.
PHOTOS: (Top) Bill Maskill Sr., here during the 1980-81 school year, was the state’s winningest high school football coach all-time after his final varsity season in 1991. (2) Maskill, shown here during the 1954-55 school year, played football and earned his bachelor’s degree from Michigan State. (3) The 1959 Galesburg-Augusta team finished 8-0. (4) The 1966 Galesburg-Augusta team was named a mythical state champion by media rankings. (5) Maskill took his team to the MHSAA Finals for the first time in 1990, when it finished Class C runner-up. (Photos gathered by Ron Pesch.)
Drive for Detroit: 11-Player Finals Preview
November 27, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
There will be no appetizers for this weekend’s MHSAA 11-Player Football Finals at Ford Field.
Show up early and stay late – every game both days has a story, ranging from two first-time finalists playing for the Division 1 title to two of the most successful programs of this decade matching up for the first time in the Division 7 championship game.
Total, five teams will travel to Ford Field this weekend looking to finish as a champion for the first time. Joining hopefuls Brighton and Davison in Division 1 are Muskegon Mona Shores in Division 2, River Rouge in Division 3 and Almont in Division 5 – Brighton, Davison and Almont also playing in Finals for the first time.
Mona Shores and neighbor Muskegon High also will be returning to Ford Field after finishing as Finals runners-up a year ago, while three reigning champions will seek to win again – Reading for the second-straight season in Division 8, Detroit Martin Luther King in Division 2 after winning Division 3 in 2018 and Jackson Lumen Christi in Division 7 after winning three straight in Division 6.
FRIDAY
D8: Beal City (12-1) vs Reading (12-1), 10 a.m.
D2: Muskegon Mona Shores (11-2) vs Detroit Martin Luther King (10-2), 1 p.m.
D6: Maple City Glen Lake (12-1) vs Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central (11-1), 4:30 p.m.
D4: Grand Rapids Catholic Central (12-1) vs Detroit Country Day (13-0), 7:30 p.m.
D7: Pewamo-Westphalia (13-0) vs Jackson Lumen Christi (12-0), 10 a.m.
D1: Brighton (11-2) vs Davison (11-2), 1 p.m.
D5: Lansing Catholic (12-1) vs Almont (13-0), 4:30 p.m.
D3: River Rouge (12-1) vs Muskegon (13-0), 7:30 p.m.
See below for a look at all of the finalists taking the field, powered by MI Student Aid. Tickets cost $15 and are good for all four games on one day; only cash will be accepted at the door. Click for a full schedule. Also, Ford Field again will host Special Olympics Unified flag football games prior to the start of Saturday’s four 11-Player Finals. Teams will take the field at 9 a.m. and play 30-minute exhibitions. Unified Sports programs combine students with and without intellectual disabilities on competitive athletic teams.
The first two Friday and Saturday Finals will be broadcast live on FOX Sports Detroit’s primary and PLUS channels (check cable/satellite box listings for your specific channel) with the third and fourth games both days available live on FOX Sports Detroit PLUS only. All eight games also can be viewed live on FOXSportsDetroit.com and on the FOX Sports app. Games will be archived for on-demand viewing on MHSAA.tv, which also will live stream the first three postgame press conferences each day. Audio broadcasts will be available on the MHSAA Network website live both days.
Rankings below were voted on by The Associated Press’ media panel. Statistics are current except where noted. The “playoff era” began with the first MHSAA postseason in 1975.
Division 1
DAVISON
Record/rank: 11-2, honorable mention
Coach: Jake Weingartz, second season (18-5)
League finish: Second in Saginaw Valley League Red
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 42-21 over No. 9 Lapeer in District Final, 35-21 over No. 10 Romeo in Pre-District, 35-27 over honorable mention Utica Eisenhower in Regional Final, 34-27 (OT) over Sterling Heights Stevenson in Semifinal, 48-0 over Division 4 No. 8 Flint Powers Catholic.
Players to watch: QB Brendan Sullivan, 6-3/180, jr. (2,754 yards/32 TDs passing, 366 yards/9 TDs rushing); RB/DB Caleb Smith, 5-10/210 sr., (961 yards/16 TDs rushing, 434 yards/1 TD receiving, 41 tackles/4 interceptions); FB/LB Logan Pasco, 6-0/207, sr. (148 tackles/20 tackles for loss/5 interceptions); WR/DB Latrell Fordham, 6-4/180, sr. (866 yards/11 TDs receiving).
