Mann Makes Great on High Expectations
By
Tom Markowski
Special for Second Half
April 20, 2017
BEVERLY HILLS – Entering high school, Steve Mann faced high expectations.
His mother and father both experienced much success as student-athletes at Detroit Country Day, and his sister, Brittany, was one of the top track athletes to compete at and graduate from the school.
But while it's still too early to tell, Steve might end up the best of the Mann bunch.
Steve, 18, has played varsity football and baseball for four seasons each at Country Day, earning all-state honors in football this past fall and baseball as a junior. Also an outstanding student, he has signed to continue his academic and baseball careers at Duke University, where he’ll end up unless he’s drafted by a Major League Baseball team this summer and offered a deal he can’t refuse – it’s possible he’ll be taken during the first five rounds.
Country Day varsity baseball coach Steve Lepkowski – a 1993 graduate of the school and former football assistant as well before taking over the baseball program in 2015 – said he’s never coached an athlete like Mann.
“Steve is going to be successful at whatever he does,” Lepkowski said. “He’s a four-year captain here. That’s as unique as you can get. We vote for that. And every year we re-vote, and (each) time we re-voted him in.”
Last season, Mann hit .396 with 25 RBI, 24 stolen bases and 27 walks. Through seven games this season, he’s hitting .536 with three home runs, 18 RBI, nine stolen bases and nine walks. He also is 3-0 pitching with a 1.65 ERA.
In football, Mann played defensive back, quarterback and receiver. He’s 6-foot tall, and his weight has fluctuated depending on what sport he is playing. For football, his playing weight was 195 pounds. For baseball he’s up to 210. Mann is a centerfielder who, out of necessity, also pitches for Country Day. He’s expected to be an outfielder at the next level.
With his Duke signing in November, Mann left a football future behind. But he has known for a while where he wanted to be next. Scholarship offers from a more prestigious baseball conference, the Southeastern Conference, fed Mann’s appetite. But he had his sights set on Duke (which plays in the Atlantic Coast Conference) early on, so when the scholarship offer came, that was the end of his recruiting process.
“The scouts ask me, why Duke? Why not the SEC?" Lepkowski said. "Well, I said, Steve cares about academics. Duke has been number one with him all along. As a sophomore, I asked him, where do you want to go? It was Duke. So I talked with Duke. I know of the coaches there. And I told them I have a player here that wants to go to your school, and they asked who. I told them Steve Mann. They said, Steve Mann? He wants to come here? That was it. I call him the Shane Battier of baseball.”
If an explanation is needed, Battier helped lead Duke to an NCAA basketball championship after being at the forefront of Country Day’s Class B titles in 1995, 1996 and 1997. Battier was named Mr. Basketball by the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan as a senior, and Mann is a leading candidate for the Mr. Baseball Award this spring.
Like Battier, Mann also is an outstanding student. He carries a 3.94 grade-point average, taking classes including honors English and advanced placement mathematics and Spanish.
And as for mentors, Mann has to look no further than his living room couch. His father, Steve, also played football, basketball and ran track at Country Day. He caught the winning touchdown pass in the 1986 Class C title game against Muskegon Catholic Central (Final score: 18-14). He went on to play football at University of Wyoming.
His mother, Kira (Lewis), played basketball, lacrosse and volleyball at Country Day before continuing her education at Penn.
Then there’s his sister, Brittany. A 2012 Country Day graduate, Brittany was the Lower Peninsula Division 2 discus and shot put champion as a junior and senior. Country Day won the team title her junior season. Brittany went on to compete at Oregon before graduating last year. She’s enrolled at Southern California and in pursuit of her master’s in communications.
At Oregon, Brittany set the school record in the shot put (57 feet, 4¾ inches) and helped lead her school to its first NCAA team title (2015) in 30 years. She was a four-time All-American.
