Bally Sports Detroit Set to Announce MHSAA Football Playoff Pairings

By Jon Ross
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

October 19, 2021

The 288 qualifiers for this season’s Michigan High School Athletic Association Football Playoffs will be announced at 5:30 p.m. Sunday (Oct. 24) on the Bally Sports Detroit primary channel.

Brackets and matchups in all eight divisions for 256 11-player teams and 32 qualifiers across two divisions for 8-player football will be presented during the “Selection Sunday Show,” with all brackets to be posted to the MHSAA Website after the completion of the show at 6:30 p.m. Dates and times for first-round games will be added Monday (Oct. 25).

Viewers also may watch on the Bally Sports Detroit website and app. The MHSAA Playoffs in both divisions are set to begin during the weekend of Oct. 29-30. The 8-Player Playoffs will conclude with both Finals on Nov. 20 at Northern Michigan University’s Superior Dome in Marquette. The 11-Player Finals will be played Nov. 26-27 at Ford Field in Detroit.

Lower Peninsula Boys Soccer District Tournaments continue this week with more than 50 games broadcast on MHSAA.tv and the NFHS Network. Two weeks remain in the volleyball regular season, with a number of key matchups of schools large and small filling a broadcast schedule offering more than 300 matches total this week.

Viewers also will be able to watch more than 175 regular-season football finales on MHSAA.tv this weekend, plus the last of regular-season live broadcasts by Bally Sports Detroit and State Champs! Sports Network. BSD will broadcast live on its primary channel Friday’s Southfield Arts & Technology at River Rouge matchup, with kickoff at 7 p.m. State Champs! Sports Network will broadcast Saturday's second Detroit Catholic League Prep Bowl game between Warren De La Salle Collegiate and Detroit U-D Jesuit at 4:30 p.m. from Ford Field.

See below for links to a number of notable events on MHSAA.tv this week:

BOYS SOCCER
Oct. 19, 5 p.m.: Berkley vs. Detroit U-D Jesuit
Oct. 19, 5 p.m.: Ann Arbor Skyline vs. Saline
Oct. 19, 7 p.m.: Troy vs. Troy Athens

VOLLEYBALL
Oct. 19, 6 p.m.: DeWitt at Okemos
Oct. 19, 7 p.m.: Saline at Ann Arbor Skyline
Oct. 20, 6:45 p.m.: Traverse City West at Cadillac
Oct. 20, 7 p.m.: Frankenmuth at Freeland
Oct. 20, 7:30 p.m.: Beaverton at Clare
Oct. 21, 6:55 p.m.: White Lake Lakeland at Rochester Adams
Oct. 21, 7 p.m.: Dexter at Chelsea
Oct. 21, 7:15 p.m.: Marquette at Kingsford
Oct. 21, 7:30 p.m.: Unionville-Sebewaing at Cass City
Oct. 23, 9 a.m.: Byron Center at Lowell
Oct. 23, 1 p.m.: Hudsonville at Rockford

FOOTBALL
Oct. 21, 7 p.m.: Bark River-Harris at Ishpeming
Oct. 22, 6:35 p.m.: Lansing Catholic at Pewamo-Westphalia
Oct. 22, 7 p.m.: Midland at Midland Dow
Oct. 22, 7 p.m.: Lake Orion at Saline
Oct. 22, 7 p.m.: Saginaw Heritage at Mount Pleasant
Oct. 22, 7 p.m.: Grand Ledge at Holt
Oct. 22, 7 p.m.: Frankenmuth at New Lothrop
Oct. 22, 7 p.m.: Novi at Livonia Churchill
Oct. 22, 7 p.m.: Hartland at Belleville

Click the links below to see all three sports’ listings in full:

Football VolleyballBoys Soccer

NFHS Network subscriptions begin at $10.99 per month. Subscribers have access to all live video and streaming statistics across the country. School Broadcast Program participants benefit as a portion of every subscription sold by a school goes to benefit its program.

More than 400 MHSAA member schools are participants in the School Broadcast Program, now in its 13th year, producing games using traditional hands-on student crews or via Pixellot cameras installed at stadiums and gymnasiums across the state. A complete list of participating schools can be found on the School Broadcast Program page of the MHSAA Website. 

Highlight Reel: Saturday Football Finals

November 28, 2016

By John Johnson
MHSAA Communications Director

The final day of the MHSAA 11-Player Football Finals at Ford Field in Detroit – powered by the Michigan Army National Guard – produced a first-time gridiron champion and a game-winning play that will be talked about for a long time.

Division 7

Pewamo-Westphalia 28, Detroit Loyola 14

Logan & Lehman Go Long - The Pewamo-Westphalia combo of quarterback Jimmy Lehman and receiver Logan Hengesbach connected for two touchdowns in the Division 7 title game against Detroit Loyola. Here's the second TD in the third quarter, with Hengesbach winning the jump ball to complete a 37-yard scoring play.

Johnson Powers Into the End Zone - Detroit Loyola gets on the board midway through the fourth quarter, when TE Keith Johnson makes a great play to catch a pass from Price Watkins and then power into the end zone to complete the 18-yard score.

Division 1

Detroit Cass Tech 49, Detroit Catholic Central 20

CC Takes the Early Lead - Detroit Catholic Central led 14-7 at the end of the first quarter, taking the lead on this 35-yard pass interception return by Jack Morris.

The Peoples' Choice for Cass Tech - Detroit Cass Tech QB Rodney Hall tied a Finals record with five touchdown passes against Detroit Catholic Central - two going to Donovan Peoples-Jones, including this 49-yarder in the third quarter.

Division 5

Grand Rapids West Catholic 43, Menominee 7

Meyers Off to the Races - Grand Rapids West Catholic scored its first TD against Menominee on a pitch and catch from Gaetano Vallone to Brett Meyers covering 91 yards.

Hass Records a Finals First - Menominee uses special teams to get on the board in the third quarter. Sam Larson blocks the West Catholic field goal attempt, and Hunter Hass returns it 76 yards for a TD – the first time in Finals history a blocked field goal has been returned for a score.

Division 3

Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 29, Muskegon 28

Pimpleton's Second Score - Lined up in the slot, Muskegon's Kalil Pimpleton gets his second 18-yard rushing touchdown of the Division 3 Final against Orchard Lake St. Mary's on the end-around to give his team a 21-20 lead early in the fourth quarter.

A Catch for the Ages - In the closing seconds of the Division 3 Final, Orchard Lake St. Mary's QB Caden Prieskorn hits Ky’ren Cunningham in the end zone with an 18-yard touchdown strike to give the Eaglets the win.

The MHSAA Football Finals are sponsored by the Michigan National Guard.  

PHOTO: Orchard Lake St. Mary's Chris Bean celebrates during Saturday's Division 3 Final.