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Suttons Bay football chain gang leader Jim Harrelson plants his down marker on the sideline during Wednesday’s middle school game with Onekama.

Longtime Crew Leader Harrelson Begins 32nd Season on Chains, Amid Cancer Fight

By Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com

September 11, 2026

First down! Move the chains.

Northern Lower PeninsulaAs a member of the Suttons Bay chain gang, Jim Harrelson doesn’t know how many more times he’ll follow the referee crew’s direction on the Norsemen sideline. Similarly, he has no idea how many times he’s already moved the chains.

But, in the meantime, every time he does, it will undoubtedly be a school record. An unofficial record of course, but a well-earned and appreciated achievement nonetheless.

Harrelson stepped on the field Wednesday night sporting a down marker for the 32nd straight year. This time, it was for the Norse’s middle school contest with Onekama. Harrelson was joined by Curt Murphy and Dave Faught. Mike Gordon, another regular member of the crew, was also on hand to celebrate Harrelson’s 32nd season. 

Wednesday’s chain gang team was organized – no surprise – by Harrelson. It’s something he’s done on a volunteer basis for Suttons Bay the last 16 years.

Harrelson’s crews have staffed middle school, junior varsity and varsity football games, including the home contests during the Norsemen’s three straight seasons from 2019-21 that culminated in three trips to 8-Player Division 1 Finals. Harrelson, Faught, Murphy and Gordon are in their 10th season working together.

“The chain gang was always his baby, and he was always able to go find other people to help him out,” said Doug Periard, a long-time member of the Norse football coaching staff and former school athletic director. “Somehow he managed to get some of those who might not have done much in football, to suddenly come on board and enjoy doing it.”

Harrelson, who last spring retired from a coaching career spanning 35 years, has no intentions of letting anything get in the way of holding the down marker for the Norsemen.

Harrelson shakes hands with referee Ed Blough.“I've always loved sports, and being a part of the chain gang was always big part of it,” Harrelson said. “The ADs didn’t have to worry about it, knowing it was taken care of.”

Jamie Hawkins, Suttons Bay’s principal and current athletic director, was on hand for Wednesday’s kickoff as well. Hawkins, one of the administrators who has relied on Harrelson, believes the community owes Harrelson a huge thank you, acknowledging he has marked more first downs than anyone could ever comprehend.

“Jim’s years as a coach and chain gang chief are an amazing commitment to our student-athletes, our football program, and the entire Suttons Bay community,” said Hawkins. “His time, energy, and passion have been a part of countless Friday nights and memories for generations of Norsemen.”

Harrelson, now 82, is battling cancer for the second time in his life. He was first diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2010. Early this year, he was told cancer had returned.

Working with doctors and his wife of 53 years, Brenda, Harrelson picked a six-week treatment plan this summer timing it so he could return to the sidelines for the first football game. He’s awaiting word from his medical team on the outcome of the most recent treatment.

“I haven't let it dominate my life – everybody's going to have trials and tribulations no matter what,” Harrelson said of his cancer return. “Cancer is something that thousands of people find themselves having to deal with, and I'm pretty proud I've been able to function pretty much as normal as could be even though it’s obviously right there in front of me.”

Harrelson’s coaching journey began in 1991 with softball, drawn into the role as his children made their way through the Suttons Bay school system. He went on to serve as an assistant and head volleyball coach from 1996 through 2004.

Eventually he served as an assistant or head coach for Suttons Bay in golf, cross country and track.

Harrelson stands for a photo with Suttons Bay principal and athletic director Jamie Hawkins, far left, past athletic director Doug Periard, far right, and his chain gang of (from left) Dave Faught, Curt Murphy and Mike Gordon. Among the highlights of his time on the volleyball bench was helping guide the 2001 squad all the way to the MHSAA Finals, where the team earned a runner-up finish in Class C.

A short while ago, Harrelson was honored with the Don Lukens Legacy Award at the Traverse City Record-Eagle John Lober Honor Roll Meet for his coaching of student-athletes from all four Leelanau County schools – Maple City Glen Lake, Leland, Lake Leelanau St. Mary’s and Northport (with some of that coaching was made possible through the schools becoming a part of a co-op with Suttons Bay).

Much of Harrelson’s coaching was on a purely volunteer basis – even while serving as a head coach responsible for running an entire program.

Now, Harrelson’s favorite thing is watching his grandchildren grow and compete in sports, while admiring his adult children’s great parenting.

Harrelson points to his first grandchild’s birth 15 years ago as a prime motivator during the first cancer round. The Harrelsons have seven grandchildren now, one of whom was playing volleyball Wednesday night for Suttons Bay’s middle school team – with Grandma in the stands.

And while he’s remembered fondly by Leelanau athletes and athletic directors for his coaching commitment and success, Harrelson has only one thought for his family legacy.