“I had some big shoes to fill when I came here,” Steve Mann said of Country Day. “Since high school started, even in eighth grade, I knew baseball was going to be it. Before eighth grade I focused on being an athlete. With Brittany coming through Country Day, it was easy to see what I needed to do (to be successful). It was kind of like a competition. I want to be like you, but I want to be better.”
Individually, Mann and his sister are pretty much on par. But there’s that elusive team title he has yet to help win, though he has come close.
County Day lost in the Division 4 Football Final this past November, and last spring the Yellowjackets reached the Division 2 Quarterfinals in baseball before they were eliminated by Dearborn Divine Child, 4-3.
Mann has one more shot.
“I tell myself, I have to win a state championship,” he said. “We’re good enough to win it.”
Mann has always been around sports, even when he was too young to realize it. The year he was born was the year his father became an assistant football coach at Country Day. Whether he was the water boy, ball boy or just tagging along, Steve grew up watching sports.
“I was always with my dad,” he said. “When I was 5, 6 years old, just being out there was great. My dad has taken me through this journey. It was a step-by-step process.
“Another big factor for me was Brittany going on her recruiting visits.”
When he was in the eighth grade, Steve Mann had the opportunity to meet Olympian Devin Allen through his sister. In 2016, Allen became the first man since 1956 to win the 110-meter hurdles at both the NCAA Outdoor Championships and U.S. Olympic Trials. Allen also played receiver on Oregon’s football team.
“I was star-struck,” Mann said. “He was so humble. How could you not want that for yourself?”
Mann is unassuming. Bragging is not a trait his household condones. Great athletes don’t have to tell you how good they are. Their actions do the talking.
His parents deserve much of the credit for this. A part of Mann’s training was to compete against athletes two and three years older to see, for one, how they train and, two, to see how much Mann needed to improve athletically to become like them.
“There were a lot of expectations,” his father said. “He is very self-driven, to live up to both the Mann name at Country Day and to create his own path. I’ve tried to teach him what it’s like to play at the next level.”
As an example, Steve Mann had his son train in the baseball offseason with Major League players who were home away from the game. This experience was not so much about throwing or hitting a baseball. It was about being around those who made it to see how they trained, what foods they ate and the like.
“I did a similar thing with him when he was in middle school,” Mann said of his son. “I’d have him train with the guys in high school, like a Jonas Gray (currently an NFL free agent) and a Bennie Fowler (Denver Broncos). I do that with my younger son, too.”
The Manns' third child is Brandon, who is 13 years old and about to complete the seventh grade. And, yes, Brandon Mann also plays baseball and football, and, yes, his is quite good at both.
Tom Markowski is a columnist and directs website coverage for the State Champs! Sports Network. He previously covered primarily high school sports for the The Detroit News from 1984-2014, focusing on the Detroit area and contributing to statewide coverage of football and basketball. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Steve Mann starred as a multi-position football player during the fall and also pitches and plays outfield during baseball season. (Middle) Mann, here at the plate, could be drafted during the top five rounds in June. (Below) Mann prepares to unload a pass last fall. (Baseball photos by D’Andrea Parnell. Football photos by Scott Bertschy.)
2025 MHSAA Football Playoff Pairings Announced
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
October 26, 2025
Here are the pairings for the 2025 MHSAA Football Playoffs, which begin Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 with District Semifinals in the 11-Player Playoffs and Regional Semifinals in the 8-Player Playoffs.
Teams were divided into divisions before the start of play this fall. The top 32 teams in each division in 11-player and top 16 per division in 8-player, based on playoff-point average, were selected to the field. For 11-player, qualifiers were then divided into four regions with eight teams apiece, and for 8-player qualifiers were divided into four regions with four teams in each.
Pairings for the first three weeks of the tournament are based on regular-season playoff point averages, with the highest-ranked team hosting, regardless of the distance between the two schools. For 11-Player District Semifinal and 8-Player Regional Semifinal play, the top-seeded team in each bracket will host the fourth-seeded team, and the second-seeded team will host the third-seeded team.
