Don't Miss This MHSAA Playoff Coverage

October 21, 2015

By John Johnson
MHSAA communications director 

There’s plenty of high school football coverage coming up with the final week of the regular season and the announcement of the qualifiers for the 41st annual MHSAA Football Playoffs on Sunday.

More than 15 football games this weekend – most of them live – will be streamed by students involved in the School Broadcast Program. The weekend concludes with the Selection Sunday Show on FOX Sports Detroit at 7 p.m. on Sunday (Oct. 25).

Among the live football games are several with league title and/or playoff qualifying implications:

  • Mio (3-5) at Lincoln Alcona (5-3)
  • Lapeer (8-0) at Davison (5-3)
  • Ortonville Brandon (5-3) at Holly (5-3)
  • New Lothrop (8-0) at Montrose (5-3)
  • Pickford (5-3) at Onaway (5-3)
  • Hudsonville (6-2) at Rockford (5-3) – Winner also gets a share of the O-K Red title
  • Pontiac Notre Dame Prep (7-1) vs. Detroit Loyola (6-2) – CHSL Prep Bowl Championship
  • Waterford Our Lady (8-0) vs. Riverview Gabriel Richard (6-2) – CHSL CD Championship
  • Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (6-1) vs. Warren DeLaSalle (6-2) – CHSL AB Championship

In its seventh year, the School Broadcast Program gives members an opportunity to showcase excellence in their schools by creating video programming of athletic and non-athletic events, with students gaining skills in announcing, camera operation, directing/producing and graphics. 

The program also gives schools the opportunity to raise money through advertising and viewing subscriptions.  

All sporting events – Live or On-Demand – are available on a subscription basis only for their first 72 hours online.  They become available for free, on-demand viewing approximately 72 hours following their completion.

Here’s the schedule of events School Broadcast Program members plan to stream this week for broadcast at MHSAA.tv. On-Demand listings may be available as soon as one hour following an event’s completion.  (List as of Oct. 20):

Tuesday – Oct. 20

Wednesday – Oct. 21

Thursday – Oct. 22

Friday – Oct. 23

Saturday – Oct. 24

Tuesday – Oct. 27

The Selection Sunday Show expands its coverage beyond FOX Sports Detroit’s cable footprint this year, being streamed for the first time on the FoxSportsDetroit.com website, and available to watch on mobile devices on the FOX Sports GO! app.

Justin White, Matt Shepard and Rob Rubick will provide the announcement of the pairings and analysis, and some live “look-ins” will take place at selected team watch gatherings.

Launching at Midnight every Friday throughout the season is MHSAA Football Friday Overtime on FOX Sports Detroit. Mickey York and Rob Rubick host the weekly 30-minute highlights show. The show will re-air most Saturday and Sunday mornings – and will be archived on the FOX Detroit Website.  This week, FFOT will re-air at 6 and 8:30 a.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. on Sunday on FOX Sports Detroit. 

The following games are scheduled to be highlighted this week on Football Friday Overtime:

  • Detroit Collegiate Prep vs. Detroit Central at Ford Field
  • Detroit Cass Tech vs. Detroit Martin Luther King at Ford Field
  • Utica Ford at Warren Mott
  • Marine City at Warren Cousino
  • Linden at Fenton
  • Ortonville-Brandon at Holly
  • PLUS – SBP Coverage of New Lothrop at Montrose and Hudsonville at Rockford.

This week's MHSAA.tv highlights package includes clips from the East Grand Rapids/Lowell and Marquette/Negaunee football games and a Detroit Catholic League boys soccer tournament final between Birmingham Brother Rice and Detroit Catholic Central.

Hoops on Film: 1958 Class A Boys Final

July 23, 2015

By John Johnson
MHSAA communications director

A matchup of future NBA players hailing from opposite sides of the state is highlighted this week as part of MHSAA.tv’s Hoops On Film Series.

From the late 1940’s to the mid 1970’s the Michigan High School Athletic Association shot portions of the action at its boys and girls basketball finals on 16mm film. The films were loaned out, primarily to the participating schools, to help them relive the moments of playing in a championship game.

While many of the old films have wandered astray over time, about 60 games still exist in the MHSAA archives. Anyone in possession of such a film is encouraged to contact John Johnson at the MHSAA Office ([email protected]) to discuss having the film converted to a digital format.

Some of the films only have portions of the second half and the post-game awards; some have most of the action. None of the films have sound. They range in length from 10 minutes to about an hour. A new film will be posted online each Monday through the week of August 17. DVD’s may be purchased directly from the MHSAA.tv Website – just click the Get DVD button below the player. 

Here’s a look at this week’s game, with recap courtesy of MHSAA historian Ron Pesch:

Detroit Austin 71, Benton Harbor 68 – 1958 Class A Boys Final - Benton Harbor clung to a slim 49-48 lead after three periods of play, but Detroit Austin Catholic's Dave DeBusschere scored five field goals during the first five minutes of the fourth quarter to lead his team to a 71-68 victory over the Tigers in Class A.  DeBusschere finished with 32 points. Dominant in their respective areas of the state, the schools were favorites to meet in the Final. The game marked Benton Harbor's second straight appearance in the championship game, while Austin was only in its third year as a four-year high school. Chet Walker, who finished with 25 points for the Tigers, would go on to a distinguished career with Bradley University and the Chicago Bulls. DeBusschere went on to play for the University of Detroit, the Detroit Pistons and the New York Knicks.

Previous releases:
1976 Class D Girls Final: Lake City 58, Perkins 48 - Watch
1971 Class A Boys Final: Flint Northern 79, Detroit Kettering 78 - Watch
1954 Class A Boys Final: Muskegon Heights 43, Flint Northern 41 (OT) - Watch
1973 Class C Boys Final: Detroit East Catholic 50, Saginaw St. Stephen 49 - Watch