Calumet Invite Produces Northern Stars
September 18, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The Calumet Invitational dates back roughly 30 years as an annual staple of the cross country schedule for schools at the northernmost tip of Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
A creative move by the Copper Kings last year added some statewide prestige to the event.
Last week, for the second season, Calumet ran the series of races at Keweenaw Mountain Lodge, a resort near Copper Harbor and the northern bank of the Keweenaw Peninsula.
Calumet is the northernmost high school in Michigan. And moving this race another 35 miles northeast more or less guaranteed it's the northernmost event run in the state.
"We figured it was pretty safe. We're the northernmost school in the state, and you can only go four more miles and you're in Lake Superior," Calumet athletic director Sean Jacques said. "Nobody else is going to do anything more north than that."
A total of 10 schools were represented this fall in the races for boys and girls varsity, junior varsity and middle schoolers.
Jacques said the event formerly was run at a golf course in Calumet. But a few years ago, Calumet graduate and former Copper Kings cross country runner Dan Harri moved home from Florida to become general manager at the Mountain Lodge (he's also a renowned chef and has owned restaurants in Miami with Hall of Fame Dolphins coach Don Shula).
Harri had asked a few times about bringing a cross country or golf event to the lodge. Jacques told him last year they'd give it a try, so Harri set up a course that includes golf course, a couple of bridges, trails and finishes with a climb on the No. 1 fairway. It also provides various points for fans to watch runners go by, not always available on other courses.
"We were looking for a little bit of a change, and it's a beautiful course," Jacques said. "We thought if people were willing to make the extra drive, it would be really nice."
Calumet won the boys race this season, just ahead of runner-up Houghton. Houghton's girls were victorious, followed by the host Copper Kings.
Click to read more about this year's event from the Houghton Mining Gazette.
Michigan's claim to an NFL evolution
As part of its NFL preview this month, Sports Illustrated reported on one of the most significant developments for offenses over the last few decades – the silent snap count, which is used regularly by visiting teams because offensive linemen can’t hear the quarterback calling for the ball over the clamor of the home crowd.
And the article explained that the silent snap count might’ve gotten its start at one of Michigan’s smallest high schools – Flint’s Michigan School for the Deaf.
Offensive linemen during the 1980s were feasted on by pass rushers like Lawrence Taylor and Bruce Smith, who built record sack totals by blasting past blockers who seemed a step slow. Turns out, that was true. Defensive players were getting an edge by attacking as soon as they saw the ball move. But blockers (especially offensive tackles), focused instead on the defensive ends and linebackers lined up across from them, and didn’t have the luxury of watching the ball – and since they also couldn’t hear the snap count, started each play a step behind.
Enter the silent count. The quarterback signals to the center that he is ready to receive the ball (with a pat on the back, by raising a foot, etc.). The center then raises his head, and after a predetermined count of at least one second snaps the ball without a sound. This means an offensive tackle doesn’t have to listen for a snap count – he just counts after seeing the center get set.
The SI report recognized longtime offensive line coach Howard Mudd as the guru of the silent snap count. But Mudd recalled a conversation he’d had while working for the Seattle Seahawks with another coach, the late Andy MacDonald, who also had coached early in his career at a school for the deaf in Michigan.
The article doesn’t mention Michigan School for the Deaf by name. But it seems to make sense that the Tartars were the first to use the now-revolutionary count. MacDonald – who played at Central Michigan University and went on to coach at Michigan State and four other colleges and also for the Buffalo Bills – grew up in Flint and attended Flint Northern before playing for the Chippewas from 1950-53. The historical web site Michigan-football.com has results for Flint’s Michigan School for the Deaf dating to 1950, making it a decent assumption that MacDonald might’ve gotten in a little early coaching experience at the school down the road from his home.
Click for the SI story and go to page 4 for the mention of Michigan’s school.
Michigan mourns trooper, running standout
The law enforcement community is mourning the death of Michigan State Police trooper Paul Butterfield, who was shot Sept. 9 during a traffic stop in Mason County. He also was a well-known distance runner during the 1980s and the MHSAA Class A cross country champion running for Bridgeport in 1987.
According to a Ludington Daily News report, Butterfield continued running after high school at the University of Tennessee, and also competed at the 1989 Pan American Junior Games in Argentina.
Butterfield was stationed in Hart after previously serving in Manistee, and lived in Mason County. He also had served in the U.S. Army. Click to read more from the Ludington Daily News.
