A Game for Every Fan: Week 1
August 28, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
It’s a lot like birds knowing to fly north in the spring.
If you’ve played, coached, parented or followed high school football, you’re likely having a hard time not jumping out of your shoes in anticipation of opening night.
So let’s get right to it; below are some of the most intriguing matchups from this first weekend of the MHSAA football season. More than 250 of the total 310-plus games will be played tonight, with 50 more Friday and a handful Saturday.
Tune in to MHSAA.com’s Score Center all weekend for game times, scores as we get them, standings for those starting league play immediately and all the playoff-point equating that will start to matter to most as we get rolling into the season’s second half. (Records below are from 2013. Games are organized based on the region of Michigan where they'll be played.)
West Michigan
Detroit Catholic Central (11-3) at Muskegon (12-2), Friday
This is set up to be arguably the most high-octane opener in Michigan in some time. DCC is back-to-back-to-back Division 1 runner-up, while Muskegon has finished runner-up in Division 2 the last two seasons. Granted, rosters turn over – but Joeviar Kennedy was Muskegon’s leading receiver in last season’s championship game and Alezay Coleman its leading tackler, and both are back. So are Alex Bock and Jordan Jenkins, two of the most noticeable Shamrocks during their run to Ford Field.
Others that caught my eye: Detroit Country Day (8-4) at Zeeland West (13-1), Grand Rapids South Christian (12-2) at Grand Rapids Christian (8-3) on Friday, Grand Rapids West Catholic (10-4) at Muskegon Oakridge (11-2) on Friday, Grand Rapids Catholic Central (6-4) at East Grand Rapids (5-4).
Greater Detroit
Lansing Sexton (12-1) vs. Detroit East English (9-3), Saturday at Wayne State
Many of the best from Detroit will be playing at Wayne State University over the next three days (see a few more big-time contests listed below), but this one carries the most intrigue because it features one of the best from the city against a Sexton team that missed making last season’s Division 4 Final by a touchdown. The Big Reds have all of their playmakers and much of their outstanding defense back; East English is keyed by run/pass dynamo Anton Curtis, one of the state’s most exciting quarterbacks.
Others that caught my eye: Macomb Dakota (11-1) at Clarkston (13-1), Pewamo-Westphalia (10-2) at Madison Heights Madison (11-1), Detroit Cass Tech (12-1) vs. Oak Park (6-5) on Friday at Wayne State, Southfield (7-3) vs. Orchard Lake St. Mary's (5-4) on Friday at Wayne State.
Bay and Thumb
Saginaw Swan Valley (11-1) at Saginaw Nouvel (9-2)
A nail-biting 27-20 win for Swan Valley in this opener last season kicked off a run to the Regional Finals and the team’s best season in the last eight. Senior running back Alex Grace returns from the most potent offense in school history and arguably is the most potent runner in MHSAA history with more than 5,000 yards in his career and nearly 3,000 last season alone. Nouvel’s lineup will include more new names – but the Panthers rattled off nine straight wins after the 2013 opening loss and will be prepared to get the streak started a week earlier this time.
Others that caught my eye: Flint Carman-Ainsworth (11-2) at Grand Blanc (7-3), Freeland (6-4) at Lake Fenton (8-3), Montrose (12-1) at Reese (8-2), Mount Pleasant (10-2) at Midland Dow (8-3).
Mid-Michigan
Ithaca (14-0) at Clare (7-3), Friday
The Yellowjackets’ 56-game winning streak stretches over four seasons and is the longest of any in MHSAA history achieved entirely during the playoff era. But Clare – the Jack Pine Conference champion for seven years running – should be Ithaca’s toughest regular-season test of at least the last two or three. Ithaca star quarterback Travis Smith is graduated and gone to Wake Forest University, but younger brother Jake Smith has been similarly anticipated and takes over the offense to start his junior year.
Others that caught my eye: Manchester (7-3) at Clinton (13-1), St. Johns (5-4) at East Lansing (4-5), Jackson Northwest (5-4) at Eaton Rapids (7-5), South Lyon (6-4) at Pinckney (7-4).
Lower Up North
New Lothrop (11-1) at Traverse City St. Francis (5-5), Friday
This is the second chapter of a series started a year ago that allows both to start out against a tough opponent before jumping into league play against more familiar foes. New Lothrop won last season’s matchup and went on to make the Division 8 Semifinals for the second time in three seasons. St. Francis hasn’t had two straight middling seasons like this since 2000-01 (it also finished 4-5 in 2012). But the Gladiators are back in a league for the first time since 2011 and should be able to add on last season’s return to the playoffs.
Others that caught my eye: Midland (10-2) at Traverse City West (5-5), Cadillac (11-1) at Big Rapids (3-6), Kingsley (6-4) at McBain (5-5), Marquette (5-4) at Traverse City Central (5-4).
