Football Playoffs: Semifinals in Review
November 21, 2011
It’s always hard to wave good-bye to another high school football season.
But stories of this fall’s playoffs will no doubt be retold a few times this winter -- especially after one of the most memorable Semifinals weekends in recent memory,
Nine of Saturday’s 16 games were decided by eight points or fewer. Two games were decided by three points, and three more games by just one. Twice, overtime was necessary to decide which team would advance to this weekend’s MHSAA Finals at Detroit’s Ford Field.
We’ll kick off Finals week with our regular round-up of the previous weekend’s playoff action – including the first 8-Player Final in MHSAA history. Later this week, we’ll take a brief look at every team hoping to finish by hoisting a championship trophy.
All eight games will be broadcast on Fox Sports Plus. Click for a full schedule and playoff scoreboard. And click here for a list of Fox Sports Plus channels in your area.
(Rankings are by The Associated Press’ panel of media voters.)
1st and 10
Division 1: Detroit Catholic Central 23, Rockford 20 (OT) – Rockford kicked a field goal for a three-point lead to begin overtime, but No. 2 beat No. 1 when DCC running back Anthony Darkangelo ran in the game-winner from seven yards out. Read more in the Novi News.
Division 1: Detroit Cass Tech 6, Utica Eisenhower 3 – Here’s why they play the games. Unranked Cass Tech continued an impressive defensive stand (see lower in this post for more) in knocking off the No. 3 Eagles. Read more in the Detroit Free Press.
Division 2: Lowell 42, Walled Lake Western 35 (OT) – Walled Lake Western came back from 14 down in the third quarter and then took a lead, but couldn’t keep the Red Arrows from booking a third-straight trip to the Finals. Read more in the Grand Rapids Press.
Division 2: Birmingham Brother Rice 27, Detroit Martin Luther King 26 – The Crusaders fought back from an early 21-0 deficit, and Brother Rice scored all of its points during the first half. But the Warriors held on twice at the end – once on a two-point conversion try that would’ve given King the lead, and then once more on the Crusaders’ final possession. Read more from the Oakland Press.
Division 3: Mount Pleasant 38, East Grand Rapids 37 – The Oilers were probably thinking less about EGR’s 28-game playoff winning streak and more about how the Pioneers had knocked them out of the playoffs two of the last three seasons. Now, Mount Pleasant can focus on playing in its first MHSAA Final. Read more in the Mount Pleasant Morning Sun.
Division 5: Lansing Catholic 42, Grand Rapids West Catholic 35 – The teams exchanged shots until just about the end, with this season’s No. 1 taking down the reigning champion despite trailing twice during the first half. Read more in the Lansing State Journal.
Division 6: Constantine 45, Ecorse 44 – The Falcons have shown they are tough to stop when it matters most, winning their third playoff game by seven or fewer points to advance to their first Final since 2004. Read more in the Sturgis Journal.
Division 7: Pewamo-Westphalia 22, Hudson 14 – The Pirates, making their second Semifinal appearance ever, earned their first Finals berth by ending the 26-game winning streak of the reigning champion Tigers. Read more from the Lansing State Journal.
Division 8: Mendon 34, New Lothrop 13 – The No. 3 Hornets had given up 47 points over their first 12 games, but top-ranked Mendon nearly doubled that while holding a New Lothrop offense averaging 52 points to just a pair of touchdowns. Read more in the Sturgis Journal.
8-Player Final: Carsonville-Port Sanilac 59, Rapid River 20 – It’s arguable what was more impressive – the Tigers’ offensive might, or that its defense held Rapid River scoreless in the second half of the first-ever MHSAA 8-player Final. Read more in the “First Pitch” at MHSAA.com.
Numbers Game
16 – Number of points Detroit Cass Tech has given up during the postseason, including three to Utica Eisenhower in Saturday’ 6-3 victory. The Technicians have held opponents to seven or fewer points in nine of 13 games this fall.
34 – Number of minutes Constantine held onto the ball – and kept Ecorse’s offense off the field – in a 45-44 Division 6 win.
901 – Number of yards, combined, put up by Carsonville-Port Sanilac and Rapid River in the inaugural 8-player Football Final.
324 – Passing yards by Carsonville-Port Sanilac quarterback Hayden Adams, who likely will be remembered as this state’s first 8-player star. Five of his 12 completions went for touchdowns, and he also ran for 130 yards and two scores.
More Fantastic Finishes
Division 3: Orchard Lake St. Mary 14, Battle Creek Harper Creek 10 – They were tied going into the fourth quarter. Harper Creek added a go-ahead field goal – and then St. Mary’s Grant Niemiec scored on an 11-yard run with 49 seconds left to take the final lead.