“I just hope if I’m remembered for anything by my grandchildren and my kids is that I handled cancer pretty well without letting it affect me in any way, shape, or form in how I behave, how I coach or whatever,” Harrelson said. “I am pretty doggone proud of the fact that I've been able to put that on the table and still be able to function.”

Periard already views Harrelson as a great student-athlete advocate and solution finder.

“It was an incredible amount of time he put in doing the stuff he did and how much he loved it,” recalled Periard. “Cross country, track, whatever he was called upon, he was there to help out. He's a jack of all trades, a great kids guy at heart.”

Harrelson enjoys a break in the shade. Harrelson’s first paid coaching job was as an assistant for track in 2006. At the time he was hired by Cody Ingils, then the Suttons Bay athletic director and now a senior assistant director for the MHSAA.

Harrelson asked Inglis a decade ago to delivery his eulogy someday upon the veteran coach’s passing.

“Jim also always wanted the best for kids at every turn, and he wanted to be a positive force in kids’ lives – and I think Jim's ultimate takeaway is he met the kids where they were and tried to make sure that they got better,” Inglis said. “Jim was able to work with elite athletes, and he was able to work with kids that had never done that sport before. And that was the beauty of his coaching, is that it applied to anybody and everybody because of his positive way of dealing with kids.”

Harrelson, who points to track as his favorite sport to coach because of the camaraderie, is ready to keep moving the down marker as he battles the return of cancer.

“What I've been experiencing is part of who I am,” Harrelson said. “It’s just the cards I've been dealt.  I just want to do it with class if I can.”

Tom SpencerTom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.

PHOTOS (Top) Suttons Bay football chain gang leader Jim Harrelson plants his down marker on the sideline during Wednesday’s middle school game with Onekama. (2) Harrelson shakes hands with referee Ed Blough. (3) Harrelson stands for a photo with Suttons Bay principal and athletic director Jamie Hawkins, far left, past athletic director and longtime coach Doug Periard, far right, and his chain gang of (from left) Dave Faught, Curt Murphy and Mike Gordon. (4) Harrelson enjoys a break in the shade. (Top and sitting photos by Meredith McNabb Photography. Others by Tom Spencer.)

Detroit Martin Luther King football

1st & Goal: 2021 Week 3 in Review

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

September 13, 2021

The anticipated came through during Week 3 of this football regular season, and the unpredicted provided an entertaining mix of storylines too.

As expected, the statewide headliners came from Detroit with Martin Luther King winning a much-heralded rivalry matchup – but also Livonia Churchill claiming the upset of this young season.

Elsewhere, Grand Blanc won close again over another highly-regarded opponent. Hudson continued to build on arguably the best small-school start in the state. A number of 8-player teams tried to wear out scoreboards – the 8-player schedule alone saw four games break 100 combined points and a fifth end up at 98, with Indian River Inland Lakes and Central Lake tying the 8-player scoring record by combining to put up 152.

Here’s a glance at those and other results that especially caught our attention.

Bay & Thumb

HEADLINER Grand Blanc 27, Midland Dow 23 Another week, another noteworthy win for the Bobcats (3-0), who have now handed first losses of this season to all three of their opponents. Hunter Ames connected twice with Tae Boyd on scores, the second during the third quarter ending up the game-winner, and the defense stopped Dow’s final rally on the Grand Blanc 15-yard line. Click for more from WJRT.

Watch list Port Huron Northern 22, Fraser 15 The Huskies quickly are the only undefeated team left in the Macomb Area Conference Blue after handing Fraser (2-1) its first defeat, and Northern also is 3-0 for the first time since 1995.

Remember this one Fenton 39, Flushing 20 The win was only the first for Fenton (1-2) after opening with tough nonleague opponents Dow and East Lansing, and it also put the Tigers 1-0 in the Flint Metro League Stripes as those first two losses have nothing to do with Fenton’s opportunity to three-peat as league champion.

More shoutouts Millington 38, Hemlock 7 The Cardinals (3-0) have won by an average of just about 31 points per game, this one avenging last year’s 12-6 loss to the Huskies that decided the Tri-Valley Conference 10-1 title. Bad Axe 26, Unionville-Sebewaing 8 The Hatchets are 3-0 for the first time since 2001 and already halfway to posting their best record since that season.

Greater Detroit

HEADLINER Detroit Martin Luther King 41, Detroit Cass Tech 34 As anticipated, this one absolutely was worth watching. (Watch the replay here.) Crusaders quarterback Dante Moore threw for 365 yards and five touchdowns including go-ahead scores with 33 seconds to play in the first half and 29 seconds into the fourth quarter as King (2-1) went on to avenge last season’s pair of losses to the Technicians (1-2). Click for more from the Detroit Free Press.

