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Moment: Nick & Nick Go 90, 27 Years Apart

October 30, 2020

By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

The longest rushing play in the MHSAA Football Finals is one of two marks that has two players tied for the top spot.

Nick Williams of Farmington Hills Harrison originally set the standard in 1994, in the Class A Final against Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central, a game won by the Hawks, 17-13.

It took 27 years for the equalizer, when Edwardsburg’s Nick Bradley ripped off a 90-yard scoring run in the Division 4 finale against Grand Rapids Catholic Central, a game in which the Eddies fell to the Cougars, 42-31.

Williams, at 6-foot-2 and 248 pounds, blasted from his fullback’s spot through a hole and went untouched to start the second quarter for the Hawks against Forest Hills Central. Roy Granger followed-up with an 80-yard scoring run in the third quarter to stake coach John Herrington’s team to a 14-0 lead.

“It was the big play.” Williams told the Detroit Free Press after the game. “We’ve got a lot of guys on this team who can make the big play, and everybody wants to make the big play. If you’ve got guys who can make the big play, and they want to make the big play, then they will make the big play.”

Bradley’s 90-yarder was one of two championship game records set in 2017 – the only time that has happened. Caden Coggins had a 99-yard kickoff return for a score in the same game. Bradley's TD cut the Cougars' lead to 35-31 with just over eight minutes left to play.

It was a wild game in the respect that Edwardsburg had five scoring plays in excess of 50 yards, but in the end it was Nolan Fugate, rushing for four touchdowns, who gave CC the victory. Fugate caught a pass for a record-tying fifth touchdown in the game and had 306 yards rushing – one yard short of a Finals game record.


Moment: Johnson Follows Purple Wall

October 15, 2020

By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

Brad Johnson saw the wall and was off to the races.

The star do-everything player for Schoolcraft had already scored one touchdown on the day in the 1988 Class D Football Final against Frankfort at the Pontiac Silverdome, and back in a punt return mode in the second quarter, he faked a reverse, saw the wall and he was gone.

An 87-yard punt return, the longest in state finals history by a good 25 yards.

“After making my fake, I looked up and there was a wall,” Johnson told the Detroit Free Press.  “All I had to do was outrun everybody.”

The play gave the Eagles a 21-7 lead at the time and broke the game wide open. Schoolcraft cruised to a 42-7 victory to finish the season at 13-0. 


PHOTO by Gary Shook.