Division 4: Zeeland West 30, Comstock Park 6 – The Dux moved to 13-0 to tie the school record for wins and make a second MHSAA Final – in just seven seasons of existence.
Division 4: Marine City 45, Grosse Ile 6 – The Mariners shut down Grosse Ile until the final five minutes of the game to earn their second Finals berth in five seasons.
Division 5: Flint Powers Catholic 27, Almont 10 – Why they play the games, Part II. Powers is the latest to make the rare trek from 5-4 qualifier to potential MHSAA champion after taking out Nos. 2 and, most recently, 4 from the final AP regular-season poll.
Division 6: Ithaca 28, Iron Mountain 0 – The Yellowjackets returned to the Superior Dome and beat Iron Mountain for the second straight season to advance to Detroit.
Division 7: Saginaw Nouvel 14, Traverse City St. Francis 3 – The Panthers’ defense also has been awesome during this postseason, giving up just 23 points over four games.
Division 8: Fowler 45, St. Ignace La Salle 8 – The Eagles have gone from losing their coach the weekend before practice began in 2010 to making their first Final since winning Class D in 1998.
Up Next: MHSAA 11-player Finals
FRIDAY
Division 8: Mendon (13-0) vs. Fowler (11-2), 10 a.m. – These are two of the most storied small-school programs in state history, both ranking among the top 14 in the state in winning percentage since 1950 according to Michigan-football.com. Mendon was expected to be here, but surprise Fowler has been to this point plenty of times as well.
Division 2: Birmingham Brother Rice (9-4) vs. Lowell (12-1), 1 p.m. – Brother Rice’s tough schedule always gives it a decent shot of making the playoff field even at 5-4, but getting to the Final after coming in with that record is new ground for the Warriors (they made the Semifinals in 2009 after entering 5-4). Lowell was just about everyone’s pick to get this far – and will try to make it two titles in three seasons after losing in the 2010 championship game.
Division 6: Constantine (11-2) vs. Ithaca (13-0), 4:30 p.m. – Constantine’s 1-2 start is a distant memory as the Falcons go for their first championship in seven seasons. Ithaca made its first Final just a year ago, but can further its reputation as an elite power but claiming two titles in a row and extending its winning streak to 28.
Division 4: Marine City (13-0) vs. Zeeland West (13-0), 7:30 p.m. – It’s rare for the combination of bracket assignments and rankings to play out like this, but Marine City entered the postseason No. 1 and Zeeland West No. 2. The Mariners last won a championship in 2007, but have the chance to also finish 14-0 this time. Same story as the Dux try to improve just that little bit on their 2006 title run.
SATURDAY
Division 7: Pewamo-Westphalia (13-0) vs. Saginaw Nouvel (12-0), 10 a.m. – The Panthers are going for their third MHSAA championship in six seasons and have no problem raising their game; not counting two against Canadian teams, Nouvel played 10 games this season against teams that qualified for the playoffs. P-W joins Fowler as finalists from the Central Michigan Athletic Conference, and is led by a senior class that might be one of the best in the program’s successful history.
Division 1: Detroit Cass Tech (10-3) vs. Detroit Catholic Central (12-1), 1 p.m. – The Technicians seemingly have been building toward this weekend after making their first Semifinal appearance in 2010, and after losing by three in that game before going on to win by three in last week’s semi. Now they get the Shamrocks, who can move into a third-place tie with 11 MHSAA football championships.
Division 5: Flint Powers Catholic (9-4) vs. Lansing Catholic (13-0), 4:30 p.m. – The Cougars defeated Powers 37-17 in Week 2, but it’s fair to say much has changed. The Chargers haven’t given up that many points in a game since – but Lansing Catholic also hasn’t scored that few.
Division 3: Mount Pleasant (13-0) vs. Orchard Lake St. Mary (11-2), 7:30 p.m. – The Eaglets lost the last two Finals to East Grand Rapids by eight and three points, respectively. No matter what happens in this finale, there will be a new Division 3 champion for the first time in five seasons.
(Photo courtesy of Sharon Weber via the Lansing State Journal.)
Fresh from Cancer Fight, Disbrow Returns to Coaching Ready to Continue 'Winning the Day'
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
September 16, 2026
Nikki Disbrow grabbed her keys and started to get into the family vehicle to pick up her son from a summer 7-on-7 practice. Her husband, Sand Creek football coach Sid Disbrow, told her he wanted to come, too.
“What are you doing?” she asked. “You can barely walk.”
Sid, who had just returned home from surgery to have a tumor removed while battling colorectal cancer for the second time in three years, wasn’t having it. He got in the vehicle.
When Nikki arrived at the field, Sid opened the door.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
Sid, unrelenting, got out of the car and began making his way to the field.