Outlook: Davison had reached Semifinals four more times before breaking through for the first time Saturday, and the historic run also was made possible by avenging a three-point Week 9 loss to league rival Lapeer. Pasco, an all-state honorable mention linebacker last year, leads a defense that doesn’t get a lot of attention but gives up only 14 points per game. The lights shine much more brightly on the Sullivan-led offense that has set a school playoff-era record of 553 points and counting. Smith could go over 1,000 yards rushing early Saturday, and in addition to Fordham, Sullivan also has found senior Harrison Terry for 10 touchdowns through the air. Fordham has committed to Ball State.
BRIGHTON
Record/rank: 11-2, honorable mention
Coach: Brian Lemons, fifth season (37-15)
League finish: Second in Kensington Lakes Activities Association West
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 22-19 over No. 2 Belleville in Semifinal, 35-20 over Hudsonville in Regional Final, 48-26 over East Kentwood in District Final, 26-7 over Holt in Pre-District, 21-7 over Livonia Churchill.
Players to watch: QB Colby Newburg, 6-0/190, sr. (1,335 yards/18 TDs passing, 1,242 yards/18 TDs rushing); RB Nicholas Nemecek, 5-10/185, jr. (1,010 yards/9 TDs rushing, 3 TDs receiving); LB Cole Riddle, 6-1/215, sr. (99 tackles/19 tackles for loss), DE Luke Stanton, 6-4/235, sr. (44 tackles, 11 sacks).
Outlook: The Bulldogs showed they were on the verge with close losses to No. 9 Plymouth (14-7) and No. 5 Dearborn Fordson (46-35) during the regular season. They’ve surged in the playoffs, with last weekend’s win over Belleville making one of the loudest statements from the Semifinals. Newburg is a dangerous two-way threat with the ball, and seven receivers have caught at least one touchdown pass with 6-3 senior Ruben Salinas the leader with six scores. But the defense – giving up 14 points on average – is just as big a reason the Bulldogs will play for their first title. Only Fordson in Week 9 scored more than 26 points on Brighton, and eight teams were held to 14 or fewer. Riddle earned an all-state honorable mention as a junior.
Division 2
DETROIT MARTIN LUTHER KING
Record/rank: 11-2, No. 3
Coach: Ty Spencer, fourth season (46-8)
League finish: First in Detroit Public School League Division 2
Championship history: Four MHSAA titles (most recent 2018), two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 27-6 and 32-14 over Detroit Denby, 47-7 over Detroit Cass Tech, 60-17 over Birmingham Seaholm in the Semifinal, 49-21 over Detroit U-D Jesuit in the Regional Final.
Players to watch: RB Peny Boone, 6-1/220, sr. (1,085 yards/19 TDs rushing); QB Dante Moore, 6-2/165, fr. (2,522 yards/32 TDs passing); WR Marshawn Lee, 5-7/155, sr. (847 yards/12 TDs receiving); LB Jaylen Reed, 6-0/195, jr. (108 tackles/11 tackles for loss/6 forced fumbles).
Outlook: King has raised championship trophies three of the last four seasons, in Division 2 in 2015 and 2016 and then in Division 3 a year ago. The Crusaders have made it back to Ford Field in part on a powerful offense led by a returning all-state running back in Boone and one of the most anticipated quarterback talents in Moore, who has competed at least 30 passes to three receivers – Lee, senior RaShawn Williams and sophomore Lynn Wyche-El. They operate behind a line led by 6-foot-4, 280-pound senior Deon Buford. And that’s not to mention a defense giving up just a bit above 12 points per game. King’s only losses came the first two weeks to Detroit Catholic Central and Division 3 finalist Muskegon. Boone will continue collegiately at Maryland, Williams at Indiana and Buford at Kentucky.
MUSKEGON MONA SHORES
Record/rank: 11-2, No. 4
Coach: Matt Koziak, ninth season (71-29)
League finish: Second in Ottawa-Kent Conference Black
Championship history: Division 2 runner-up 2014 and 2018.
Best wins: 57-56 over No. 2 Walled Lake Western in Semifinal, 28-23 over Portage Northern in Regional Final, 35-12 over Midland Dow in District Final, 20-13 over No. 9 Midland in Pre-District, 28-7 over East Kentwood.
