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Menominee's Man Among Maroons

June 28, 2012

Ken Hofer walked high school football sidelines as a head coach  for nearly a half-century. That, in itself, is an incredible accomplishment.

But Menominee's recently-retired and legendary coach packed plenty of success into his 48 seasons, a tenure that began in his hometown of Stephenson.

  • Hofer is retiring with a record of 342-136-3 and after three straight nine-win seasons. 
  • His teams have made the MHSAA playoffs at the ends of the last 16.
  • The Maroons won 29 straight games from 2006-2008, with back-to-back 14-0 finishes in 2006 and 2007.
  • His teams won three MHSAA championships, in those two perfect seasons and in 1998.
  • In three of the last six seasons, his offense scored more than 500 points.

"His impact has been felt for generations, and his legacy will continue to inspire students into the future," Menominee superintendent Erik Bergh wrote when Hofer made his announcement.

Click to read our Q&A with the longtime Maroons coach, who stepped down earlier this month. 

PHOTO: Ken Hofer, center in gray sweatshirt, coached Menominee to a 41-6 win over Madison Heights Madison in the 2006 Division 5 Final at Ford Field.

Eight-Player Options

March 10, 2017

Put this in the category of “No good deed goes unpunished.”

In 2011, the MHSAA provided an additional playoff for Class D schools sponsoring 8-player football. This helped save football in some schools and helped return the game of football to other schools. But now that the number of 8-player programs has expanded from two dozen in 2011 to more than 60, there are complaints:

  • Some complaints come out of a sense of entitlement that all final games in both the 8-player and 11-player tournament deserve to be played at Ford Field.

  • Some complaints come from Class C schools whose enrollments are too large for the 8-player tournament. Class C schools which sponsor the 8-player game have no tournament at all in which to play, regardless of where the finals might be held.

  • Some complaints come from Class D schools which protest any suggestion that Class C schools – even the smallest – be allowed to play in the 8-player tournament.

There are now three scenarios emerging as the most likely future for 8-player football:

  • The original plan ... A five-week, 32-team tournament for Class D schools only, with the finals at a site to be determined, but probably not Ford Field.

  • Alternative #1 ... Reduce the 11-player tournament to seven divisions and make Division 8 the 8-player tournament with 32 Class D teams in a five-week tournament, ending at Ford Field.

  • Alternative #2 ... Conduct the 8-player tournament in two divisions of 16 Class D teams, competing in a four-week playoff ending in a double-header at the Superior Dome on the Saturday before Thanksgiving.

The pros and cons of these options are being widely discussed. Sometimes the discussions have a tone that is critical of the MHSAA, which comes from those who forget that it was the MHSAA itself which moved in 2011 to protect and promote football by adding the 8-player playoff tournament option for its smallest member schools. That Class D schools now feel entitled to the Ford Field opportunity and Class C schools want access to an 8-player tournament is not unexpected; but criticism of the MHSAA’s efforts is not deserved.