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.)
Century of School Sports: These Record-Setters Were Nearly Impossible to Defeat
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
May 13, 2025
Most days, across Michigan high school sports and athletics at every level, a rare big-time upset is going to grab a bigger headline over yet another win by a usual favorite that comes out on top all the time.
But today, we’re going to celebrate teams that have made winning something of a daily routine over long stretches during the MHSAA’s 100-year run.
For the majority of head-to-head team sports, the MHSAA tracks winning streaks and lists the longest in their respective record books. And while all making those lists are impressive, the longest seem almost inconceivable.
Let’s start with the 192-match winning streak by Marysville from Dec. 10, 1996, through Jan. 15. 2000, the longest by number of victories. That incredible run made up most of the first half of an also incredible eight-straight Class B Finals championship seasons for the Vikings. Three others volleyball teams have won at least 92 straight matches, but none more than 98.
Traverse City Central girls tennis’ 107-dual match winning streak from 1989-2000 is the longest by length of time, and the only other to reach triple digits for total wins – with a seven-year, 71-match run by the Okemos boys tennis team from 1990-97 also reaching toward nearly a decade of similar success.
Several more have approached the 100-consecutive-win milestone. Hudsonville Unity Christian girls soccer won 86 straight games from 2005-08, and actually was 97-0-1 over those four seasons. The Allen Park Cabrini softball team won 80 straight games during the 2006-08 seasons, the Powers North Central boys basketball team won 84 straight games between 2014-17, and Orchard Lake St. Mary’s baseball team became our latest winning streak record-setter with 84 straight victories from May 1, 2021 through May 3, 2023.
Okemos is the one of only two schools with two record winning streaks, having also won 64 straight girls lacrosse games from March 21, 2009, through May 3, 2011. The other is North Central, which also won 41 straight 8-player football games between Sept. 18, 2020, and Sept. 15 2023, with many of the same athletes who played on the record-setting boys basketball team.
Also from the Upper Peninsula, Carney-Nadeau’s girls basketball teams of 1989-91 held on to their record of 78 consecutive wins despite a 76-victory pursuit by Pittsford from 2015-18. Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice won the first 13 Division 1 boys lacrosse championships, and the early years of that run included a 29-game winning streak during the 2008 and 2009 seasons.
The record holders in boys soccer and 11-player football require a little bit of explanation. While Genesee Christian owns the boys soccer winning streak record of 33 from 2015 and beginning of the 2016 season, Detroit Country Day easily outpaces the rest for longest unbeaten streak in that sport having gone 69-0-10 between 1991-94.
Hudson football also remains legendary for its record streaks of 72 straight wins (including playoffs) from 1968-1975 and 81 straight during the regular season from 1968-1977 – although that playoff era streak included only one playoff win, as the Tigers won their Semifinal in 1975 but fell to Ishpeming in the inaugural Class C title game. The longest football playoff streak built entirely during the playoff era belongs to Ithaca, which won 69 straight games beginning with its opener in 2010 and ending in the 2014 Division 6 championship game as the Yellowjackets pursued what would have been a fifth-straight title in that division.
The lack of winning streak lists in wrestling and ice hockey are a noticeable gaps in this collection. Those lists hopefully will be constructed in the future.
Previous "Century of School Sports" Spotlights
May 6: 200+ Representatives Fill All-Time Council Roster - Read
April 29: MHSAA Programs Prioritize Health & Safety - Read
April 23: Patches Signify Registered Officials' Role in MHSAA Story - Read
April 16: Student Advisory Council Gives Voice to Athletes - Read
April 9: State's Storytellers Share Spring Memories - Read
April 2: Sharp Leadership Synonymous with MHSAA Success - Read
March 25: Athletic Directors Indispensable to Mission of School Sports - Read
March 18: 2025 Finals Begin Next Half-Century of Girls Hoops Championships - Read
March 11: Boys Basketball's Best 1st to Earn MHSAA Finals Titles - Read
March 5: Everything We Do Begins with Participation - Read
Feb. 25: Slogans & Logos Remain Unforgettable Parts of MHSAA History - Read
Feb. 19: MHSAA Tickets Continue to Provide Fan-Friendly Value - Read
Feb. 11: We Recognize Those Who Make Our Games Go - Read
Feb. 4: WISL Conference Continues to Inspire Aspiring Leaders - Read
Jan. 28: Michigan's National Impact Begins at NFHS' Start - Read
Jan. 21: Awards Celebrate Well-Rounded Educational Experience - Read
Jan. 14: Predecessors Laid Foundation for MHSAA's Formation - Read
Jan. 9: MHSAA Blazes Trail Into Cyberspace - Read
Dec. 31: State's Storytellers Share Winter Memories - Read
Dec. 17: MHSAA Over Time - Read
Dec. 10: On This Day, December 13, We Will Celebrate - Read
Dec. 3: MHSAA Work Guided by Representative Council - Read
Nov. 26: Finals Provide Future Pros Early Ford Field Glory - Read
Nov. 19: Connection at Heart of Coaches Advancement Program - Read
Nov. 12: Good Sports are Winners Then, Now & Always - Read
Nov. 5: MHSAA's Home Sweet Home - Read
Oct. 29: MHSAA Summits Draw Thousands to Promote Sportsmanship - Read
Oct. 23: Cross Country Finals Among MHSAA's Longest Running - Read
Oct. 15: State's Storytellers Share Fall Memories - Read
Oct. 8: Guided by 4 S's of Educational Athletics - Read
Oct. 1: Michigan Sends 10 to National Hall of Fame - Read
Sept. 25: MHSAA Record Books Filled with 1000s of Achievements - Read
Sept. 18: Why Does the MHSAA Have These Rules? - Read
Sept. 10: Special Medals, Patches to Commemorate Special Year - Read
Sept. 4: Fall to Finish with 50th Football Championships - Read
Aug. 28: Let the Celebration Begin - Read
PHOTOS Clockwise from top left: Allen Park Cabrini catcher Amanda Chidester celebrates her team's 2007 softball championship. (2) Genesee Christian's Caleb DuPree (11) controls possession as Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep's Kawika Singson pursues during their 2015 championship match. (3) Shaleene Glombowski sets for Marysville during the 1998 Class B Final. (4) The 1995 Okemos boys tennis team takes a photo after clinching another Finals championship. (5) Carney-Nadeau's Jill Wetthuhn drives against Fowler during the 1990 Class D Final.