Players to watch: RB/SS Tre’shawn Hatcher, 5-10/180, sr. (1,432 yards/15 TDs rushing); WR/DB Jaylen Hopson, 5-10/152, sr. (304 yards/5 TDs receiving). QB/DB Brady Rose, 5-7/150, jr. (332 yards/1 TD passing, 585 yards/11 TDs rushing, 5 interceptions); LB/SL Kolbe Trovinger, 6-0/181, sr. (335 yards/5 TDs rushing, 209 yards receiving – does not include Semifinal).
Outlook: Mona Shores is seeking to take the final step after falling in last season’s championship game to Warren De La Salle Collegiate, 29-16. The Sailors reportedly will not get back 2018 all-state quarterback Caden Broersma (908 yards/11 TDs passing, 486 yards/10 TDs rushing), who left the Semifinal during the first series with an injury. But Mona Shores still will be confident; Rose moved over from slot receiver after the injury and ran for five touchdowns, including the game winner. Mona Shores’ only losses this season were to a pair of league champions, Rockford and Division 3 finalist Muskegon, and the Sailors beat four league champions in the playoffs on the way to Ford Field (Midland and Dow shared the SVL Blue title). Trovinger was one of the team’s leading tackles in last year’s Final and continues to contribute in a variety of ways on both sides of the ball.
Division 3
MUSKEGON
Record/rank: 13-0, No. 1
Coach: Shane Fairfield, 10th season (113-19)
League finish: First in O-K Black
Championship history: Six MHSAA titles (most recent 2017), five runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 28-21 over DeWitt in Semifinal, 49-10 (Regional Final) and 28-23 over East Grand Rapids, 48-10 over No. 9 Cedar Springs in District Final, 53-0 over Division 2 No. 4 Muskegon Mona Shores, 41-18 over Division 2 No. 3 Detroit Martin Luther King, 41-7 over Warren De La Salle Collegiate.
Players to watch: QB Cameron Martinez, 5-11/190, sr. (1,258 yards/11 TDs passing, 2,016 yards/35 TDs rushing); RB Tommy Watts, 5-8/175, sr. (852 yards/17 TDs rushing – does not include Semifinal); WR/DB Quentin Reynolds, 5-10/180, sr. (421 yards/4 TDs receiving); DE/OT Billie Roberts III, 6-4/280, sr.
Outlook: Martinez was named statewide Player of the Year by MLive for the second time this week and will attempt to finish his high school career with a second Finals championship after helping Muskegon Catholic Central to the Division 8 title as a freshman. He’s run for more than 4,500 yards over the last two seasons and will continue next year at Ohio State. The Big Reds have scored more than 600 points for the fourth season in a row, but lost to a degree is a defense giving up only 8.2 points per game – in fact, Muskegon gave up only 10 points over six league games, with five shutouts. Senior center/nose guard D’Andre Mills-Ellis (6-1/300) joins Roberts as a valuable two-way starter on the line.
RIVER ROUGE
Record/rank: 12-1, No. 5
Coach: Corey Parker, 10th season (96-29)
League finish: First in Michigan Metro Athletic Conference Blue
Championship history: Division 5 runner-up 2015.
Best wins: 14-7 over No. 6 Chelsea in Semifinal, 49-14 over No. 3 Orchard Lake St. Mary’s in Regional Final, 16-3 over Detroit Catholic Central, 31-24 over Southfield Arts & Technology.
Players to watch: RB Deandre Bulley, 6-2/245, sr. (1,820 yards/20 TDs rushing); QB Mareyohn Hrabowski, 6-3/205, jr. (1,000 yards/11 TDs passing, 1,000 yards/11 TDs rushing); WR Xavier Smith, 5-10/170, sr. (800 yards/10 TDs receiving); CB David Carter, 6-1/170, sr. (Statistics do not include Semifinal).
Outlook: With Muskegon a main topic of football discussion across the state all season, River Rouge quietly has won 12 straight games since falling to Division 4 finalist Grand Rapids Catholic Central 17-14 in Week 1. Including wins of 53-0 over Detroit Mumford and 38-8 over Redford Thurston, the Panthers have outscored their four playoff opponents by a combined 154-29. Carter – an Eastern Michigan recruit – is among standouts on a defense that gives up just 7.6 points per game. Bulley is another Division I college talent, and behind him junior Charles Daniels has run for 11 more touchdowns.
Division 4
DETROIT COUNTRY DAY
Record: 13-0, No. 1
Coach: Dan MacLean, 22nd season (172-77)
League finish: Does not play in a league.