District Finals for 11-player and Regional Finals for 8-player will follow during the weekend of Nov. 7-8, and the weekend of Nov. 14-15 will have Regional Finals in the 11-Player Playoffs and Semifinals in the 8-Player Playoffs. The 8-Player Semifinals will pair the winners of Region 1 vs. Region 2 and the winners of Region 3 vs. Region 4 at neutral sites assigned by the MHSAA.
Semifinal games in the 11-Player Playoffs will take place Nov. 21-22, pairing the winners of Region 1 vs. Region 2 and the winners of Region 3 vs. Region 4. The MHSAA also will assign 11-Player Semifinals at neutral sites.
All playoff tickets except for Finals (both 11 and 8-player) will be sold online only via GoFan.
For 11-Player, tickets to District Semifinals and District Finals cost $7, tickets to Regional Finals are $9, and tickets to Semifinals cost $10. For 8-player, tickets for Regional Semifinals are $7, tickets for Regional Finals are $9, and tickets for Semifinals cost $10.
The 8-Player Finals will take place Nov. 22 at Northern Michigan University’s Superior Dome in Marquette, and the 11-Player Finals will be played Nov. 28 and 30 at Ford Field in Detroit. An all-day ticket for 8-Player Finals costs $10 and includes admission to both games, and an all-day ticket for the 11-Player Finals costs $20 and includes admission to that day’s four games.
The 11-Player Finals schedule will be as follows:
Friday, Nov. 28
9:30 a.m. - Division 8
12:30 p.m. - Division 4
4 p.m. - Division 6
7 p.m. - Division 2
Sunday, Nov. 30
9:30 a.m. - Division 7
12:30 p.m. - Division 3
4 p.m. - Division 5
7 p.m. - Division 1
Pairings for both the 11 and 8-Player brackets are as follows:
11-Player Pairings
DIVISION 1
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Jenison (4-5) 52.778 at Hudsonville (9-0) 85.556
Grandville (4-5) 56.111 at Rockford (7-2) 75.444
DISTRICT 2
Kalamazoo Central (6-3) 53.778 at Howell (8-1) 80.111
Grand Ledge (7-2) 65.667 at East Kentwood (7-2) 70.222
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Hartland (5-4) 60.000 at Detroit Catholic Central (9-0) 81.056
Brighton (6-3) 69.333 at West Bloomfield (7-2) 72.333
DISTRICT 2
Davison (8-1) 70.000 at Clarkston (8-1) 87.111
Oxford (7-2) 77.556 at Grand Blanc (9-0) 81.444
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Salem (5-4) 57.333 at Saline (8-1) 77.500
Brownstown Woodhaven (7-2) 66.111 at Belleville (7-2) 72.889
DISTRICT 2
Northville (7-2) 70.111 at Detroit Cass Tech (9-0) 74.556
Dearborn Fordson (7-2) 70.889 at Farmington (7-2) 71.222
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Rochester (5-4) 53.333 at Rochester Adams (7-2) 76.111
Utica Eisenhower (5-4) 57.000 at Rochester Hills Stoney Creek (6-3) 64.111
DISTRICT 2
Sterling Heights Stevenson (5-4) 54.778 at Romeo (6-3) 69.444
Macomb Dakota (6-3) 63.444 at Utica (7-2) 67.778
DIVISION 2
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Muskegon Mona Shores (5-4) 52.111 at Muskegon (6-3) 64.556
Traverse City Central (5-4) 53.889 at Traverse City West (5-4) 59.222
DISTRICT 2
Lansing Everett (5-4) 55.778 at Portage Central (9-0) 76.111
Portage Northern (7-2) 62.528 at Byron Center (6-3) 66.333
