Fall 2012 Kicks Off Monday
July 31, 2012
The 2012-13 Fall sports season officially begins next week, when approximately 110,000 student-athletes begin practice in eight sports in which Michigan High School Athletic Association sponsors postseason tournaments.
Practice sessions begin Monday in football, followed by all other sports on Wednesday (Aug. 8). Practice in football must begin Monday for all schools wishing to begin regular-season games the weekend of Aug. 23-26. Schools must have 12 days of preseason practice at all levels before their first games, which may not occur before 16 calendar days. All football schools also must conduct at least three days of practice before beginning contact, and those sessions may not include any pads.
In golf and tennis, competition may commence no earlier than after three separate days of team practice, and not before seven calendar days. The first day competition may take place in golf and tennis is Aug. 15. In all other fall sports, contests can take place after seven days of practice for the team and not before nine calendar days. The first day competition may take place in cross country, soccer, swimming and diving, and volleyball this fall is Aug.17.
This year, two football dates precede Labor Day, and Thursday varsity games will take place both weeks. Subvarsity competition may begin on Wednesday, Aug. 22. In Week 1, 81 games will be played on Thursday, 222 contests will be played on Friday and 23 games will be played on Saturday. The following weekend, 239 games will be played on Thursday, 67 games will be played on Friday and five games will be played on Saturday.
There are several significant rules changes on football for 2012:
On passing plays, a receiver must first contact and establish control of the ball while inbounds – regardless of the opponent’s action. In other words, a catch cannot be ruled on plays where the receiver may have come down in bounds if not for the action of the defender.
If a player’s helmet comes off during a play, and did not occur as a result of a foul by the opponent, that player must leave the game for one play, unless it happens on the final play of a half or an overtime.
Hand contact by a blocker below the waist of a defender is now considered blocking below the waist.
The kicking team may not contact a member of receiving team on a kickoff until the ball has traveled 10 yards, or unless a member of the receiving team initiates the contact.
Jerseys of the visiting team must be white in color, and home jerseys are restricted in the use of white for varsity competition. This was a rule change made in 2007 for implementation this season.
In soccer, Michigan will not participate in a National Federation rules change this year involving the disqualification from a game when a player receives a second yellow card and the subsequent red card. In Michigan, the player will still be ejected from the contest, but that team will not continue the game a player down.
The penalty for a hand ball by a player other than the goalkeeper to prevent a score has been changed. If the goal is prevented, the penalty remains a disqualification of the player; however, if the goal is scored, the penalty will now be a caution to the player who deliberately handled the ball.
There are no substantial rules change in other fall sports.
The 2012 Fall campaign culminates with postseason tournaments beginning with the Upper Peninsula Girls Tennis Finals the week of Oct. 1, and wraps up with the Football Playoff Finals on Nov. 23-24. Here is a complete list of fall tournament dates:
Cross Country:
U.P. Finals -- Oct. 20
L.P. Regionals -- Oct. 26 or 27
L.P. Finals -- Nov. 3
11-Player Football:
Selection Sunday - Oct. 21
Pre-Districts – Oct. 26 or 27
District Finals -- Nov. 2 or 3
Regional Finals -- Nov. 9 or 10
Semifinals -- Nov. 17
Finals -- Nov. 23-24
8-Player Football:
Selection Sunday - Oct. 21
Regional Semifinals – Oct. 26 or 27
Regional Finals -- Nov. 3
Semifinals -- Nov. 10
Finals -- Nov. 16
L.P. Girls Golf:
Regionals -- Oct. 10 or 11 or 12 or 13
Finals -- Oct. 19-20
Soccer:
Boys L.P. Districts -- Oct. 15-20
Boys L.P. Regionals – Oct. 23-27
Boys L.P. Semifinals – Oct. 31
Boys L.P. Finals -- Nov. 3
L.P. Girls Swimming & Diving
Diving Quals -- Nov. 13
Swimming/Diving Finals-Nov. 16-17
Tennis:
U.P. Girls Finals –Oct. 3 or 4 or 5 or 6
L.P. Boys Regionals -- Oct. 11 or 12 or 13
L.P. Finals --Oct. 19-20
Girls Volleyball:
Districts –Oct 29-Nov. 3
Regionals – Nov. 6 & 8
Quarterfinals – Nov. 13
Semifinals – Nov. 15-16
Finals – Nov. 17
Performance: Detroit King's Dequan Finn
November 29, 2018
Dequan Finn
Detroit Martin Luther King senior – Football
The Crusaders’ standout quarterback capped his high school career by leading his team to a 41-25 win over Muskegon to clinch the Division 3 championship Saturday at Ford Field. Finn completed 9-of-13 passes for 173 yards and four touchdowns and ran for another 73 yards and a score on 11 carries to earn the Michigan Army National Guard “Performance of the Week.”
