Physical & Powerful, Beal City Rumbles to 1st Finals Title Since 2009
By
Brad Emons
Special for MHSAA.com
November 29, 2024
DETROIT – No stranger to an MHSAA Finals appearances, Beal City put an exclamation point on its 2024 season by upending Riverview Gabriel Richard, 43-14, for the Division 8 title Friday at Ford Field.
The Aggies (12-2), using a highly-effective ground attack, secured their third championship in 10 tries matching the feats of their 2009 (D8) and 1994 (Class D) title teams.
Beal City racked up 315 yards on the ground led by senior Drew Block, who finished with 112 yards on 20 carries and two touchdowns. Owen McKenny chipped in with 12 carries for 88 yards and a TD, while Garrison Zuker contributed seven for 64.
“Our offensive line was just outstanding today,” Block said. “We really couldn’t do anything without them. They’re the heart-and-soul of our team. They continually got us chunks and chunks of yards. We were going to let them just do their job and march down the field. We’ve got a lot of great talent on this team. Each guy has his own specific thing ... just a bunch of dogs, really.”
Beal City’s Brad Gross, in his 10th season as head coach, has been part of the program for nearly 23 years. He was a player on that ’94 team and was the offensive coordinator in 2009.
“They all mean a lot,” Gross said. “To be the head coach and get your first one ... it’s just awesome. I’m a Beal guy; when I’m done coaching, it will be at Beal.”
Gabriel Richard quarterback Nick Sobush was 9 of 18 passing for 120 yards and a TD for the Pioneers (11-2). He also added 51 yards rushing on 12 carries with a score.
Gabriel Richard, making its inaugural Finals appearance, scored first taking its opening possession 72 yards in just three plays. The drive was capped by Sobush’s 53-yard TD toss down the sideline to Derek Lesko followed by Joey Calhoun’s 2-point conversion run to make it 8-0 just 1:19 into the game.
Beal City answered on its first offensive possession to make it 8-all after Drake Gatrell returned the ensuing kickoff to the 50. Six plays later Block scored on a two-yard run and McKenny added the 2-pointer after the Pioneers jumped offsides on the extra point attempt with 7:48 to go in the first.
With 4:39 remaining in the opening quarter, the Pioneers went for it on 4th-and-4 at their own 49 only to turn the ball over as Block intercepted a pass on his own 13. That led to a nine-play, 77-yard TD drive for the Aggies capped by Block’s five-yard TD run followed by Kyle Martin’s PAT to give Beal City a 15-8 advantage with 39 seconds remaining in the first.
On its next possession Gabriel Richard, going for it on 4th-and-9 from the Beal City 40, came up empty on an incomplete pass, which led to the Aggies increasing their lead to 22-8. Quarterback Cuyler Smith connected with McKenny, who made a leaping grab just over the goal line for an eight-yard TD catch on 4th-and-2 with 2:30 to play in the first half.
“The ball was thrown perfectly, I just came back and grabbed it,” McKenney said. “I was snag. It was 4th-and-2 and changed the momentum of the game. It was a real tone setter.”
Gabriel Richard did thwart another Beal City scoring threat just before the first half ended when Lesko intercepted a pass at his own 4 with just four seconds remaining.
Beal City outgained the Pioneers 195-158 in total offense over the first two quarters.
McKenny returned the opening kickoff of the second half 44 yards, and the Aggies’ star running back scored just six plays later on three-yard TD run to increase Beal’s lead to 29-8 with 8:30 to go in the third quarter.
Gabriel Richard answered with a 16-play, 76-yard drive that chewed up 7 minutes and 37 seconds and finished on a one-yard keeper by Sobush, but the Pioneers were unable to convert the 2-pointer and trailed 29-14 with 47 seconds to play in the third.
The Pioneers then tried an onside kick that was recovered by Zuker at the 50. With a short field to play with, Beal City put the game away on flanker Austin Small’s 29-yard TD run with 9:14 to go.
Neil Finnerty also got into the scoring act with a five-yard TD run to give the Aggies a 29-point cushion with only 2:21 left.
“Today they caught us at the right time,” Gabriel Richard first-year coach Mark Shea said. “We went through a gauntlet of teams. We were really beat up coming into this. Honestly, we had three or four guys that we didn’t think would be able to play, but they came out and played. Taking absolutely nothing away from Beal City. They played a great game, but we were beat up and you could see it. We lacked some of the explosiveness that we generally have. And when we don’t have the balance in our attack, it puts us in a bad situation. But as far as effort goes, they gave me everything they could do.”