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Waterford Mott (5-4) 53.889 at Midland Dow (8-1) 71.111
East Lansing (4-5) 56.111 at White Lake Lakeland (7-2) 68.000
DISTRICT 2
Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (5-4) 54.611 at Walled Lake Western (7-2) 68.667
Orchard Lake St. Mary's (6-2) 63.083 at North Farmington (6-3) 64.889
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
South Lyon East (4-5) 49.222 at South Lyon (9-0) 78.889
Livonia Franklin (6-3) 62.889 at Dexter (8-1) 76.500
DISTRICT 2
Lincoln Park (5-4) 52.444 at Gibraltar Carlson (9-0) 77.667
Temperance Bedford (4-5) 54.357 at Allen Park (5-4) 55.889
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Warren Mott (5-4) 50.222 at Birmingham Groves (6-3) 61.556
Birmingham Seaholm (5-4) 55.556 at Warren Cousino (6-3) 59.778
DISTRICT 2
Roseville (4-5) 52.889 at Grosse Pointe South (8-1) 70.333
St. Clair Shores Lakeview (7-2) 62.444 at Port Huron Northern (7-2) 69.111
DIVISION 3
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Bay City Western (4-5) 46.556 at Mount Pleasant (9-0) 76.444
Marquette (6-3) 51.889 at Gaylord (9-0) 66.000
DISTRICT 2
Coopersville (4-5) 47.000 at Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills (8-1) 67.111
Cedar Springs (8-1) 60.556 at East Grand Rapids (7-2) 60.778
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Zeeland West (6-3) 50.889 at Niles (9-0) 67.778
Zeeland East (6-3) 51.444 at St. Joseph (5-4) 54.889
DISTRICT 2
Coldwater (6-3) 47.111 at Lowell (7-2) 58.778
Middleville Thornapple Kellogg (6-3) 53.222 at Hastings (7-2) 58.556
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Owosso (6-3) 49.444 at DeWitt (9-0) 79.667
Linden (6-3) 50.222 at Mason (5-4) 55.444
DISTRICT 2
Ypsilanti Lincoln (6-3) 55.111 at Adrian (8-1) 60.333
Holly (6-3) 58.222 at Fenton (6-3) 58.444
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Riverview (6-3) 45.667 at Detroit Martin Luther King (5-4) 59.667
Redford Thurston (6-3) 52.222 at Trenton (5-4) 55.000
DISTRICT 2
Warren De La Salle Collegiate (3-6) 49.306 at Warren Fitzgerald (8-1) 65.889
Marysville (7-2) 54.444 at Port Huron (6-3) 59.889
DIVISION 4
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Freeland (7-2) 49.667 at Escanaba (8-1) 58.222
Big Rapids (8-1) 52.667 at Ludington (9-0) 56.778
DISTRICT 2
Holland Christian (5-4) 43.778 at Hudsonville Unity Christian (8-1) 61.333
Spring Lake (6-3) 45.444 at Wyoming Godwin Heights (7-2) 51.444
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Grand Rapids Christian (5-4) 45.333 at Battle Creek Harper Creek (8-1) 65.333
Grand Rapids South Christian (4-5) 47.444 at Portland (9-0) 58.444
DISTRICT 2
Three Rivers (5-4) 46.389 at Paw Paw (6-3) 56.111
Vicksburg (5-4) 48.556 at Edwardsburg (6-3) 51.222
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Lansing Sexton (6-3) 45.667 at Williamston (9-0) 69.500
St. Johns (5-4) 48.889 at Haslett (7-2) 61.111
DISTRICT 2
Lake Fenton (4-5) 43.000 at Goodrich (9-0) 68.000
Fowlerville (5-4) 44.444 at Chelsea (8-1) 67.778
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Tecumseh (6-3) 50.222 at Dearborn Divine Child (8-1) 59.667
