Highlight Reel: Saturday Football Finals

November 28, 2015

By John Johnson
MHSAA Communications Director 

The 2015 Fall sports season concluded Saturday (Nov. 28), with four more champions crowned at the 11-Player Football Finals – presented by the Michigan Army National Guard – at Ford Field in Detroit.

Below are highlight clips from every game plus links to watch them in full.

Division 7
Ishpeming 22, Pewamo-Westphalia 16

Smith’s Record Setter – Pewamo Westphalia scored first on this 25-yard run by Jared Smith, his 53rd of the season, a new MHSAA record. He also set a record in 2015 for single-single rushing yardage with 3,243 yards. 

Ozzy Does It All – After scoring all three of his team's touchdowns, Ishpeming's Ozzy Corp makes the defensive play of the game by batting away a fourth-down pass in the end zone.

Watch the whole game and order DVDs by Clicking Here. 

Division 1
Romeo 41, Detroit Cass Tech 27 

Tanner Breaks Free For TD – Romeo's Bradley Tanner rushed for 130 yards and three TDs in the Division 1 Final against Detroit Cass Tech. Here's his second score, in the second quarter. 

Cass Tech Gets Back In The Game – Detroit Cass Tech pulls within a score of Romeo midway through the fourth quarter on this 36-yard pass from Aaron Jackson to Donovan People-Jones.

Watch the whole game and order DVDs by Clicking Here.  

Division 5
Grand Rapids West Catholic 40, River Rouge 34

Fox On The Run – David Fox rushed for 152 yards and three touchdowns to lead Grand Rapids West Catholic in its Division 5 Final with River Rouge.  Here’s the first of those scoring plays – a 64-yard run at the end of the first quarter.

Burgess TD Pass to Vinson – River Rouge QB Antoine Burgess passed for 354 yards and three TDs in the Division 5 Final against Grand Rapids West Catholic.  Here’s a third-quarter pass that went 63 yards for a score to Aaron Vinson, who had 162 yards receiving in the game.

Watch the whole game and order DVDs by Clicking Here. 

Division 3
Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 29, Chelsea 12
 

Tabone & Hamler Team Up For Eaglets – The combination of QB Brendan Tabone and WR Kahlee Hamler connected for two TDs in Orchard Lake St. Mary’s Division 3 Final against Chelsea. Here’s the first score in the opening period.

Bulldog Trickery – Chelsea got on the board in the second quarter on a halfback pass covering 47 yards from Graham Kuras to Noah Vanreesema. 

Watch the whole game and order DVDs by Clicking Here

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

PHOTO: Romeo's Bradley Tanner makes a move toward the end zone during the Division 1 Final as teammate Paul Hurley appears to signal the touchdown to come.

1st & Goal: 2025 Week 9 Preview

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

October 23, 2025

This is it – the final football weekend for more than half of Michigan’s high school teams, and also the final opportunity for a few hundred playoff hopefuls to earn their way into this year’s playoffs – or affect who they might play and where on their MHSAA championship drives.

MI Student AidA pair of late Saturday games will conclude this fall’s regular-season schedule. Follow the ever-changing playoff picture as scores are reported on the Football Playoff Point Summary page, which includes playoff-point averages and how teams rank as they hope to reach the fields of 32 teams in 11-player divisions and 16 teams in the 8-player brackets.

The announcement of the qualifiers and first-round pairings for both will take place at 5 p.m. Sunday on the “Selection Sunday Show” on the NFHS Network (no subscription required). The playoff qualifiers and pairings will be posted to the MHSAA Website following the show, and times and dates will be added Monday.

Below are several games this weekend that surely will impact where teams will land.

Bay & Thumb

Harbor Beach (8-0) at Millington (7-1) WATCH

This is a meeting of Big Thumb Conference champions with aspirations for more trophies next month. Harbor Beach won the BTC Black and hasn’t ranked lower that sixth on the Division 8 playoff list since at least Week 3. The Pirates also haven’t given up more than 14 points in a game and 62 total over eight, making for an intriguing matchup for the Cardinals – last season’s Division 7 champion, who shared the BTC White title this fall and have scored more than 50 three times but also 14 three times.

Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Midland (4-4) at Midland Dow (7-1) WATCH, Detroit Edison (7-1) at Almont (8-0) WATCH, Saginaw  Valley Lutheran (8-0) at Unionville-Sebewaing (6-2) WATCH, Marysville (6-2) at Marine City (6-2).

Greater Detroit

Detroit Catholic Central (8-0) vs. Detroit Martin Luther King (5-3) at Ford Field, Saturday WATCH

The final kickoff of the 2025 regular season features a pair of teams facing off at Ford Field and hoping to return there for Thanksgiving weekend. This Catholic High School League Prep Bowl matchup will actually be King’s second-straight game on the Detroit Lions’ home field, as they fell in last week’s Detroit Public School League Blue city championship game to Cass Tech – the only in-state team to defeat King this season, and a possible playoff opponent for DCC at some point in the Division 1 bracket. The Shamrocks’ closest games this season have been a pair decided by 13 points.

Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Howell (7-1) at Belleville (7-1) WATCH, Birmingham Groves (5-3) at Birmingham Seaholm (5-3) WATCH, Utica Eisenhower (5-3) at Clarkston (7-1) WATCH, Grand Blanc (8-0) at Romeo (6-2) WATCH.

Mid-Michigan

DeWitt (8-0) at Lansing Everett (5-3) WATCH

The Capital Area Activities Conference Blue is one of the final leagues still deciding its champion(s) for this season, and DeWitt already has clinched a share as it looks to extend its winning streak over the Vikings to five. Grand Ledge is in second place and would benefit from an Everett upset, but the challenge will be mighty as the Panthers have scored 50 or more points in every league game and given up 14 total over their last five. Everett did break a three-game losing streak last week with a 28-21 win over Holt, and has faced another still-undefeated contender in Grand Blanc.

Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Durand (6-2) at Bath (4-4) WATCH, McBain (6-2) at Fowler (6-2) WATCH, Beal City (8-0) at Ithaca (6-2) WATCH, White Pigeon (6-2) at Stockbridge (4-4) WATCH.

Northern Lower Peninsula

Charlevoix (8-0) at Kingsley (6-2) WATCH

This should be an excellent playoff primer for both. Charlevoix has won two straight games by three points or fewer to keep its perfect regular season hopes alive and is third on the Division 7 playoff list. Kingsley, with losses only to undefeated Gaylord and rival Traverse City St. Francis by a point, sits 10th on the Division 6 list and one spot ahead of the Gladiators – meaning a home game if they can maintain that advantage and meet again in the playoffs. The Stags won 47-28 when these two met in Week 9 a year ago.

Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Kalkaska (5-3) at Boyne City (5-3) WATCH, Elk Rapids (4-4) at East Jordan (5-3) WATCH, Maple City Glen Lake (6-1) at Mancelona (5-3) WATCH, Traverse City Central (5-3) at Traverse City West (4-4).

Southeast & Border

Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard (8-0) vs. Allen Park Cabrini (8-0) at Ford Field, Saturday WATCH

For the second week in a row, FGR will puts its perfect record on the line against another undefeated opponent – this time as part of the Prep Bowl at Ford Field. The Irish clinched the CHSL Intersectional 1 championship last week by handing Macomb Lutheran North its lone defeat, 44-19. Cabrini is the champion from the Intersectional 2 and aspiring to complete its first perfect regular season since 1967, when it finished 7-0-1 according the Michigan-Football.com. The Monarchs finished 5-5 a year ago and already have their most wins since 2007.

Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Linden (6-2) at Chelsea (7-1) WATCH, Bronson (7-1) at Springport (8-0) WATCH. SATURDAY Hanover-Horton (6-2) at Michigan Center (8-0) WATCH, Jackson Lumen Christi (5-3) vs. Center Line (7-1) at Ford Field.

Southwest Corridor

Portage Central (8-0) at St. Joseph (5-3) WATCH

The Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference West also is finishing up league play, with Portage Central owning a share of the title but a St. Joseph win tonight creating a three-team share with these two and Portage Northern. The Mustangs may have the most impressive defense in the state with seven shutouts and only 10 points allowed. That said, St. Joseph won last year’s meeting 15-0 to create a shared league title between the two, and has scored 35 points or more every game since a Week 1 loss to last season’s Division 4 runner-up and still-undefeated Niles.

Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Hudson (8-0) at Berrien Springs (5-1) WATCH, Lawton (6-2) at Constantine (6-2) WATCH, Niles (8-0) at Edwardsburg (6-2) WATCH, Kalamazoo United (6-2) at Schoolcraft (7-1) WATCH.

Upper Peninsula

Kingsford (6-2) at Marquette (5-3) WATCH

These two are now three years removed from being longtime league rivals in the Great Northern Conference, but this game continues to carry significant weight and especially when it comes to Marquette’s playoff future. Kingsford has won the last three meetings, and last year’s 27-17 victory contributed to keeping the Sentinels out of the postseason. Marquette sits No. 27 on the Division 3 list this week with losses to opponents that are a combined 20-4. The Flivvers are No. 16 in Division 5 but coming off a tough league-deciding defeat against Menominee.

Keep an eye on these THURSDAY Iron Mountain (5-2) at Negaunee (5-3) WATCH. FRIDAY Gladstone (3-5) at Escanaba (7-1) WATCH, Calumet (6-2) at L’Anse (5-3) WATCH, Hancock (1-7) at West Iron County (3-4) WATCH.

West Michigan

Wyoming Godwin Heights (7-1) at Belding (7-1)

This is a winner-take-all for the Ottawa-Kent Conference Silver title, as Belding looks to extend its league championship streak to four and Godwin Heights seeks to add a historic accomplishment to what also will be its first playoff season since 2018 (not counting COVID-shortened 2020, when nearly all teams qualified). Although Belding has won the last three meetings between these two, Godwin did claim it as recently as 2021 – the last time the Black Knights didn’t win the Silver.

Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Grand Rapids South Christian (4-4) at Grand Rapids Catholic Central (8-0) WATCH, Zeeland West (6-2) at Grand Rapids West Catholic (7-1), Pontiac Notre Dame Prep (6-2) at Hudsonville Unity Christian (8-0) WATCH, North Muskegon (6-2) at Muskegon Oakridge (5-3) WATCH.

8-Player

Indian River Inland Lakes (8-0) at Gaylord St. Mary (7-1)

The Ski Valley Conference title is at stake, and Inland Lakes has won all four of those since joining the league in 2021 – with St. Mary finishing runner-up the last three seasons. They played one-score games against each other in 2022 and 2023 before the Bulldogs won big a year ago. Inland Lakes also has an argument for most impressive defense in the state this season, with its 14 points allowed to Hillman in Week 5 the only points the team has surrendered all fall. The Snowbirds have three shutouts in league play and their only loss came two weeks ago to a likely playoff team in Breckenridge.

Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Blanchard Montabella (8-0) at Portland St. Patrick (8-0), Marion (6-2) at Kingston (7-1) WATCH, Bridgman (7-1) at Brown City (6-2) WATCH, Climax-Scotts (6-2) at Pittsford (7-1) WATCH.

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PHOTO Detroit Martin Luther King and Cass Tech players contend for a pass in the end zone during last week's PSL Blue city championship game. (Photo by Olivia B. Photography.)