“Joey (Calhoun) got a little banged up first drive on defense; that’s an all-state kid,” Sobush added. “And (Beal City) kind of just took our passing game away. I made a bad throw that kind of changed the momentum of the game.”
Beal City had opened this postseason with a 47-0 win over Frankfort, but then had to get past Glen Lake (21-14), Iron Mountain (14-7) and Fowler (17-16).
“It was nice to get this one,” Gross said. “I wouldn’t say easier, but the word I’m looking for is that it wasn’t as stressful. These guys have done everything we asked them to do.”
Six weeks ago, and just prior to the playoffs, Gross said the Aggies “had to play physical football with bad intentions.
“These guys took it to heart,” the Beal City coach said. “We just got more physical.”
Gross said the beauty of this newly-crowned Aggies championship team was the cohesiveness between the seniors, juniors, sophomores and even their freshmen.
“And these guys treat those guys like they’re just like any other player,” he said. “That’s what makes our team special, because we’re more of a team. I think our model all year was, ‘Teams win championships, individuals win awards,’ so we kind of stuck by that and that’s what got us here. It means a lot to me, but it’s all about these guys and that’s the most important thing.”
PHOTOS (Top) Beal City’s Austin Small (2) looks to cut back Friday as Gabriel Richard’s Aidan Valatka (13) pursues him. (Middle) Beal’s Drew Block follows the block of Jace Faber. (Below) Aggies coach Brad Antcliff raises the Division 8 championship trophy as his players celebrate. (Photos by Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)
Menominee Caps Powerful Ford Field Return with 1st Championship Since 2007
By
Scott DeCamp
Special for MHSAA.com
November 30, 2025
DETROIT – Menominee’s football program has been known a long time for its single-wing offensive scheme, which certainly has served the Maroons well over the years.
The secret to their success goes way deeper than that, however, and it has nothing to do with X’s and O’s. Call it grit, tenacity, resolve – the Maroons have built their program around those characteristics – and now they’re back on top.
Menominee defeated Schoolcraft, 34-6, in the Division 7 Final on Sunday at Ford Field, where the word “grit” has been stamped into the fabric of the Detroit Lions by head coach Dan Campbell.
With a comprehensive effort, Menominee (14-0) captured its first Finals title since 2007, the fourth in program history, and the first for an Upper Peninsula 11-player football team since Ishpeming claimed the Division 7 championship in 2015.
“Just grit and just hard work. I mean, you saw it out there, we’ve got 30 guys on our sideline. Growing up in Menominee, you’re going to have 30 guys on your team, if that,” said Menominee senior Tanner Theuerkauf, starting quarterback and safety.
“You look at our offensive line, we have our guard, he’s 150 pounds – you don’t ever see that, and he just does his job and all those guys do their job in the trenches. … Our want to win is just something you don’t see.”
Theuerkauf and some of his teammates were part of Menominee’s Division 7 runner-up squad two years ago, when the Maroons battled powerhouse Jackson Lumen Christi but fell just short, 34-30.
In last week’s Semifinal, Menominee showed great resolve in erasing a two-touchdown deficit in the fourth quarter and securing a 32-28 victory over Pewamo-Westphalia in a matchup of teams ranked Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, in the final regular-season Division 7 poll.
“Different mentality this year with these seniors,” said fourth-year Menominee coach Chad Brandt, who coincidentally did his student-teaching at Schoolcraft starting in 1996. “Times that I’m not around and they’re running to the locker room and grabbing the footballs and I drive by and they’re out there. That means a lot. And we have linemen that text me, ‘Can we have extra weight-room sessions?’ and those kind of things.
“It takes a lot of work, and these guys have put it in and I just couldn’t be prouder of this group of guys and for our town and for our school of Menominee because they deserve and they appreciate it and they support us in every way possible.”
Menominee senior Clayton Miller helped set the tone Sunday with his hard-nosed running. The 5-foot-11, 190-pounder scored the first three TDs of the game for the Maroons, who took a 7-0 lead on his five-yard run less than four minutes into the contest, went up 13-0 on his two-yard run midway through the second, and led 20-0 on his 31-yard sprint four minutes into the third quarter.