Upper Peninsula
Munising (6-4) at Iron River West Iron County (10-1), Friday
These two did some celebrating in 2013. West Iron tied its school record for wins, while Munising bounced back from 2-7 in 2012 to make the playoffs for the second time in three seasons – and also for only the second time since 1990. Both should be looking for more this fall; West Iron’s lone loss came in the playoffs to eventual Division 7 champion Ishpeming, while Munising – after falling to West Iron 7-0 in last season’s opener – then lost its next two games by a combined six points before rattling off six straight wins.
Others that caught my eye: Houghton (6-4) at L'Anse (8-3), Ishpeming (14-0) at Iron Mountain (4-5), Petoskey (5-4) at Sault Ste. Marie (7-4) on Friday, Posen (4-6) at Cedarville (8-2).
Southwest and Border
Dowagiac (7-4) at Plainwell (8-2)
Dowagiac was cruising along on a 17-game regular-season winning streak when Plainwell broke it last fall with a 10-0 win on the way to a third straight playoff berth. These two haven’t played in the same division of the Wolverine B since 2011, but the rivalry continues to run hot now that both are division favorites on an annual basis.
Others that caught my eye: Watervliet (10-1) at Gobles (5-4), Parchment (7-4) at Schoolcraft (10-2), Edwardsburg (9-1) at Three Rivers (5-4), Portage Central (12-1) at Mattawan (4-5).
PHOTO: Lansing Sexton, practicing earlier this month, fell just a touchdown shy last season of reaching its first MHSAA Final.
Performance: Schoolcraft's Kobe Clark
October 5, 2018
Kobe Clark
Schoolcraft junior - Football
The 5-foot-10, 170-pound running back enjoyed in one game what for many is a season’s worth of scoring. Clark racked up an MHSAA-record nine rushing touchdowns in leading his team to a 63-27 win over Constantine to earn the Michigan Army National Guard “Performance of the Week.”
Clark ended the night with 26 carries for 380 yards, and after six games this season has run 110 times for 1,022 yards and 24 touchdowns – he also has four receiving scores. Clark joined the varsity for the eighth game of his freshman year in 2016, when Schoolcraft finished 10-1, and took on a fulltime role as a sophomore as the Eagles finished 5-5 and made the playoffs for the ninth straight season. Schoolcraft currently is 5-1 and tied for first in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Valley under first-year coach Nathan Ferency, as Clark helps shoulder the offensive load with 53 percent of the team’s yardage and 62 percent of its points.
He’s also carrying on quite a family tradition; his older brothers Benny Clark III and Ricky both were stars for the Eagles, Benny as a running back and Ricky as a quarterback, and their father Benny Clark Jr. is the fifth-leading rusher in MHSAA history after gaining 7,212 from 1993-96 at Ravenna. Kobe Clark also plays point guard for the basketball team – he made first-team all-league last winter – and runs the 100 and 400 meters and on the 400 relay during track season. He advanced to the MHSAA Finals as part of that relay this spring.
Coach Nathan Ferency said: “Kobe has been so impressive because of his elusiveness. He is a tremendous athlete that can do things with his feet that most cannot. Kobe needs about six inches of space, and he is gone. His football intelligence and vision while carrying the football have to be noted too. He is hands-down capable of playing at the next level. I am thankful that isn't for another season!”
Performance Point: “All of this attention, it’s weird, but it’s nice. It’s crazy that I have the state record now, out of everyone in Michigan. … We were trapping a lot; that worked really good … when our guard pulls and leads through the whole for me. My guards and tackles were the guys who would make a block, and I would get to the next level.”
Unsung up front: I love those guys (on the line). My favorite guys on the team right there. They think (the record) is awesome, but it’s not just me, it’s them – a whole team effort. They should be getting just as much attention. They’ve been talking me up and saying it’s awesome for me, which I appreciate, but they’re the guys who helped me get it.”
Next Clark in line: “(My dad) is glad for me. He just told me to thank the line, which I do. … I always looked up to (my brothers), and I always wanted to be better than everyone in my family, because that’s what you work for. They just said, ‘Keep working. You’re doing great things right now. Keep it going.’”
New year, new game: “I’ve gotten a lot faster, and I’ve just been working toward getting better every year – conditioning, and I’ve been in the weight room a lot. I’ve gotten a lot bigger, especially the last year. It seems a lot different, because we’re in a new offense this year too. We got a new coach and we have just bonded, and we have a good connection.”
Coaching us up: “This is the most fun I’ve had in a long time playing football. Everyone’s bonding on our team and getting along great. Coach just knows every player on our team and gets along with everyone, and he’s just a great coach. He makes everything so much more energetic and fun, and he just has a great competitive side to him, and he loves to win.”
- Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Every week during the 2018-19 school year, Second Half and the Michigan Army National Guard will recognize 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
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) Schoolcraft's Kobe Clark gets past a Berrien Springs defender. (Middle) Clark, during pregame. (Photos courtesy of JoeInsider.com.)