Moment: Comets Make Last Minute Count
October 8, 2020
By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties
A hop and a wave.
That’s what it took for Grand Ledge to pull off the most unlikely of comebacks in the 2000 Division 1 MHSAA Football title game at the Pontiac Silverdome, doing what no team has ever done – scoring two touchdowns during the final minute to claim a 19-14 victory over Utica Eisenhower.
The game was your typical large-school, heavyweight fight, tied at 7-7 with less than five minutes to play when Eisenhower’s Chris Hoover broke loose for a 36-yard scoring run. But Grand Ledge bounced right back, mounting an 80-yard drive following the ensuing kickoff, capped by quarterback Matt Bohnet’s five-yard scramble to the end zone.
With just 53 seconds left on the clock, Comets coach Pat O’Keefe, already known as one of the state’s most successful baseball coaches, decided he had to gamble. Go for two.
“We were tired,” O’Keefe told the Lansing State Journal after the game. “I thought the momentum was there for us and I didn’t want to play overtime.
“We thought about it a little bit, and I saw it in the kid’s faces. I asked Matt (Bohnet) what he wanted to do and he said, ‘Let’s go for the win.’”
But the conversion play broke down. Bohnet couldn’t find an open receiver and was tackled short of the goal line.
Everyone in the Silverdome knew what was coming next. No one could have seen, however, what was going to happen.
The onside kick by Nick Sandy took a textbook hop, and Colin O’Keefe flew through the air to grab it and give the Comets new life.
Two plays later, Bohnet was scrambling again – and a wide-open Tim George was downfield waving at him. Bohnet connected with George at the 15-yard line, and after shaking off one would-be tackler, George headed for the end zone, finishing with a pylon dive that gave the Comets the lead. It was the second TD catch of the game for George.
“I caught the ball and got bumped,” George told The Detroit News. “I saw the goal line and I knew I had to get there. I didn’t even think about going out of bounds.”
You can watch the final moments of the FOX Sports Detroit coverage of the 2000 Grand Ledge-Utica Eisenhower game below.
PHOTO: Grand Ledge's Tim George dives for the winning touchdown during the final seconds of the 2000 Division 1 Final at the Pontiac Silverdome. (Photo by Gary Shook.)
Bark River-Harris Making Good on Preseason Possibilities, Showing Postseason Potential
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
October 24, 2025
HARRIS – The Bark River-Harris Broncos have certainly made some noise throughout this football season.
BR-H, which improved to 6-1 with a convincing 44-7 victory over West Iron County last Friday, hopes to make a deep run in the Division 8 playoffs.
“So far, so good,” coach Caleb Adams said. “At the beginning of this season we thought we had a special team, and everything has gone according to plan.”
The Broncos are 6-1 and last week clinched the outright championship in the Western Peninsula Athletic Conference Iron.
Among this year’s highlights are a pair of victories over Iron Mountain, something no other BR-H team had been able to accomplish.
The Broncos earned a 30-22 overtime win inside the yellow walls at Mountaineer Stadium on Sept. 5, then beat Iron Mountain 38-14 at home Oct. 10.
“We were 0-17 against them until that point,” Adams said. “It was like getting a monkey off our back. We had an opportunity to beat them and thought we could do it. There’s something about those yellow walls.”
Junior running back Gionni McDonough had similar thoughts.
“After our win up there, it was pretty crazy,” he said. “It was a great feeling to win up there. Although, we had beaten them in jayvee ball. We felt we had a shot at them.”
The Broncos next must turn their attention to tonight’s regular-season finale against Houghton. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
The Gremlins (2-6) are led by speedy senior running back/nickel back Brayden Goudge, who shows a quick first step, and junior quarterback Alex Hebert. Two weeks ago, Goudge scored on a 37-yard interception return and ran for two touchdowns in a 34-22 loss at Gladstone.
“(Goudge) is very fast,” Adams said. “He’s one guy we have to pay attention to. If we win Friday, we’ll probably be able to host two (playoff) games.”
Junior QB Dane Schmitt believes the Broncos have to attack the middle in tonight’s game.
“That’s the type of team they are,” he said. “We're a pretty deep team. We have more jayvee kids coming up, and they’re getting better.”
The Broncos were 3-0 following a 42-14 triumph at West Iron Sept. 12.
They made the long trip to Auburndale, Wis., the following week. That contest, however, was cancelled by lightning.
BR-H then traveled to Gaylord to face undefeated Division 7 contender Pewamo-Westphalia, where it dropped a 49-0 decision Sept. 26.
That game was scoreless after the first quarter before two Broncos’ offensive linemen were injured.
“We wanted to see how we ranked with one of the best teams in the state,” Adams said. “After the injuries, everything kind of got away from us. The way they performed and their communication on the field kind of showed our kids what it takes to perform at that level.”
The Broncos responded the following weekend with a 44-16 victory at L’Anse.
“They’re a physical team,” McDonough said. “If we see them in the playoffs, we would have to be able to match their intensity.
A rematch with L’Anse in the postseason opener is possible, based on the current playoff rankings.
“If we play our game, we should beat them,” Schmitt said. “Although, they have some fast kids. We just have to play our style of defense and do our job.”
Junior lineman Sean Burton is among the Broncos’ leaders in the trenches.
“I honestly love it,” he said. “I like to be physical. The game with Pewamo-Westphalia was a big learning experience. Defensively, they play at a much faster pace than we’re used to. They’re very physical. It's a big difference from playing in the U.P. They’re a bigger school, and all their players are fast. We were pretty fired up after the first quarter, but it was hard to adapt after that.”
John Vrancic has covered high school sports in the Upper Peninsula since joining the Escanaba Daily Press staff in 1985. He is known most prominently across the peninsula for his extensive coverage of cross country and track & field that frequently appears in newspapers from the Wisconsin border to Lake Huron. He received the James Trethewey Award for Distinguished Service in 2015 from the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
PHOTOS (Top) Gionni McDonough (9) breaks outside trying to elude the tackle of Ethan Davis (22) during Bark River-Harris' win over Iron Mountain on Oct. 10. (Middle) BR-H's Gabe Spear (4) hauls in pass as Brayden Kassin (2) tries to break it up. (Photos by Terry Raiche.)