Michigan Again 7th for Participation
August 19, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
For the seventh straight year, Michigan ranked seventh nationally in high school sports participation, according to statistics for the 2014-15 school year released recently by the National Federation of State High School Associations.
That level of participation continued to best Michigan’s national ranking for total number of residents of high school age, which remained ninth for the third consecutive year, and Michigan also ranked ninth or higher in participation in 25 of 28 sports in which the Michigan High School Athletic Association conducts a postseason tournament.
Michigan’s participation ranking was based on a number of 295,660, with 124,633 girls and 171,027 boys taking part, and included sports in which the MHSAA does not conduct postseason tournaments. The totals count students once for each sport in which he or she participates, meaning students who are multiple-sport athletes are counted more than once.
The state’s girls participation remained seventh nationally for the fourth consecutive year, while the boys participation figure continued to rank sixth. According to the latest U.S. Census Bureau figures from 2014, Michigan ranks ninth in both females and males ages 14 through 17.
Two sports improved in national ranking this school year, while four sports dropped one or two positions. However, 13 sports bested the state’s overall national participation ranking of seventh, placing sixth or higher on their respective lists.
Michigan girls volleyball improved from fifth to fourth in the national participation ranking, and girls track and field from eighth to seventh. The four sports that ranked lower for 2014-15 were boys bowling falling from second to third, girls cross country from fifth to seventh, girls swimming and diving from ninth to 10th and wrestling from seventh to eighth.
The 11 other Michigan sports that ranked sixth or higher repeated their rankings from a year ago: football (11 and 8-player combined) at sixth, boys basketball at sixth, boys golf at sixth, boys ice hockey fourth, boys skiing fourth, boys tennis fifth, girls bowling fourth, girls competitive cheer fifth, girls golf sixth, girls skiing fourth and girls tennis also remaining fourth on its national participation list.
The other Michigan sports that equaled their 2013-14 national ranking were girls basketball at seventh, gymnastics at 12th, girls lacrosse at 13th, girls soccer at ninth, softball at seventh, baseball at seventh, boys cross country also seventh, boys lacrosse eighth, boys soccer ninth, boys swimming and diving ninth and boys track and field seventh on its list.
National participation in high school sports in 2013-14 set a record for the 26th consecutive year with 7,807,047 participants – an increase of 11,389 from the year before. Girls participation also set a record for the 26th straight year, increasing this time 20,071 participants to 3,287,735 total. Boys participation fell 8,682 participants from 2013-14, but still totaled 4,519,312 after passing 4.5 million for the first time a year ago.
Boys soccer saw the largest gain nationally with an additional 15,150 participants, and that sport ranked fifth among boys sports behind 11-player football, outdoor track and field, basketball and baseball. Football (1,083,617) remained the most-played high school sport overall. Track and field remained the most popular girls sport with 478,726 participants, with volleyball moving ahead of basketball for the second spot in the girls rankings. Soccer and softball followed at fourth and fifth, respectively, on the girls sports list.
2014 Week 9 Football Playoff Listing
October 21, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Following is a list of Michigan High School Athletic Association football playing schools with at least four wins, displaying their win-loss records and playoff averages through the eighth week of the season.
Schools on this list are in enrollment order for 11-player teams, with 8-player teams ordered by playoff average. An asterisk (*) beside a record indicates a team has eight or fewer games scheduled. A caret (^) beside a school’s name indicates a team is one win away from playoff qualification.
Those schools with 11-player teams with six or more wins playing nine-game schedules, or five or more wins playing eight games or fewer, will qualify for the MHSAA Football Playoffs beginning Oct. 31. Schools with 5-4, 4-3 or 4-4 records may qualify if the number of potential qualifiers by win total does not reach the 256 mark. Schools with six or more wins playing nine-game schedules or five or more wins playing eight games or fewer may be subtracted from the field based on playoff average if the number of potential qualifiers exceeds the 256 mark.
Once the 256 qualifying schools are determined, they will be divided by enrollment groups into eight equal divisions of 32 schools, and then drawn into regions of eight teams each and districts of four teams each. Those schools with 8-player teams will be ranked by playoff average at season’s end, and the top 16 programs will be drawn into regions of eight teams each for the playoff in that division, which also begins Oct. 31.
To review a list of all football playoff schools, individual school playoff point details and to report errors, visit the Football page of the MHSAA Website.
The announcement of the qualifiers and first-round pairings for both the 11 and 8-player playoffs will take place at 7 p.m. on Oct. 26 on the Selection Sunday Show on FOX Sports Detroit. The playoff qualifiers and pairings will be posted to the MHSAA Website following the Selection Sunday Show.
