Football Finals Re-Air for Christmas

December 20, 2016

By John Johnson
MHSAA Communications Director

FOX Sports Detroit will present Michigan high school football fans with eight presents on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, re-airing the championship games from the 2016 MHSAA 11-Player Football Playoffs – presented by the Michigan Army National Guard.

The action begins at 4 p.m. each day, with the odd-numbered divisions being shown on Christmas Eve and the even-numbered title games on Christmas Day in the order they were played at Ford Field in Detroit.

Here’s the complete schedule:

Dec. 24

4 p.m. – Division 8 – Muskegon Catholic Central 35, Ottawa Lake Whiteford 6 – Muskegon Catholic Central broke this one open in the second half. QB Cameron Martinez ran for 154 yards and one TD while passing for a second score.

Watch @ MHSAA.TV - Buy Video DVD - Listen @ MHSAANetwork.com - Instant Audio Download

6 p.m. – Division 2 – Detroit Martin Luther King 18, Walled Lake Western 0 – King does it with defense, picking off four Western passes and returning two of them for touchdowns.

Watch @ MHSAA.TV - Buy Video DVD - Listen @ MHSAANetwork.com - Instant Audio Download

8 p.m. – Division 6 – Jackson Lumen Christi 26, Maple City Glen Lake 14 – Bo Bell comes up big for Lumen Christi, rushing for 238 yards and one TD.

Watch @ MHSAA.TV - Buy Video DVD - Listen @ MHSAANetwork.com - Instant Audio Download

10 p.m. – Division 4 - Grand Rapids Catholic Central 10, Detroit Country Day 7 – This one was dominated by the defenses. The only GRCC first down of the day came on a fourth-quarter 44-yard touchdown pitch-and-catch from Jack Bowen to Michael Brown.

Watch @ MHSAA.TV - Buy Video DVD - Listen @ MHSAANetwork.com - Instant Audio Download

Dec. 25

4 p.m. – Division 7 – Pewamo-Westphalia 28, Detroit Loyola 14 – Nothing can stop the PW Pirates. Jimmy Lehman throws for two touchdowns and rushes for a third against the Loyola Bulldogs.

Watch @ MHSAA.TV - Buy Video DVD - Listen @ MHSAANetwork.com - Instant Audio Download

6 p.m. – Division 1 – Detroit Cass Tech 49, Detroit Catholic Central 20 – Cass Tech QB Rodney Hall ties a Final game record with five touchdown passes against DCC.

Watch @ MHSAA.TV - Buy Video DVD - Listen @ MHSAANetwork.com - Instant Audio Download

8 p.m. – Division 5 – Grand Rapids West Catholic 43, Menominee 7 - Gaetano Vallone passes for 311 yards and four scores as the Falcons fly over the Maroons.

Watch @ MHSAA.TV - Buy Video DVD - Listen @ MHSAANetwork.com - Instant Audio Download

10 p.m. – Division 3 – Orchard Lake St Mary's 29, Muskegon 28 – This went down to the wire. Ky’ren Cunningham dives to catch an 18-yard pass from Caden Prieskorn with four seconds to go to give the Eaglets the win.

Watch @ MHSAA.TV - Buy Video DVD - Listen @ MHSAANetwork.com - Instant Audio Download

DVD’s cost $24.95, and Instant Audio Downloads are $4.99.

Things are winding down for the holidays on MHSAA.tv with School Broadcast Program members heading into a break.

In its eighth 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 the rest of the month for broadcast at MHSAA.tv. On-Demand listings may be available as soon as one hour following an event’s completion. (List as of Dec. 16):

Tuesday, Dec. 20

Wednesday, Dec. 21

Thursday, Dec. 22

Tuesday, Jan. 3

The NFHS Network has announced new pricing for 2016-17, eliminating the Day Pass and lowering the cost of a Month Pass to $9.95. Subscribers will have access to all live video and streaming statistics across the country. All content becomes available for free, on-demand viewing 72 hours after being shown live. Some schools also will be selling Annual Passes at a discounted rate. A portion of every subscription sold by a school goes to benefit its program.

A complete list of participating schools can be found on the School Broadcast Program page of the MHSAA website.

Fans can also access scores of games in-progress on the NFHS Network website via ScoreStream. Click on the Scores button in the upper right corner.

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.