Miller finished with a game-high 112 rushing yards on 25 carries.
“He’s the greatest running back that I’ve ever played with. He’s one of the greatest in Menominee history,” Theuerkauf said about Miller. “He’s not the biggest guy in the world, but he just runs so hard – he runs through guys. … Just for him to want to win, he shows so much energy out there. He’s not the most talkative guy, but he gets the job done and I love that.”
Several Menominee players got the job done, but senior Maverick Geniesse was another who stood out. With Menominee leading 7-0 late in the first quarter and Schoolcraft threatening to score, Geniesse intercepted a pass at the 1 on a Schoolcraft first-and-10 from the 12 to snuff out the Eagles’ opportunity.
Menominee embarked on an 18-play, 79-yard drive that chewed up 8:17 of the clock and was capped by Miller’s second TD run as the Maroons took command with a 13-0 lead.
Geniesse also got into the scoring act, catching a two-yard TD toss from Theuerkauf early in the fourth quarter for a 28-0 Maroons lead. Junior Jackson Myszak capped the Menominee scoring with an eight-yard TD run with 2½ minutes left.
“It feels great. I mean, I’ve dreamed about stuff like this. The ultimate goal is to just be the best team player I can and help the team in any way I can,” Geniesse said. “Of course, the interception, that got our morale going the other way; and the touchdown (reception), it felt pretty good.”
Schoolcraft (11-3) got on the board midway through the fourth quarter on senior TJ Luteyn’s four-yard scoring run.
Both teams displayed offensive balance – Menominee was just more effective throughout the game. Menominee tallied 358 total yards (198 rushing, 160 passing), while Schoolcraft totaled 248 (100 rushing, 148 passing).
“Good, physical team,” Schoolcraft first-year coach Dan DeVries said about Menominee. “Their scheme is a challenging scheme. They can hit the edge hard and you’ve also got to watch for something up the middle and their quarterback can throw as well, so a lot of dimensions to their game. I think they played a fantastic game today. They didn’t make mistakes and we did, and that certainly showed in the score.”
Theuerkauf completed passes to six receivers and finished 7-of-11 for 160 yards. Schoolcraft junior QB Jack DeVries was 12-for-26 for 148 yards.
Schoolcraft seniors Evan Feller and Dane Ostlund paced all defenders with 12 and 11 tackles, respectively. Junior Nathan Nelson notched nine tackles to lead Menominee.
Going back to the late-1980s, Schoolcraft has been a small-school football power, but Sunday marked the Eagles’ first Finals appearance since 2001. They’ve made seven Finals appearances overall and captured titles in 1988, 1989, and 2001.
“Just to see the support and what it means to the town and stuff like that after 24 years – I mean, that’s a long time to not make it back after we’ve had a history of having good football teams and stuff like that,” Jack DeVries said.
“It’s great to do it with the group of seniors we have. Great group of guys – been playing with them for as long as we can remember. (We’ve been) talking about (Ford Field) since we were kids, and getting to go do it was a special thing.”
Sunday signified Menominee’s seventh Finals appearance overall as well. The Maroons also seized championships in 1998, 2006, and 2007 under legendary coach Ken Hofer.
This Menominee teamed restored some of that “UP Power” that Maroons and others north of the Mackinac Bridge take such great pride in.
“That does mean something when we head back across that bridge and it’s ‘UP Power’ and we’ll go through other towns and they’ll be honking horns or happy out on the street …,” said Brandt, a Gladstone native, who spent 20 years as head coach at Stephenson in the UP.
“The UP is someplace special, and it means something.”
For Theuerkauf, this one was a bit personal, too. His older brother, Trevor Theuerkauf, was the starting QB and a two-way standout on the Menominee team that made it to the Finals in 2023.
“He just told me, ‘Go out there and play (your) game. (You) don’t have to worry about anything else,’” Tanner Theuerkauf said. “I kind of had the edge on some of these guys because I’ve been here before. I played in this game – didn’t go our way, but today, come out and get the job done, it’s just the greatest feeling of my life.”
PHOTOS (Top) Menominee’s Brayden Daigneau (73) hoists a teammate into the air Sunday as they celebrate their team’s Division 7 title. (Middle) Tanner Theuerkauf (3) follows Clayton Miller (15) around the edge. (Below) The Maroons’ Jackson Myszak (6) puts pressure on Schoolcraft quarterback Jack DeVries.