Championship history: Three MHSAA titles (most recent 1999), five runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 21-0 over No. 8 Flint Powers Catholic in Semifinal, 24-6 over No. 4 Milan in Regional Final, 37-12 over Division 6 No. 9 Warren Michigan Collegiate, 27-3 over Detroit Mumford.
Players to watch: RB/DB Anthony Ammori, 5-10/185 (971 yards/15 TDs rushing), sr., QB/DB Ahlon Mitchell, 5-10/175, sr. (734 yards/9 TDs passing), WR/DB Saborn Campbell, 5-11/195, jr. (344 yards/6 TDs receiving, 8 interceptions). WR/DB Marcus Sheppard, 5-10/185, sr. (376 yards/5 TDs receiving).
Outlook: The last time Country Day played Grand Rapids Catholic Central, in the 2016 Final, the teams combined to score 17 points as the Cougars won 17-10. Country Day’s defense this season would seem to indicate a similar game is possible. After the Semifinal shutout of Powers, the Yellowjackets are giving up 5.2 points per game – having surrendered a high of 12 and more than eight only twice. A rushing attack averaging nearly 200 yards per game, meanwhile, has been the key to the team’s 35 points per contest while no doubt also helping Country Day control the ball. Sheppard has committed to Bowling Green.
GRAND RAPIDS CATHOLIC CENTRAL
Record: 12-1, T-No. 2
Coach: Todd Kolster, eighth season (86-14)
League finish: First in O-K Blue.
Championship history: Four MHSAA titles (most recent 2017), two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 56-17 over Hudsonville Unity Christian in Semifinal, 33-7 (District Final) and 44-0 over No. 7 Sparta, 38-0 (Pre-District) and 20-19 over Allendale, 17-14 over Division 3 No. 5 River Rouge.
Players to watch: QB Joey Silveri, 6-0/180, soph. (2,609 yards/31 TDs passing, 910 yards/17 TDs rushing); RB Nick Hollern, 5-6/190, jr. (756 yards/9 TDs rushing – does not including Semifinal), WR/DB Jace Williams, 6-4/185, jr. (715 yards/9 TDs receiving – does not include Semifinal); LB/TE Ethan Lott, 6-1/192, sr.
Outlook: The Cougars are seeking their third championship in four seasons after winning Division 4 in both 2016 and 2017. Lott is one of three two-way starters and leads a defense giving up only 9.5 points per game – and only 8.5 per game not counting the Cougars’ lone loss to Niles Notre Dame of Illinois. On offense, seniors dominate the line with the majority of the team’s playmaking coming from standouts who should be back again next fall. Williams earned all-state honorable mention as a receiver as a sophomore, and senior tight end Drew Gommesen has a team-high 11 touchdown catches for the balanced attack.
Division 5
ALMONT
Record/rank: 13-0, T-No. 5
Coach: James Leusby, fifth season (45-11)
League finish: First in Blue Water Area Conference
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 22-20 over No. 3 Marine City in District Final, 30-20 (Pre-District) and 28-10 over Richmond, 36-8 over Detroit Denby in Semifinal, 25-14 over Saginaw Swan Valley in Regional Final.
Players to watch: QB/DB Josh Hellebuyck, 5-11/165, sr. (1,226 yards/23 TDs passing), RB/LB Jack Paupert 5-11/180, sr. (877 yards/15 TDs rushing, 363 yards/7 TDs receiving), RB/OLB Mason Smith, 5-11/165, soph. (907 yards/11 TDs rushing), SE/CB Colby Schapman, 6-5/190, sr. (673 yards/14 TDs receiving).
Outlook: Almont faced road games during the first two weeks of the playoffs and another for the Semifinal, making this historic run even more incredible. But the Raiders surely are glad to be traveling one more time to the Finals, for the first time. This is their 10th-straight playoff season and 13th over the past 14 years, and few programs statewide have been so consistently strong on defense – Almont has given up 150 points or fewer eight times over the last decade, including 131 (10 per game) this fall. But the Panthers also have scored their second-most points of the playoff era this fall – 536 – behind a line with four senior starters among eight senior starters total on that side of the ball.
LANSING CATHOLIC
Record/rank: 12-1, No. 4
Coach: Jim Ahern, 11th season (103-24)
League finish: Second in Capital Area Activities Conference White
Championship history: Class C champion 1985, Division 5 runner-up 2011 and 2014.
Best wins: 28-14 over No. 2 Kingsley in Semifinal, 21-0 over No. 8 Portland in District Final, 40-13 over Kalamazoo United in Regional Final, 28-21 over honorable mention Olivet in Pre-District.
