Kzoo Rivals Unite to 'Crush Cancer'
September 14, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Kalamazoo football players clad in pink and teal took to Loy Norrix’s football field Friday for one of southwest Michigan’s most anticipated annual rivalry games – but also, with the help of some notable alumni, to continue to spread the word about cancer awareness.
Kalamazoo Central downed Loy Norrix 41-13 in the Cross-town Crush Cancer game, Central wearing pink jerseys symbolic of breast cancer awareness and Loy Norrix in teal signifying ovarian cancer awareness.
The jerseys were provided in large part by a donation by former Loy Norrix stars Tico and Todd “T.J.” Duckett, who served as "ambassadors" for the evening along with another past Loy Norrix star, Little John Flowers, past Kalamazoo Central football standout Duane Young and past Central baseball standout Kevan Hess. Both Duckett brothers, Flowers and Young starred at Michigan State before spending time in the NFL, Young and T.J. Duckett playing professionally for six seasons each. Hess was drafted by the Tigers out of Western Michigan University in 2009 and played three seasons in Detroit’s minor league system.
The teal jerseys had particular meaning for Tico and T.J. Duckett, as their mother Jackie Barham died after a fight with ovarian cancer.
“We chose a time such as this because of the anticipated large attendance and the potential for the greatest impact amongst our alma mater’s community members,” said the Duckett brothers in a statement leading up to the game. “Our own mother, Jackie Barham, would have celebrated more birthdays, if there was a cure for cancer. This is just one way that we can honor her memory.”
The jerseys featured the teams’ mascot names and also the Kalamazoo cityscape. Junior varsity players from both schools wore T-shirts with their dates of graduation and the cityscape as well as organizers set a theme of the entire community standing together for a common fight against cancer. The event was organized by a Kalamazoo Central parent committee headed by Terri Benton-Ollie together with administrators and other supporters representing both school communities.
Students from both schools were joined on the field at halftime by 50 cancer survivors from the community, and funds raised will be donated to the West Michigan Cancer Center.
“We know that we must ‘tackle’ so many of our societal ills,” Benton-Ollie said. “Tragedy can be a disastrous one-moment incident or a phenomenon that must be reversed or a disease that lurks amongst us. Let’s create a ripple effect of continuous gestures and action that work in favor of the greater good and crush cancer.”
Click for more from Kalamazoo Public Schools.
PHOTOS: (Top) Former NFL player Duane Young speaks to the crowd during halftime of the "Crush Cancer" game. (Middle) Supporters and teams wore pink and blue signifying, respectively, breast and ovarian cancer awareness; the game's ambassadors were (from left) T.J. Duckett, Kevan Hess, Duane Young, Little John Flowers and Tico Duckett. (Photos by Walter Hall.)
Martin Returns, Redeems, Runs Away for 3rd Finals Championship in 4 Seasons
By
Jason Juno
Special for MHSAA.com
November 22, 2025
MARQUETTE — Martin has gotten used to making the long but fruitful trip to the Superior Dome in the middle of the Upper Peninsula.
But after winning back-to-back 8-player Division 1 championships in 2022 and 2023, the Clippers didn’t make it out of the Lower Peninsula last year, losing in the final second of the Regional Final.
That started the Redemption Tour.
The players coined it, the coaches went with it, a fan even painted it on his car windows. The Clippers completed the tour Saturday with a dominating 52-8 victory over Blanchard Montabella 435 miles away from their home south of Grand Rapids.
They didn’t want to forget what happened last year, and that bad taste in their mouths helped turn the 2025 campaign into the kind of season they’ll never want to forget either — only for much better reasons.
“We didn’t want that feeling again because it was terrible,” Martin coach Brad Blauvelt said. “Especially winning the two years before, we wanted to be here doing this.”
Senior quarterback Haylen Buell was a big part of the win; he ran for a game-high 179 yards on just nine carries and threw for another 134 during a four-touchdown championship day. That’s two years after being one of the leading rushers and receivers in the 2023 Final.
“(This) means everything. This is what we strive for each and every year,” Buell said. The workouts to get here start each year in March. “I think every senior was at every single workout. It showed up here.”
