Scoring Record Falls, North Central Soars
January 16, 2021
By Tim Robinson
Special for Second Half
BRIGHTON – It's not often when a pair of defensive plays are key in a 70-48 decision.
But that's the way it went for Powers North Central, which beat Portland St. Patrick by that score in the 8-Player Division 2 championship game at the Legacy Center.
The North Central Jets (11-0), who won their third MHSAA Finals championship, sacked St. Patrick quarterback Connor Cross seven times. But he completed 25 of 38 passes for 374 yards and six touchdowns.
"My hat's off to Portland St. Patrick," North Central coach Leo Gorzinski said. "They tested our kids like no one has this season."
The Jets were led by Luke Gorzinski, who rushed for 299 yards and four touchdowns and threw for 156 yards and three more scores.
"I was on the team last year, when we lost in the Final," he said. "It was a heartbreaking loss, but this is the top of the world."
Wyatt Raab rushed for a pair of touchdowns and caught two passes for scores. He also sacked Cross in the end zone for a safety that gave the Jets a 10-0 lead after the first quarter.
But the Shamrocks (10-1) then got going, scoring 22 points in the second quarter, only to see the Jets add 24 to take a 34-22 halftime lead.
While the game would go on to set multiple 8-Player Finals scoring records, including for most points scored by both teams combined, the aforementioned pair of defensive plays helped North Central pull away during the third quarter.
The Jets thwarted the Shamrocks on the first drive of the second half, when Luke Klieman intercepted a pass at the Jets’ 40. After the teams exchanged touchdowns, North Central forced St. Patrick to turn the ball over on downs. Raab then scored two plays later from 28 yards out to effectively put the game out of reach.
The Jets’ defense, which allowed St. Patrick 404 yards in total offense, allowed only 31 on the ground, most of them after the game was out of reach, and stopped the Shamrocks on four attempted two-point conversions.
Both teams were without starters due to the coronavirus or contact tracing.
"We were missing some key players," Luke Gorzinski said. "But their replacements stepped up. We had freshmen and sophomores out there, and they were awesome."
North Central racked up 579 yards in scoring 70 or more points for the fifth time this season.
The Shamrocks, to their credit, kept after the Jets to the end.
"That's the way we've played all year, through the shutdown and everything" St. Patrick coach Patrick Russman said. "They want to play and have fun, and that's what they wanted people to see. That's their character."
Shane Cook had 13 catches for 179 yards and three touchdowns for the Shamrocks.
But a North Central team that had several starters and their defensive coordinator at home had enough to take the championship trophy home to the Upper Peninsula, thrilling the 100 or so fans who made the long drive.
"It was fun to play in the (Superior) Dome last week," Raab said, referring to the Jets' Semifinal win over Cedarville, "but it felt weird with no fans. To have our families here to watch meant a lot."
PHOTOS: (Top) North Central’s Wyatt Raab celebrates a defensive stop during Saturday’s Division 2 Final. (Middle) Portland St. Patrick’s Jacobe Hayes-Dunning works to get out of the grasp of a pair of Jets defenders. (Click for more from Hockey Weekly Action Photos.
1st & Goal: 2025 8-Player Finals Preview
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
November 21, 2025
The competition truly will be superior again at Saturday’s 8-Player Football Finals at Northern Michigan University’s Superior Dome.
Three of four teams playing in the two championship games are undefeated – and the one loss among the four came when two played each other during the final week of the regular season.
Blanchard Montabella and Martin will kick off at 11 a.m., and Felch North Dickinson and Portland St. Patrick follow at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $10 and are good for both games, and may be purchased online through NMU or at the door – click for details.
Both games will be broadcast by the NFHS Network:
Audio of both games will be streamed live on MHSAANetwork.com.
Below is a look at all four finalists:
Division 1
BLANCHARD MONTABELLA
Record/Rank: 11-1, No. 2
Coach: Tim Webb, sixth season (32-23)
League finish: First in Mid-State Activities Conference Blue
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 32-28 over No. 3 Norway in Semifinal, 26-0 (Regional Final) and 36-26 over No. 9 Merrill, 64-26 (Regional Semifinal) and 54-18 over Breckenridge.
Players to watch: RB/DB Austin Jensen, 5-10/155, jr. (828 yards/14 TDs rushing, 681 yards/6 TDs receiving); QB Gabe Kauffman, 5-9/160, jr. (1,215 yards/14 TDs passing, 481 yards/9 TDs rushing); RB/LB Brady Kieff, 5-10/160, sr. (1,561/19 TDs rushing); DL Cody Omo, 6-0/160, sr. (95 tackles, 12 sacks).