Redford Union (7-2) 55.111 at Madison Heights Lamphere (6-3) 57.889
DISTRICT 2
Macomb Lutheran North (7-2) 44.111 at Harper Woods (9-0) 88.222
Center Line (7-2) 48.222 at Harper Woods Chandler Park (7-2) 49.222
DIVISION 5
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Negaunee (6-3) 40.875 at Ogemaw Heights (8-1) 54.389
Gladwin (5-4) 43.111 at Kingsford (6-3) 43.222
DISTRICT 2
Clare (6-3) 43.111 at Saginaw Swan Valley (8-1) 54.778
Howard City Tri County (5-4) 43.556 at Whitehall (5-4) 46.333
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Wyoming Kelloggsville (6-3) 40.778 at Grand Rapids Catholic Central (9-0) 74.206
Muskegon Oakridge (6-3) 43.000 at Grand Rapids West Catholic (8-1) 62.111
DISTRICT 2
Hopkins (5-4) 41.222 at Kalamazoo United (7-2) 43.286
Dowagiac (5-3) 41.827 at Berrien Springs (5-2) 42.802
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Detroit Cody (5-4) 37.222 at Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard (9-0) 52.667
Romulus (4-5) 41.111 at Michigan Center (8-1) 43.000
DISTRICT 2
Detroit Voyageur College Prep (4-5) 36.889 at Romulus Summit Academy North (7-1) 54.125
Flat Rock (6-3) 47.889 at Monroe Jefferson (8-1) 52.111
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Hazel Park (6-3) 39.333 at Pontiac Notre Dame Prep (7-2) 62.444
Detroit Denby (7-2) 46.556 at Detroit Southeastern (6-3) 49.000
DISTRICT 2
Yale (5-4) 39.000 at Frankenmuth (8-1) 57.778
Armada (6-3) 46.444 at Richmond (8-1) 55.222
DIVISION 6
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Calumet (7-2) 40.500 at Kingsley (7-2) 48.167
Boyne City (6-3) 41.944 at Traverse City St. Francis (6-2) 44.472
DISTRICT 2
Sanford Meridian (6-3) 36.111 at Reed City (7-2) 47.667
Montague (5-4) 36.444 at Central Montcalm (7-2) 37.444
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Ovid-Elsie (7-2) 42.000 at Belding (8-1) 57.222
Kent City (9-0) 49.667 at Olivet (8-1) 51.333
DISTRICT 2
Flint New Standard Academy (8-1) 34.264 at Montrose (9-0) 45.889
Durand (7-2) 40.222 at Flint Hamady (6-3) 40.444
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Onsted (4-5) 32.778 at Jackson Lumen Christi (6-3) 61.889
Buchanan (6-3) 34.357 at Napoleon (6-3) 38.556
DISTRICT 2
Adrian Madison (5-4) 33.889 at Ecorse (7-2) 48.000
Dearborn Heights Robichaud (6-3) 40.984 at Ida (7-2) 41.778
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Detroit Central (6-3) 34.889 at Detroit Edison (7-2) 53.056
Warren Michigan Collegiate (5-4) 37.556 at Detroit Pershing (6-3) 40.111
DISTRICT 2
Clinton Township Clintondale (5-4) 33.889 at Almont (9-0) 61.667
Clawson (6-3) 41.000 at Marine City (6-3) 47.222
DIVISION 7
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
Manton (6-3) 28.000 at Menominee (9-0) 52.486
McBain (7-2) 36.667 at Charlevoix (8-1) 41.556
DISTRICT 2
Morley Stanwood (3-6) 25.556 at Harrison (7-2) 33.333
Shelby (5-4) 26.667 at LeRoy Pine River (6-3) 32.111
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Ravenna (4-5) 28.889 at Pewamo-Westphalia (8-0) 41.889
Saranac (7-2) 30.778 at North Muskegon (6-3) 35.514
DISTRICT 2
Ithaca (6-3) 34.222 at Saginaw Valley Lutheran (9-0) 40.333
