It’s About the Base
May 8, 2018
Former Southeast Conference Commissioner Roy Kramer, whom Michiganders like to claim as our own for his East Lansing High School and Central Michigan University coaching roots, seized the opportunity of an acceptance speech for an award he received recently from the Tennessee Chapter of the National Football Foundation, College Football Hall of Fame and Knoxville Quarterback Club to deliver a sobering message regarding the game he loves so much – football.
His concerns were for the survival of football on college campuses “where their games will never be on television and will be played in front of less than 10,000 fans.” Which is the situation for 90 percent of the nation’s college football programs.
He also said, “I’m even more concerned about games on Friday night.” Mr. Kramer has been a long-time opponent of Friday night telecasts of college football games because they do poorly both at the gate and in television ratings, and they conflict with the tradition of approximately 6,000 high school football games played locally on Friday nights.
We Michiganders are sometimes criticized for our “conservative” views about the boundaries of a sensible scope for educational athletics. We come by this naturally, on the shoulders of people like Roy Kramer who, even after years in the glitz and glamour of elite college football, maintains his concern for more modest college programs as well as high school football.
It is this base of the game, not the few at the pinnacle, that is the future of a game under siege in dozens of courthouses and state houses across the U.S. – and worse, a game being questioned in many thousands of homes where football was once the game of choice.
Performance of the Week: Chelsea's Lucas Dunn
December 2, 2021
Lucas Dunn ♦ Chelsea
Football ♦ Senior
The Division 4 championship game provided one of the most unforgettable finishes in MHSAA Football Finals history. And Dunn had a hand, literally, in just about all of it. The senior quarterback set an 11-Player Finals record with six touchdowns passes – including four to teammate Lucas Hanifan during the final 13 minutes as the Bulldogs came back from a 28-point second-half deficit to defeat Hudsonville Unity Christian 55-52. Perhaps the most unnoticed contribution to Dunn’s sizable body of work was his hold on the game-winning field goal as time ran out, corralling a short snap to set up Hunter Shaw’s 33-yarder through the uprights.
Dunn made MHSAA Finals record book lists as well for his 25 attempts, 36 completions, 308 yards passing and 297 total yards (he lost 11 rushing). The 6-foot, 170-pounder finished the season with 1,949 yards and 26 touchdowns through the air, as Chelsea concluded its first perfect season at 14-0. The championship was Chelsea’s first in football, and the championship-game total of 107 points set the 11-Player Finals record for most combined by the two participants. The Bulldogs’ 55 points are tied for third-most in an 11-player championship game.
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@mhsaasports 🏈 POW: Lucas Dunn #performanceoftheweek #champion #mhsaa #football #chelsea #highschoolsports #tiktalk #interview #TikTok #mistudentaid #fyp ♬ original sound - MHSAA
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2021-22 Honorees
Nov. 25: Riley Nugent, Plainwell swimming - Report
Nov. 18: Harper Murray, Ann Arbor Skyline volleyball - Report
Nov. 11: Abby VanderKooi, Muskegon Western Michigan Christian cross country - Report
Nov. 4: Arianne Olson, Holland West Ottawa cross country - Report
Oct. 28: Jack Guggemos, Okemos soccer - Report
Oct. 21: Sachiv Kumar, Northville tennis - Report
Oct. 14: Kate Brody, Grand Blanc golf - Report
Oct. 7: Lilly Nelson, Negaunee tennis - Report
Sept. 30: Stella Chapman, Ann Arbor Pioneer swimming - Report
Sept. 23: Riley Hough, Hartland cross country - Report
Sept. 16: Josie Bloom, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep volleyball - Report
PHOTOS courtesy of the Dunn family and Hockey Weekly Action Photos.