PHOTO: Calumet's Chelsea Jacques (right) won this season's Calumet Invitational with a time of 21:08.06, just ahead of Ironwood's Jessica Gering at 21:46.16. (Photo courtesy of Calumet athletic department.)
Field Hockey Showing Signs of Interest, Participation Boost with MHSAA Sponsorship
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
September 5, 2025
Zahid Hameed said everything has changed – and in a magnificent way.
The head field hockey coach at West Bloomfield the past three years, Hameed said there was a challenge with roster numbers and making sure there were enough players on the roster to fully compete.
With field hockey now an MHSAA-sponsored sport and not solely club status, that wasn’t the case when practice started in August.
“This year, from day one I had 20 players,” said Hameed, who said it would be a struggle to have 18 players on a roster at any point of a season in previous years. “It changed. Hopefully next year it will be maybe 30 or 40 and I can have a JV team. It will grow for sure.”
Growth is being experienced at programs throughout the Metro Detroit area now that field hockey has joined the MHSAA sports lineup, with the first Final set for Oct. 25.
Clarkston head coach Cary Exline said his program had a similar success story as it saw higher numbers once this season began.
“Last year, I had about 17 girls,” he said. “I have 25 (this year). It went from 17 to 25. That was a huge, huge jump. Now, I can run multiple drills at the same time without worrying about bodies. That’s a huge, huge positive for us.”
Athletes have certainly taken notice that field hockey is under MHSAA leadership. At some schools, that means field hockey can be part of a multiple-sport pay-to-play program instead of being a completely separate cost as a club program — and that’s having a positive effect.
“Now that it’s a sanctioned sport, it’s real easy,” said Hameed, who said he has nine freshmen on his roster who have never played the sport. “The girls can give it a try and if they like it, then that’s fine.”
For seniors around the state, it almost feels like they are living out a dream finally seeing the sport under the MHSAA umbrella.
“When I heard it was official, I was really excited,” said Clarkston senior captain Jenna Brown. “It shows that the sport is growing, and it’s nice to see more teams pop up around the area. We’ve played a couple of teams where it’s their first season. That makes me really happy that the sport is spreading.”
As a club sport, the best teams in Metro Detroit have historically been private schools such as Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, Detroit Country Day, Bloomfield Hills Academy of the Sacred Heart, Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett and Bloomfield Hills Marian. All those programs figure to remain strong going forward due to their tradition and coaching.
Grosse Pointe South also has had success, as a public school, and MHSAA sponsorship of field hockey could really be a boon to other public schools with large enrollment bases and prominent athletic programs. Clarkston and West Bloomfield, for example, stand to get much better quickly and possibly close the gap with more historically elite programs.
No doubt, there is a lot of untapped potential in those and similar communities.
“It brings light to the program,” Exile said. “When you look at field hockey, I think it’s the No. 2 or No. 3 most popular female sport in the world. In the world, it’s great. In Michigan, it’s like ‘You do what? What is this?’ I think with it being an approved sport, it lends credence to it.”
Going forward, coaches in the area should also have an easier time introducing the sport to younger kids in their communities and building feeder programs so players are more seasoned when they reach high school.
Hameed said youth clinics he conducted over the summer had a lot more participants than in past years, which should bode well for educating players about the positives of the sport.
“It’s a dynamic sport,” Hameed said. “It’s entertaining. It’s full of skills. You need to be energetic, agile, sharp and a good decision-maker.”
So far this fall, more and more athletes are discovering the benefits of giving the sport a try.
“It’s not a huge sport as of now, but I feel like it’s getting bigger,” said West Bloomfield senior captain Hannah Jakubiak. “It’s exciting that it’s picking up.”
Keith Dunlap has served in Detroit-area sports media for more than two decades, including as a sportswriter at the Oakland Press from 2001-16 primarily covering high school sports but also college and professional teams. His bylines also have appeared in USA Today, the Washington Post, the Detroit Free Press, the Houston Chronicle and the Boston Globe. He served as the administrator for the Oakland Activities Association’s website from 2017-2020. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Clarkston field hockey players Juliet Hardin (left) and Zoe Philbrick battle for a ball during warmups before a game Wednesday against West Bloomfield. (Middle) West Bloomfield players line up for the start of introductions. (Photos by Keith Dunlap.)