Cass City (6-3) 35.667 at Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port Laker (7-2) 37.778
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Galesburg-Augusta (4-5) 26.000 at Schoolcraft (7-2) 39.333
Constantine (6-3) 38.667 at Lawton (7-2) 39.000
DISTRICT 2
Union City (5-4) 28.222 at Hanover-Horton (7-2) 42.889
Jonesville (6-3) 30.222 at Bronson (7-2) 35.222
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Leslie (5-4) 28.778 at Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central (7-2) 49.667
Ottawa Lake Whiteford (8-1) 36.667 at Clinton (7-2) 40.556
DISTRICT 2
Burton Bendle (6-3) 29.333 at Millington (7-2) 41.000
Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest (5-4) 29.873 at Detroit Community (6-3) 30.762
DIVISION 8
REGION 1
DISTRICT 1
West Iron County (4-4) 25.361 at Bark River-Harris (7-1) 37.375
L'Anse (5-4) 25.417 at Iron Mountain (5-3) 27.528
DISTRICT 2
Mancelona (5-4) 29.361 at Maple City Glen Lake (7-1) 40.528
Frankfort (6-3) 29.917 at East Jordan (6-3) 32.625
REGION 2
DISTRICT 1
Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart (5-4) 26.206 at Beal City (9-0) 42.111
Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary (6-3) 33.000 at Saginaw Nouvel Catholic Central (7-2) 33.556
DISTRICT 2
Reese (5-4) 27.111 at Harbor Beach (9-0) 42.556
Genesee (4-5) 27.556 at Unionville-Sebewaing (6-3) 32.889
REGION 3
DISTRICT 1
Centreville (5-4) 29.778 at Hudson (9-0) 49.857
White Pigeon (7-2) 35.222 at Decatur (7-2) 38.222
DISTRICT 2
Manchester (5-4) 28.444 at Springport (9-0) 38.931
Fowler (6-3) 34.111 at New Lothrop (6-3) 37.778
REGION 4
DISTRICT 1
Auburn Hills Oakland Christian (5-4) 25.611 at Madison Heights Madison (8-1) 44.556
Clarkston Everest Collegiate (5-4) 28.667 at Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes (5-4) 30.444
DISTRICT 2
Riverview Gabriel Richard (4-5) 29.111 at Melvindale Academy for Business & Tech (9-0) 45.667
Southfield Bradford Academy (6-3) 31.889 at Allen Park Cabrini (8-1) 38.889
8-Player Pairings
DIVISION 1
REGION 1
Gogebic (8-1) 32.264 at Norway (9-0) 37.625
Pickford (7-1) 32.542 at Indian River Inland Lakes (9-0) 36.667
REGION 2
Breckenridge (6-3) 30.250 at Blanchard Montabella (8-1) 35.222
Central Lake (6-3) 30.333 at Merrill (7-2) 31.778
REGION 3
Marcellus (6-3) 28.417 at Martin (9-0) 38.667
Climax-Scotts (7-2) 32.486 at Gobles (7-2) 33.194
REGION 4
Bay City All Saints (7-2) 31.319 at Kingston (8-1) 36.222
Capac (7-2) 33.111 at Brown City (7-2) 33.444
DIVISION 2
REGION 1
St. Ignace (6-3) 29.250 at Felch North Dickinson (9-0) 34.708
Powers North Central (7-2) 31.444 at Lake Linden-Hubbell (7-2) 31.444
REGION 2
Hillman (6-3) 29.208 at Onekama (9-0) 36.667
Gaylord St. Mary (7-2) 29.778 at Mio (8-1) 32.472
REGION 3
Marion (6-3) 29.333 at Portland St Patrick (9-0) 37.750
Grand Rapids Sacred Heart (8-1) 34.972 at Mendon (9-0) 37.375
REGION 4
Pittsford (7-2) 32.111 at Britton Deerfield (8-1) 36.889
Morrice (8-1) 32.222 at Deckerville (8-1) 36.556
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,500 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.
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