A dozen seniors, some with experience in previous Finals like Buell, were key to the season and to this victory. Despite the final score, Blanchard Montabella proved up to the challenge early on and Martin needed an answer.
The Mustangs scored first, a rarity for any team against Martin, according to Mustangs coach Tim Webb. They used 13 plays and nearly six minutes to go 90 yards as Brady Kieff put them on the scoreboard with a three-yard run.
Martin answered with a scoring drive to tie it, ending on a three-yard touchdown rush by Buell. Montabella took the ball back and took another methodical drive right back into the red zone, even overcoming a holding penalty early in the drive.
“We thought that we were gonna be the more physical, more dominant team,” Blauvelt said. “That first quarter, they gave us a run for our money and then we kind of took over with our physicality.”
With the help of a key takeaway to set it all in motion.
On the third play of the second quarter, and the 10th of the drive, the Mustangs fumbled. Martin senior linebacker Isaac Suk recovered, and the whole game changed. Compounding the devastating turnover, Martin scored on the very first play of the ensuing drive, on an 81-yard touchdown run by Bryer Watson.
“That was a huge turnover,” Blauvelt said. “Football is momentum, and once we had that, we didn’t really look back.”
It opened the floodgates for the Clippers.
The Mustangs went four-and-out. Martin scored on a 44-yard run by Buell. Montabella punted. Martin scored on a one-yard rush by Seth Toris. Montabella turned it over on downs near midfield. Martin scored on a 25-yard pass from Buell to Anderson Keeler.
It went from looking like a shootout to a 38-8 Martin lead at the half.
Webb said the Mustangs needed to play mistake-free football to compete. It was tough to keep doing that all afternoon.
“We did some good things, I thought, first quarter, first couple drives,” he said. “But we needed to play almost flawless to be able to compete. Their (12) seniors just kind of control the game. Line of scrimmage, they controlled the offense and defense. They tackled better than we did. And I got to give them credit for that.”
Montabella finished the season 11-2 while making its first trip to the Finals. A tough ending to be sure, but a lot to be proud of as well.
“It was a good experience for us, but I mean it’s tough to have it go the way it did,” center Brayden Foster said. “But first one in school history.”
Webb said he hopes the successful run this year shows other Montabella students they can do it, but it’ll take even more dedication in the weight room.
“It’s been a pretty magical couple weeks for our football program,” he said. “And I think we’re just getting started.”
Martin is the gold standard right now in Division 1, with the Clippers now winners of three titles over the last four years. They can forget about last year now that the Redemption Tour is complete with a 13-0 championship season.
“It’ll take me a minute to realize all that,” Blauvelt said. “We’re just trying to win the football game at this point. We’ll look back at it and years from now be like, ‘Man, that was a heck of a run.’ Heck of a run, just special, every time we get here and then win it, too. I’m just proud of my team and my coaches.”
He was thrilled to have a player-led team this time around, something that’s no slam dunk with high school-age kids. It’s the most tight-knit senior group he’s had, and that’s what made this team unique among the three champion squads.
Plus that dominating defense.
“Our defense is different,” he said. “This is our best defense that we think we had. And we held our hat on that, and we like to be physical.”
And if a strong senior class and a feared defense weren’t enough, Martin also had the advantage of having been here before, the coaches and the players. They have an itinerary for the trip that works — which includes speeches from players and coaches the night before — and the ability to focus on the game instead of the commotion of championship week.
“We take that as an advantage,” Blauvelt said. “We just try to soak in the moment every time we come. This is a special place to play. … It’s electric, it’s fun. It stinks it’s eight hours from home, but it’s a cool place.”
One that’s been very good to them.
PHOTOS (Top) Martin’s Weson Elkins (22) charges down the sideline Saturday as Montabella’s Austin Jensen closes in during the Division 1 Final at Superior Dome. (Middle) Montabella’s Brady Kieff steps into the end zone for the game’s first score. (Below) The Mustangs’ Noah Carlson (10) attempts to slow down Haylen Buell as he approaches the end zone. (Click for more from Cara Kamps.)