“She was kind of my walker,” he said. “I couldn’t walk on my own, but I needed to address the kids. I needed to be out there. I needed to show them that it’s about winning the day, because you never know what might happen.”
Disbrow, 49, has been coach for just about 30 years. It’s part of who he is in the Sand Creek school district and community. He’s been an assistant football coach, youth baseball and softball coach, varsity boys and middle school basketball coach. He’s detailed, organized, loves the competition and thrives on being around kids.
Last year around the eighth or ninth week of the football season, he began noticing the symptoms of the cancer he had chemotherapy and radiation to treat a couple years prior. He finished the season, knowing middle school basketball was getting ready to start.
Within a week of finding out the cancer had indeed returned, he was able to get everything scheduled and begin chemotherapy. He was getting treated at Flower Hospital in Sylvania, Ohio, about 45 minutes from Sand Creek.
“They would give me the last appointment of the day so I could get there after school,” he said. “They were great to work with.”
It wasn’t easy trying to maintain a rigorous coaching schedule while fighting cancer.
“There are no rules in cancer. You don’t get to do as you wish. Chemotherapy is real,” Disbrow said.
He wasn’t deterred. He coached the entire middle school basketball season – which ended around Christmas. Some days, he was exhausted. Still, quitting wasn’t an option.
“I wanted to be out there for my son and all of the other kids that I’ve been coaching all the way through,” he said. “That was important to me. That was my driving force.”
Not long after basketball season ended, he began eight weeks of radiation. It ended just in time for him to coach his son’s baseball team.
After that season ended, something still wasn’t right. Doctors found a tumor, although they weren’t sure if it was shrinking or growing. They gave him an option – surgery to remove it or wait a few months, get tested again. At that point, if it returned, it meant starting chemotherapy and radiation all over again. He checked the calendar.
“I thought about football season,” he said. “My son is on JV this year. That’s not something I want to miss.”
He went in for surgery and had the tumor successfully removed. Doctors found out later it was indeed cancerous and growing.
“I made the right decision,” he said.
He was recovering from that round of surgery when he made it onto the football field to talk to the Aggies players. The football field is more than a place for Disbrow to forget all about cancer and focus on the lives of the young men on the field. It’s a place him and Nikki, a former varsity volleyball coach at Sand Creek herself, got married.
“It’s probably the first time there was a wedding on the football field, and probably the last time,” he said.
On Aug. 3 – one week before two-a-days started for Sand Creek – he found out the cancer was in remission. He was back with the team when practice began.
“I brought my lawn chair with me,” he said. “There were some days where I just didn’t have the strength.”
Through it all, he’s endured, never wavering.
“The credit goes to God,” he said. “I don’t see how people go through something like this without their faith. I owe it all to Him. He’s given me this chance to continue to teach and coach. I don’t take that lightly.”
Sand Creek varsity football coach Derek Hewitt said seeing Disbrow come back to practice after all he went through was inspiring. Disbrow coaches special teams, the quarterbacks and helps Hewitt with the offense. On most Fridays he’s in the coach’s box.
“It’s great to have him back out there,” Hewitt said. “He’s not the scout team quarterback anymore, but he’s there, every day. It’s great for me to have him by my side.”
One thing Disbrow is not planning to do is stop coaching. In fact, he’s going to be even busier. He was recently named the school’s junior varsity boys basketball head coach.
“Coaching really kept me going through all of this,” he said. “The kids have been great through it all.”
The father of four is from Morenci, the neighboring town to the south and heated rival of Sand Creek, which he admits caused some angst when he moved from coaching football at his alma mater to Sand Creek.
He was part of the 1995 Morenci football team that played for a Class C championship in the Pontiac Silverdome, graduating in 1996. He was a sophomore at Adrian College when a Morenci coach asked him to join that coaching staff. A couple years later he began coaching at Sand Creek.
Now, he, his wife and four kids are engrained in the Aggies community.
“I wasn’t one of those people who got into teaching because I wanted to coach,” he said. “I wanted to be a teacher, to be around young people and help them. Coaching was something I loved once I started doing it. It’s who we are now as a family. It’s part of our lives.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a news and sports reporter at the Adrian Daily Telegram and the Monroe News for 30 years, including 10 years as city editor in Monroe. He's written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. He is now publisher and editor of The Blissfield Advance, a weekly newspaper. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Sand Creek assistant football coach Sid Disbrow mans the headset while on the sideline during a game. (Middle) Disbrow lays in a hospital bed while receiving care in 2023. (Below) Disbrow stands for a photo with wife Nikki last fall. (Top photo by Becky Serin. Hospital and family photos courtesy of the Disbrow family.)