Watch list Livonia Churchill 28, Belleville 21 If not for King/Cass Tech, this would’ve been the headliner not only from the Detroit area but statewide. Belleville (2-1) hadn’t lost a regular-season game since Week 3 of 2016, and Churchill (3-0) had lost all three recent meetings by at least three touchdowns.  

Remember this one Orchard Lake St. Mary's 28, Harper Woods 14 The four teams in the Detroit Catholic League Central are a combined 10-1 with league play set to begin, and handing Harper Woods (2-1) its first defeat ranks right up there with the most impressive of those 10 wins so far.

More shoutouts Pontiac Notre Dame Prep 23, Detroit Loyola 8 The Fighting Irish (3-0) are quietly 19-4 over the last three seasons and made statements on both sides of the ball scoring the first points Loyola (2-1) had given up and holding the Bull Dogs to only eight after they’d scored a combined 119 over their first two games. Armada 34, North Branch 28 The Tigers are 3-0 for the first time since 2011, after winning three games total last season and no more than four since 2012. They also sent reigning champ North Branch (1-2) to 0-2 in Blue Water Area Conference play.

Mid-Michigan

HEADLINER DeWitt 49, East Lansing 14 As expected, DeWitt’s offense keyed by quarterback Ty Holtz and receivers Tommy McIntosh and Nick Flegler immediately bounced back from scoring 17 points in a Week 2 loss to Portland. The Capital Area Activities Conference Blue looks a lot stronger top to bottom this season than the past few, but the Panthers have some history on their side going forward as East Lansing is the only league team to defeat DeWitt since it joined the Blue in 2018. Click for more from the Lansing State Journal.

Watch list Ovid-Elsie 23, Montrose 22 The Marauders’ seven-point opening loss to still-undefeated Portland looks better by the week, and add to that a win over the Rams (2-1) after losing to them by 42 and 22 points the last two seasons.

Remember this one Mason 34, Williamston 27 The CAAC Red race started off with a massive comeback as the Bulldogs trailed 27-13 at halftime but then held the Hornets scoreless over the final two quarters.

More shoutouts Brighton 7, Hartland 6 The Bulldogs (2-1) earned the slim advantage with a 75-yard pass off a fake punt and their second straight week giving up just one score. St. Louis 35, Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary 32 The Sharks (3-0) hadn’t won three games in a season since 2018 and at 41 points per game are on pace for their most productive offense since the 1960s.

Northern Lower Peninsula

HEADLINER Traverse City West 21, Cadillac 7 The Titans (3-0) guaranteed they will again have a loud say in who wins the Big North Conference holding off the Vikings (2-1) to set up this week’s possible league-title decider with reigning champ Traverse City Central. West ran its winning streak against 2020 Division 4 runner-up Cadillac to seven, led by a defense that has given up only one score each of the last two weeks. Click for more from MI Sports Now.

Watch list Mancelona 44, Elk Rapids 15 The Ironmen won three games total last season but are 3-0 for the first time since 2012 with a defense giving up just under 12 points per a game.

Remember this one Frankfort 32, Oscoda 16 The Panthers (2-1) handed Oscoda (2-1) its first regular-season defeat since Week 8 of 2019 – and they play each other again this week in a nonconference rematch.

More shoutouts Lake City 24, Manton 0 The Trojans (3-0) are quickly making their way back after finishing 2-4 a year ago, with this week’s Beal City matchup possibly the most telling so far this fall. Boyne City 44, Maple City Glen Lake 10 The Ramblers (3-0) have avenged their two 2020 regular-season losses in back-to-back weeks and have given up only 25 points total over their three wins this fall.

Southeast & Border 

HEADLINER Hudson 36, Clinton 28 A great start just keeps getting greater for the Tigers, who added a league-opening win over the reigning Division 6 runner-up to their first 3-0 start since 2017. Hudson took a 28-14 lead into halftime and held off the Redwolves’ second-half rally. Nick Kopin tore through four touchdown runs including a 91-yarder. Click for more from the Adrian Daily Telegram.

Watch list Napoleon 20, Manchester 18 The Pirates (3-0) are off to their best start since 2002 with now as many wins this fall as they earned the last two seasons combined.

Remember this one Temperance Bedford 37, Dexter 36 (OT) With these two back in the same league for the first time in more than a decade, this could end up deciding the Southeastern Conference Red championship or at the very least keep Bedford (3-0) in contention to win it.

More shoutouts Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central 33, Carleton Airport 26 The Falcons are 3-0 for the first time since 2015 with Huron League powers Milan and Riverview up over the next two weeks, respectively. Saline 34, Ypsilanti Lincoln 14 Seven-time reigning SEC Red champ Saline (3-0) won its 40th-straight league game.