Players to watch: QB/DB/P Zach Gillespie, 6-1/180, sr. (2,481 yards/24 TDs passing, 557 yards/18 TDs rushing); WR/DB Alex Watters, 5-11/170, soph. (997 yards/14 TDs receiving, 298 yards/3 TDs rushing); WR/DB Vince Salquist, 6-5/190, sr. (631 yards/4 TDs receiving); TE/OLB Sam Edwards, 6-0/190, sr. (164 tackles, 14 tackles for loss).
Outlook: The Cougars will play in their third Final this decade, and give their league a team in the Division 5 championship game for the second-straight year. A major win came over last season’s runner-up Portland in the District Final after the Raiders had dealt Lansing Catholic all three of its losses over the last two years and five of six over the last three seasons. Gillespie is the latest star quarterback in a long line coached by Ahern, who went over 300 career coaching wins this playoffs. Mitch Raphael with 563 yards (and nine TDs) is the team's leading rusher, but the Cougars have totaled more than 2,000 yards on the ground behind a line that has four two-way starters. Lansing Catholic has had only two single-digit games– both against Portland – a credit as well to a defense that surrenders only 13 points per game.
Division 6
MONROE ST. MARY CATHOLIC CENTRAL
Record/rank: 11-1, No. 1
Coach: Adam Kipf, fifth season (39-16)
League finish: Second in Huron League
Championship history: Two MHSAA titles (most recent 2014), five runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 36-7 over No. 4 Montrose in Regional Final, 44-14 over No. 9 Warren Michigan Collegiate in District Final, 17-14 over Onsted in Semifinal, 33-16 over Riverview.
Players to watch: RB/LB Alex Morgan, 6-0/175, sr. (1,680 yards/16 TDs rushing); RB/LB Sam Cousino, 6-3/225, sr. (727 yards/11 TDs rushing, 73 tackles/5 forced fumbles); QB/DB/K/P Wyatt Bergmoser, 5-7/170, sr. (939 yards/10 TDs rushing, 60.5 tackles); OL/DL Brendan Sloan, 5-10/205, sr.
Outlook: St. Mary is returning to the Finals for the first time since its 2014 title run, with just a loss to Division 4 Milan from perfection so far. After opening with three of their tougher opponents, the Falcons haven’t given up more than 16 points in a game since, led by 2018 Division 7-8 all-state honorable mention Cousino. Morgan leads a rushing attack with more than 4,200 yards this season – and more than 500 attempts, to go with only 32 passes thrown this fall. But while Bergmoser rarely throws, he’s another weapon running the ball – and kicking it, as his 25-yard field goal on the game’s last play won the Semifinal.
MAPLE CITY GLEN LAKE
Record/rank: 12-1, No. 5
Coach: Jerry Angers, 11th season (73-42)
League finish: First in Northern Michigan Football League Leaders
Championship history: Class DD champion 1994, two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 31-30 (OT) over Montague in Semifinal, 15-14 over No. 10 Calumet in Regional Final, 42-18 over Charlevoix, 28-7 over Traverse City St. Francis.
Players to watch: QB/DB Reece Hazelton, 6-6/190, sr. (1,207 yards/16 TDs passing, 477 yards/6 TDs rushing); WR/DB Finn Hogan, 6-4/190, jr. (602 yards/11 TDs receiving – does not including Semifinal); RB/LB Jonathan Wright, 6-1/195, sr. (1,112 yards/17 TDs rushing – does not include Semifinal); OT/DL Ben Kroll, 6-3/270, sr.
Outlook: Glen Lake earned its way back to Ford Field for the first time since finishing runner-up in 2016, bouncing back from a lone loss to Division 5 semifinalist Kingsley with six straight wins. Hogan and Wright are playmakers on both sides of the ball, and Wright also has three kickoff return touchdowns. Senior running back Isaac Sterzer is another key offensive option – he had 768 yards and seven touchdowns rushing heading into the Semifinal. Kroll was an all-state honorable mention lineman as a junior last fall. After winning eight games during the regular season all by at least 15 points, Glen Lake has won all of its playoff games by 11 or fewer, including by just one point both of the last two weeks – although that experience could come in handy if this finale also is close.