Outlook: Montabella’s longest playoff run has included its first Regional title and second-straight league championship, The Norway win – during which the Mustangs came back from a 20-point deficit – was Montabella’s only single-digit win, with the lone defeat to Division 2 finalist Portland St. Patrick. Kieff missed all of last season but has led a rushing attack that averages nearly 300 yards and five touchdowns per game. Omo made the all-state second team last season. Junior linebacker Mason Bogart always seems to be around the ball and has 145 tackles.
MARTIN
Record/Rank: 12-0, No. 1
Coach: Brad Blauvelt, eighth season (78-14)
League finish: First in Southwest Michigan 8-Man Football League Red
Championship history: Three MHSAA Finals titles (most recent 2023).
Best wins: 20-8 over No. 5 Kingston in Semifinal, 36-20 over No. 10 Climax-Scotts in Regional Final, 48-26 over Division 2 No. 6 Grand Rapids Sacred Heart, 52-6 over Gobles, 58-20 over Bridgman.
Players to watch: QB/S Haylen Buell, 5-10/175, sr. (1,528 yards/32 TDs rushing, 866 yards/13 TDs passing); WR/DB Weson Elkins, 6-0/170, sr. (408 yards/6 TDs receiving); RB/OLB Seth Toris, 5-3/155, jr. (1,331 yards/10 TDs rushing); OL/DL Peyton Schuring-Harris, 6-3/280, sr. (Statistics through Regional Finals.)
Outlook: Martin is back at Superior Dome after most recently winning back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023. Buell as a sophomore was among the team’s leading rushers and receivers in the 2023 title game, and he earned an all-state honorable mention last year at linebacker. The Clippers’ closest game this season was the Semifinal win; no other opponent has come closer than two touchdowns. Senior Bryer Watson also has been among offensive leaders, with 562 yards and nine touchdowns rushing and 379 yards and five TDs receiving heading into the Semifinal.
Division 2
FELCH NORTH DICKINSON
Record/Rank: 12-0, No. 7
Coach: Mike Christian, 10th season (37-59)
League finish: First in Great Lakes Eight Conference Central
Championship history: 11-Player Class D runner-up 1998.
Best wins: 44-28 over No. 2 Onekama in Semifinal, 32-12 (Regional Final) and 38-34 over Lake Linden-Hubbell, 40-22 over St. Ignace in Regional Semifinal.
Players to watch: TE/DE Trenton Kramer, 6-4/190, jr. (1,062 yards/18 TDs receiving); FB/LB Jason Graham, 5-8/160, jr. (1,207 yards/17 TDs rushing); QB/DB Brady Jungwirth, 5-10/155, sr. (1,888 yards/28 TDs passing); HB/LB Tyler Fleming, 5-3/110, sr. (612 yards/6 TDs rushing). (Statistics through Regional Final.)
Outlook: North Dickinson has gone from not having a team two years ago to reaching its first championship game in nearly three decades. The Nordics have played only one single-digit game this fall, defeating Lake Linden-Hubbell by four in their season opener before winning the rematch two weeks ago by 20. North Dickinson missed the playoffs last season but did win their final five games, giving them a current 17-game unbeaten streak. Jungwirth’s ability to throw gives the Nordics more balance than most, and Kramer was averaging 19.3 yards per catch heading into last week.
PORTLAND ST. PATRICK
Record/Rank: 12-0, No. 3
Coach: Patrick Russman, 19th season (138-61)
League finish: First in MSAC Red
Championship history: 11-Player Class D champion 1992, five runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 36-15 over No. 4 Deckerville in Semifinal, 51-22 over No. 1 Mendon in Regional Final, 14-7 over No. 9 Morrice, 42-16 over Division 1 No. 2 Blanchard Montabella, 62-12 over Division 1 No. 9 Merrill.
Players to watch: QB/DB Jerryd Scheurer, 5-1/165, jr. (572 yards/10 TDs passing, 306 yards/11 TDs rushing, 32 tackles/7 interceptions); RB/DB Brady Leonard, 6-0/185, sr. (1,263 yards/17 TDs rushing, 55 tackles/10 interceptions); RB/DB Hudson King, 5-8/160, sr. (932 yards/16 TDs rushing); OL/LB Augustus Teachworth, 6-3/190, sr. (85 tackles)
Outlook: St. Patrick most recently finished Division 2 runner-up in 2017, 2019 and 2020 and will make this trip to Superior Dome after navigating arguably the toughest playoff path of any team in 8-player. After defeating Division 1 finalist Montabella in Week 9, the Shamrocks opened the postseason with a 62-16 win over Marion before taking on Mendon and Deckerville, and Morrice is the only opponent this fall to get closer than 21 points. It’s easy to point to the powerful offense, but the defense has given up only 10.2 points per game and been opportunistic with 24 interceptions and seven fumble recoveries.
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