Southwest Corridor

HEADLINER Battle Creek Harper Creek 50, Parma Western 22 The Beavers might be one of the best 1-2 teams out there and got into the win column after an opening loss to Battle Creek Lakeview and then a three-point defeat to Hastings. Those two and Parma Western remain a combined 7-2 so far. Harper Creek also had defeated Parma Western in a playoff opener last season. Click for more from the Battle Creek Enquirer.

Watch list Watervliet 19, Buchanan 13 After winning two games each of the last three seasons, Watervliet (3-0) has put together an attention-grabbing start with two of those victories over teams that finished last season with winning records.

Remember this one Kalamazoo United 48, Schoolcraft 22 The Hackett/Kalamazoo Christian co-op opened with a difficult slate of Whitehall, Stevensville Lakeshore and now Schoolcraft, and this first win might get the ball rolling with league play coming up.

More shoutouts Cassopolis 28, Comstock 0 The Rangers (2-1) bounced back from a Week 2 loss by shutting out a Comstock team that had scored a combined 82 points during a 2-0 start. Battle Creek Central 34, Lansing Everett 12 The Bearcats (2-1) also showed the ability to rebound nicely, following up a Week 2 defeat by dealing the Vikings (2-1) their first.

Upper Peninsula

HEADLINER Calumet 28, Ishpeming Westwood 14 The Western Peninsula Athletic Conference Copper race just opened back up with previously-winless Calumet handing Westwood its first defeat. The Copper Kings (1-2) slowed a Patriots offense that had totaled 80 points over the 2-0 start. Click for more from ABC 10

Watch list  Bark River-Harris 40, Kalkaska 20 The Broncos have piled up three double-digit wins for their first 3-0 start since 2015.

Remember this one Houghton 21, Iron Mountain 14 These two have been facing each other as members of the West-PAC Copper together since 2018 – and Iron Mountain (1-2) had won the previous two games of the recent series with Houghton (2-1) by a combined 81-0.

More shoutouts Menominee 35, Gladstone 34 The Maroons (3-0) held off a late scare from Gladstone (1-2) to open Great Northern Conference play. Marquette 50, Escanaba 21 The reigning GNC champ improved to 2-1 and ran its winning streak over rival Escanaba (1-2) to four with its highest-scoring game since 2017.

West Michigan

HEADLINER Muskegon 28, Zeeland West 20  The Big Reds (2-1) bounced right back from a Week 2 loss to Cass Tech with an impressive opening win in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Green. The teams were tied midway through the fourth quarter before Muskegon pulled away from the Dux (1-1). Click for more from the Muskegon Chronicle.

Watch list  Caledonia 24, Grandville 14 The Fighting Scots (3-0) joined the O-K Red in 2016 and have yet to make their mark in that league – but it could be on the way with this win avenging last year’s 42-7 loss to the Bulldogs (1-2).

Remember this one Grand Rapids Christian 13, East Grand Rapids 11 The Eagles (1-2) ran their winning streak over EGR (1-2) to four, and this O-K White opener could become much more important when the league schedule wraps up in six weeks.

More shoutouts Grand Rapids West Catholic 51, Allendale 14 The Falcons (3-0) have picked right back up from last October’s scoring surge averaging nearly 41 points per game over this start. Allendale (2-1) had given up a total of seven over its first two games. Comstock Park 34, Sparta 27 The Panthers (3-0) had won a combined four games over the last three seasons, but a late score helped pull them within a win of equaling that this week.

8-Player

HEADLINER Deckerville 82, Genesee 48 Scoring a combined 130 points, this matchup exceeded expectations for high-powered offense. Ethan Bowerman set the MHSAA 8-player record with six touchdowns in a quarter and finished with seven total for the Eagles (2-0). Genesee (2-1) saw its scoring average fall to just 50 points per game in defeat. Click for more from the Sanilac County News.

Watch list Waldron 34, Camden-Frontier 22 The Spartans (2-1) had given up at least 44 points every time in losing their first four meetings with C-F (2-1) after the latter moved to 8-player in 2016.

Remember this one Indian River Inland Lakes 86, Central Lake 66 While it’s unfortunate either team lost a game like this, it will live on as it tied the 8-player record for most points in a game where both teams scored at least 40. Inland Lakes remained undefeated at 3-0 while Central Lake fell to 1-2.

More shoutouts Crystal Falls Forest Park 62, Ontonagon 60 (2OT) Hardly a consolation prize on a night of historic 8-player scoring, this game now ranks third all-time among highest-scoring 8-player overtime games. The Trojans improved to 3-0 while Ontonagon (2-1) suffered its first loss. Au Gres-Sims 62, Mio 54 These two combined for only 116 points as the Wolverines (3-0) stayed at the top of the North Star League and handed Mio (2-1) its first defeat.

PHOTO: Detroit King’s Rashawn Mersier (18) is taken to the ground after a gain during Friday’s win over Detroit Cass Tech. (Photo by Quintin Love Jr.)