Pirates Rule Air, Capture 1st Title
November 22, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
GREENVILLE – Peck’s players had started snapping at each other during their Week 6 Homecoming game against Kingston, getting on each other’s cases about missed tackles and other mistakes of the first two quarters.
The bickering became enough that coach Rob McDaniel decided that at halftime he and his players would have a talk. At least, that’s what he’s calling it now.
The message was clear. And McDaniel’s words that night proved true in Peck’s 67-32 victory over Rapid River in Friday’s MHSAA 8-Player Final at Greenville’s Legacy Field.
“We came out after halftime and put 52 on Kingston, and we haven’t looked back since,” McDaniel said. “I told them you can either bicker and your season will be done after nine games. Or, with the talent you have here, if you come together and be brothers on the field ... there aren’t any limits for you guys.”
“It was amazing,” Peck junior tight end Kyle Abrego added. “If you want to be state champions, you can’t fight against each other.”
Instead, the Pirates took the fight to the rest of their opponents this season, finishing a perfect 13-0 and with their first MHSAA title.
This was only the second season of 8-player football for Peck and its third under McDaniel. The Pirates had won only one game, by forfeit, the season before McDaniel took over – and then went 1-8 in his first season of 2011, their last before switching to 8-player.
“Our numbers were down, and (8-player) was huge for us,” McDaniel said. “We were able to build success. We had success last year putting in a new system. And then the seniors this year took over, and last summer they were the ones making the phone calls saying get in the weight room.”
Peck stood tall all season, outscoring its opponents on average 51-16. But Abrego and the Pirates’ passing game chose the Final to no longer be overshadowed by a running game that gained more than 4,200 yards this fall.
Quarterback Tristen Haener had thrown for 1,166 yards and 12 touchdowns this season entering Friday night, and then connected on 12 of 16 passes for 379 yards and seven touchdowns – including four that were caught by Abrego.
Abrego’s twin brother Cody was the star of the Semifinal with 449 yards rushing against Lawrence, but the Rockets bottled him and his teammates up for a combined 165 yards rushing. Instead – and much to Kyle Abrego’s surprise – the Pirates decided to take advantage of his 6-foot-4 height as he grabbed six passes for 236 yards against defenders mostly four to six inches shorter.
“We thought we had good coverage, but we just didn’t turn our heads quick enough and the result was big plays,” Rapid River coach Steve Ostrenga said. “We thought we could cover them, but we were worried about their speed on the outside and speed on runs. They gave their quarterback just enough time to get the ball released.
“We took the run away. But we certainly didn’t take the pass away.”
McDaniel credited Ostrenga as well for slowing the Pirates' rush, but was able to deploy his speedy lineup in another useful way.
Rapid River senior quarterback Jake Pearson – also the starter when the Rockets (12-1) fell to Carsonville-Port Sanilac in the 2011 Final – put up simply incredible numbers this season. He entered Friday with 2,525 yards and 42 touchdowns rushing and 1,009 yards and 15 scores passing.
But although Pearson was able to run for 180 yards and three scores and throw for a fourth, he didn’t find enough room to help the Rockets keep pace when Peck pulled away during the second and third quarters.
“We have the ability to play sideline to sideline, and we pushed Pearson to the sidelines and didn’t let him get the corner. We tried to keep him in the pocket or trap him,” McDaniel said.
Pearson will go down as one of the first stars of 8-player football in this state, with numbers that will earn him recognition in the national record book. Senior lineman Hayden Hardwick also was a sophomore on that 2011 runner-up team, and Pearson got to finish his high school career connecting with Hardwick on a touchdown pass out of a spread formation that made the center eligible.
“The kid is humble. I’m not sure how many words I can say about Jake Pearson,” Ostrenga said. “He’s a true ambassador for our school, for 8-(player) football. We were 1-8 four years ago, 1-8 two years in a row, and 8-(player) football has been great. To have a Jake Pearson and this team stay together, it’s been phenomenal.
“He’s everything you see.”
Click for a complete box score.
PHOTOS: (Top) Peck players chant while holding their first MHSAA championship trophy Friday at Legacy Field. (Middle) Pirates quarterback Tristen Haener (10) scores on a run during the second quarter.
Officials Sharpen Skills at MHSAA Clinic
June 28, 2012
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half Editor
ALMA --Frequently in pairs, they lined up beside linebackers, ran the sidelines and monitored the goallines earlier this week, next to many of Michigan's best recently-graduated high school football players.
The athletes were practicing for Saturday's Michigan High School Football Coaches Association All-Star Game at Alma College. But beside and all around them, officials also worked to hone their skills with the upcoming season only two months away.
A group of 34 attended the MHSAA's summer clinic Monday and Tuesday, run in coordination with the all-star game for the second year. Some were veterans brushing up on new rules, while others -- like Flushing's Tim Collick -- were newer officials hoping to pick up some knowledge from 12 clinicians providing instruction and feedback.
"The biggest thing is just the different tips from experienced guys you don't find in the books," said Collick, 32, who was one of 14 chosen from clinic participants to officiate Saturday's game. "Different, helpful clues like keys that made them successful, made things easier for them."
Instructors shadowed Collick and other participants during two practices and a Monday night scrimmage, providing guidance and feedback along the way.
Those practice sessions are combined with classroom instruction, similar to what the MHSAA has conducted during previous summers with basketball officials at Michigan State University camps.
Every participant this week came from the Lower Peninsula, but as far north as just below Mackinac Bridge, east from Detroit and west from the Grand Rapids area.
Two crews of seven officials were chosen from the camp participants to work Saturday’s game. The crews will alternate quarters, with five instructors also on hand to provide feedback.
The MHSFCA has been putting on the All-Star Game for 32 years, and has been a fantastic partner in providing an opportunity football officials don't often receive during the offseason, MHSAA assistant director Mark Uyl said.
"Football is unique in that there isn't a way to get live reps, while basketball, baseball and softball have summer team camps," Uyl said. "This is an opportunity for football officials to get training in the real thing."
Collick, a Flint Hamady grad who has been mentored by longtime Flint-area official Tom Rau, is heading into his third season of football as a back judge with a crew from the Genesee County Coaches and Officials Association. Although he'd heard a few of the speakers at the clinic before, he didn't know any of the officials before Monday. But he was sure to soak up as much as possible, with an eye on officiating for years to come and eventually, perhaps, at the college level as well.
"For me, one of the biggest things (at the clinic) is getting to make contacts with much more veteran officials. I'm learning from those guys," Collick said. "The instructors have worked at high levels as college officials, as high school officials for many years. It's nice to pick their brains."
PHOTOS: (Top) Longtime official and recently-retired MHSAA assistant director Tom Minter (center) works with an official during Tuesday morning's East practice at Alma College. (Middle) MHSAA assistant director Mark Uyl (left) points something out to an official during the West practice. (Bottom) Officals at this year's clinic came from all parts of the Lower Peninsula, including the Detroit, Grand Rapids and Mackinaw areas.