This wasn’t Finn’s first time succeeding on the state’s biggest stage – the 6-foot-1, 195-pound signal-caller also quarterbacked King to the Division 2 championship in 2016, and the Crusaders fell just shy of making the Finals in 2017 as well, losing by a point in their Semifinal against Warren DeLaSalle. King was 35-6 over his three seasons as the varsity starter, and this fall he threw for 2,109 yards and 26 touchdowns and ran for 1,262 yards and 21 scores. He was further recognized Tuesday by being awarded this season’s statewide Mr. Football Award from State Champs Sports Network.
King finished 12-2 this fall, winning the Detroit Public School League Black division championship and defeating league champs River Rouge, Warren Woods Tower and DeWitt plus Allen Park on the way to Ford Field. The Crusaders’ losses came Week 2 – at Muskegon, 24-21 – and then in the PSL playoffs final to Detroit Cass Tech, 42-8. But Finn led the team’s rebound after each defeat and will get the chance to continue leading an offense at the college level. (He has been committed to sign with Central Michigan University, although the Chippewas recently fired coach John Bonamego and Finn didn’t have a comment on his future plans in the immediate aftermath of the championship win.) Finn also owns an MHSAA Finals championship in track & field – he helped King win the 800-meter relay in Lower Peninsula Division 2 this past spring – and excels academically, carrying a 3.1 grade-point average.
Coach Tyrone Spencer said: “He did a phenomenal job. That’s our 35th win together. I’m just proud of him, the way he did for us. He’s a great leader, a great competitor and a great football player. … Just his play-making ability, his decision-making. He was calm. He’s been here before, and he looked like it. He didn’t look rattled, or he wasn’t doing too much. He just played in the moment, and that’s why he plays so well.”
Performance Point: “It’s just a real moment right now,” Finn said during postgame interviews. “I’m just thankful for having it, for my team, and for just going hard these three years. It was a good experience. … I just tried to be the best me I could be – the best version of me.”
Second time’s the charm: “(Playing Muskegon twice) helped a lot, just (with) pre-snap reads – I knew where to go every single play. It was a big advantage for us to go against them Week 2. We still had that 24-21 loss in our minds. … It was an emotional game. We took it personally.”
Playoff rebound: “Coach Spencer said there’s a state championship out there (after the Cass Tech loss). If you want to get it, you’ve got to go get it. We just had to lock in mentally and prepare. That’s all we had to do, prepare and execute.”
From last season to this one: “(My) maturity, me knowing what to do and what not to do at certain points. Knowing down and distance; for instance, knowing what plays to run and what plays not to run. It’s just the little stuff.”
From Week 2 to today: “I learned I just had to calm down, not get too high, not get too low. Just remain calm at all times.”
- Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Every week during the 2018-19 school year, Second Half and the Michigan Army National Guard recognizes a “Performance of the Week" from among the MHSAA's 750 member high schools.
The Michigan Army National Guard provides trained and ready forces in support of the National Military Strategy, and responds as needed to state, local, and regional emergencies to ensure peace, order, and public safety. The Guard adds value to our communities through continuous interaction. National Guard soldiers are part of the local community. Guardsmen typically train one weekend per month and two weeks in the summer. This training maintains readiness when needed, be it either to defend our nation's freedom or protect lives and property of Michigan citizens during a local natural disaster.
Past 2018-19 honorees
November 22: Paige Briggs, Lake Orion volleyball - Read
November 15: Hunter Nowak, Morrice football - Read
November 8: Jon Dougherty, Detroit Country Day soccer - Read
November 1: Jordan Stump, Camden-Frontier volleyball - Read
October 25: Danielle Staskowski, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep golf - Read
October 18: Adam Bruce, Gladstone cross country - Read
October 11: Ericka VanderLende, Rockford cross country - Read
October 4: Kobe Clark, Schoolcraft football - Read
September 27: Jonathan Kliewer, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern soccer - Read
September 20: Kiera Lasky, Bronson volleyball - Read
September 13: Judy Rector, Hanover-Horton cross country - Read
PHOTOS: (Top) Detroit Martin Luther King's Dequan Finn pulls away from a Muskegon defender during Saturday's Division 3 championship win at Ford Field. (Middle) Finn hands off to teammate Peny Boone.