Division 7
JACKSON LUMEN CHRISTI
Record/rank: 12-0, T-No. 2
Coach: Herb Brogan, 40th season (368-83)
League finish: First in Interstate 8 Athletic Conference
Championship history: 11 MHSAA titles (most recent 2018), two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 35-30 over No. 7 Schoolcraft in Regional Final, 27-0 over honorable mention Cass City in Semifinal, 42-14 over No. 9 Riverview Gabriel Richard in District Final, 38-21 over Division 3 honorable mention Coldwater, 14-12 over Kalamazoo United.
Players to watch: RB/DB Walker Plate, 5-10/180, sr. (2,404 yards/33 TDs rushing); FB/LB Johnny Teachout, 5-8/200, sr. (503 yards/9 TDs rushing); WR/DB Jack Kelley, 6-0/170, sr.; OL/DL Keegan Smith, 6-3/315, sr.
Outlook: Lumen Christi has won three straight Finals championships and 35 straight games, with the slight difference about this Ford Field trip that the Titans are in Division 7 after winning those consecutive titles all in Division 6. A standout running back sets the tone for the Lumen Christi offense, and Plate is the latest after playing a significant role on defense the last two seasons. Smith also is a multi-year mainstay up front on both sides of the ball, and he’ll continue his career at Central Michigan. He made the Division 5-6 all-state team last fall.
PEWAMO-WESTPHALIA
Record: 13-0, T-No. 2
Coach: Jeremy Miller, seventh season (84-8)
League finish: First in Central Michigan Athletic Conference
Championship history: Division 7 champion 2016 and 2017, runner-up 2011 and 2015.
Best wins: 36-35 over No. 1 New Lothrop in Regional Final, 43-7 over No. 5 Iron Mountain in Semifinal, 41-7 over Division 8 No. 7 Fowler, 14-0 over Division 8 No. 1 Reading, 41-0 over Williamston.
Players to watch: RB/DB Tanner Wirth, 5-9/170, soph. (1,591 yards/25 TDs rushing); QB Ethan Thelen, 6-0/180, sr. (1,059 yards/16 TDs passing, 381 yards/11 TDs rushing); OL/DL John Martin, 6-4/230, sr.; OL/LB Jacob Pung, 6-0/220, sr.
Outlook: The Pirates earned their return to the Finals with two straight wins over previously-unbeaten teams, including reigning Division 7 champion New Lothrop. That gave P-W wins this season over two 2018 champs – they also opened with the shutout of Division 8 title winner Reading. Especially given the strong schedule, the Pirates allowing just 63 points over 13 games (4.8 per game) speaks volumes. Martin made the all-state first team last season and Pung the second, and they play major roles on both sides of the ball. Senior Carter Thelen is a starter at linebacker as well and showed again last week (94 yards/3 TDs rushing) that he can carry some of the offensive load along with Wirth – Thelen has now run for eight scores this fall. Wirth meanwhile, while just a sophomore, is averaging 9.1 yards per carry.
Division 8
READING
Record: 12-1, No. 1
Coach: Rick Bailey, 32nd season (222-105)
League finish: First in Big 8 Conference
Championship history: Division 8 champion 2018.
Best wins: 26-21 over No. 5 Adrian Lenawee Christian in Regional Final, 28-6 over Cassopolis in District Final, 62-18 over No. 7 Fowler in Semifinal, 38-0 over No. 8 Mendon in Pre-District, 51-6 over Addison.
Players to watch: QB/LB Porter Mauk, 6-0/175, jr. (950 yards/9 TDs passing); RB/DB Hunter Midtgard, 6-1/176, sr. (1,360 yards/17 TDs rushing, 8 interceptions); FB/LB Ben Affholter, 6-2/287, sr.; OL/DL Nick Affholter, 6-3/307, sr,
Outlook: The team’s only loss the last two seasons was 14-0 to Division 7 finalist Pewamo-Westphalia in Week 1. The Rangers were the only team this season to hold P-W to fewer than 35 points, and since that night Reading offensively also has been back to unstoppable. The Rangers have won the last 12 games by an average score of 47-7. Both Ben and Nick Affholter were all-state first-team selections last season, and they along with Mauk, Midtgard, senior TE/LB Jayson Scoville and junior WR/DB Dilon Denison are two-way starters. Senior fullback Elijah Strine is another major contributor both ways; he starts at defensive tackle and has run for 879 yards and 22 touchdowns.
BEAL CITY
Record: 12-1, unranked
Coach: Brad Gross, fifth season (34-19)
League finish: Tied for first in Highland Conference
Championship his