11-Player Playoff Listing
1. Macomb Dakota, 2814, 6-2, 84.500
2. Sterling Heights Stevenson, 2767, 6-2, 83.875
3. Clarkston, 2742, 8-0, 111.000
4. Utica Eisenhower ^, 2712, 5-3, 75.500
5. Grand Blanc ^, 2668, 5-3, 63.875
6. Howell, 2595, 4-4, 57.750
7. East Kentwood, 2592, 7-1, 93.500
8. Rockford, 2555, 6-2, 88.375
9. Clinton Township Chippewa Valley ^, 2538, 5-3, 69.750
10. Lake Orion, 2459, 4-4, 50.750
11. Dearborn Fordson, 2411, 8-0, 108.000
12. Northville ^, 2298, 5-3, 63.000
13. Holland West Ottawa ^, 2293, 5-3, 72.500
14. Canton, 2289, 6-2, 85.375
15. Detroit Cass Tech, 2277, 8-0, 106.000
16. Brighton, 2133, 4-4, 52.125
17. Plymouth, 2116, 6-2, 77.250
18. Lapeer, 2112, 8-0, 101.000
19. Utica Ford, 2090, 4-4, 47.125
20. Hartland, 2007, 6-2, 84.125
21. Monroe, 1992, 6-2, 81.625
22. West Bloomfield, 1929, 7-1, 93.875
23. Dearborn ^, 1876, 5-3, 71.375
24. Westland John Glenn ^, 1872, 5-3, 60.875
25. Warren Mott, 1870, 4-4, 58.250
26. Oxford, 1864, 6-2, 78.625
27. Ann Arbor Pioneer, 1857, 4-4, 48.250
28. Livonia Stevenson, 1848, 6-2, 76.125
29. Saline, 1844, 7-1, 92.083
30. Grandville, 1820, 4-4, 56.750
31. Walled Lake Central, 1815, 6-2, 83.250
32. Romeo ^, 1770, 5-3, 66.625
33. Hudsonville ^, 1759, 5-3, 67.875
34. Waterford Mott ^, 1738, 5-3, 69.750
35. Rochester Hills Stoney Creek, 1711, 4-4, 50.625
36. Livonia Churchill, 1696, 6-2, 79.250
37. Grand Ledge ^, 1689, 5-3, 61.875
38. Fraser ^, 1684, 5-3, 61.625
39. Grosse Pointe South, 1674, 4-4, 57.750
40. Traverse City West, 1658, 4-4, 54.625
41. Rochester Adams, 1614, 4-4, 49.375
42. Walled Lake Northern, 1613, 4-4, 54.250
43. Waterford Kettering, 1610, 4-4, 49.250
44. Temperance Bedford, 1600, 4-4, 54.125
45. Warren Cousino ^, 1588, 5-3, 67.250
46. Flint Carman-Ainsworth, 1568, 6-2, 77.375
47. Warren DeLaSalle ^, 1562, 5-3, 59.100
48. Davison, 1531, 4-4, 47.000
49. Detroit Western International, 1521, 4-4, 41.125
50. Detroit Martin Luther King, 1507, 8-0, 109.143
51. Walled Lake Western, 1502, 7-1, 97.500
52. Traverse City Central, 1490, 6-2, 79.875
53. Oak Park, 1486, 6-2, 79.500
54. Brownstown Woodhaven, 1484, 8-0, 107.000
55. East Detroit, 1422, 4-4, 45.750
56. Ypsilanti Lincoln, 1422, 6-2, 74.875
57. Caledonia, 1417, 6-2, 86.875
58. Midland, 1400, 4-4, 48.375
59. Southfield-Lathrup, 1388, 4-4, 49.250
60. Portage Central *, 1384, 6-1, 86.911
61. Detroit Pershing, 1379, 4-4, 40.518
62. Southgate Anderson ^, 1374, 5-3, 59.000
63. Lansing Everett ^, 1364, 5-3, 63.125
64. Dearborn Edsel Ford, 1356, 4-4, 51.250
65. Wyandotte Roosevelt, 1351, 6-2, 77.625
66. Detroit East English ^, 1345, 5-3, 62.768
67. Portage Northern ^, 1345, 5-3, 69.571
68. Port Huron, 1336, 6-2, 80.375
69. Grosse Pointe North ^, 1310, 5-3, 66.625
70. Ypsilanti Community ^, 1300, 5-3, 59.500
71. Birmingham Brother Rice, 1298, 8-0, 109.000
72. Swartz Creek ^, 1285, 5-3, 61.875
73. Battle Creek Lakeview *, 1278, 6-1, 90.071
74. Muskegon Mona Shores, 1274, 7-1, 95.625
75. Okemos ^, 1273, 5-3, 66.750
76. Bay City Central, 1271, 4-4, 51.750
77. Birmingham Groves, 1270, 6-2, 76.375
78. Berkley, 1265, 6-2, 75.125
79. Flushing, 1260, 6-2, 79.250
80. Midland Dow, 1255, 8-0, 101.000
81. South Lyon, 1254, 7-1, 94.250
82. Southfield, 1239, 6-2, 78.500
83. Farmington Hills Harrison, 1212, 7-1, 94.625
84. Mattawan ^, 1184, 5-3, 64.929
85. Fenton, 1181, 8-0, 107.000
86. Farmington, 1178, 7-1, 94.750
87. Grand Rapids Northview, 1177, 6-2, 76.375
88. Warren Woods Tower, 1175, 6-2, 76.500
89. Muskegon, 1157, 8-0, 105.000
90. St. Clair Shores Lake Shore, 1153, 4-4, 48.375
91. Lowell, 1145, 7-1, 85.625
92. Detroit Renaissance ^, 1144, 5-3, 58.893
93. Greenville, 1130, 4-4, 43.125
94. Gibraltar Carlson, 1129, 4-4, 45.750
95. Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills, 1125, 4-4, 49.750
96. Battle Creek Central, 1124, 4-4, 49.339
97. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern, 1113, 6-2, 78.375
98. Holland, 1109, 4-4, 46.000
99. Detroit Cody ^, 1096, 5-3, 58.893
100. Marquette, 1090, 7-1, 81.292
101. St. Johns, 1088, 7-1, 90.875
102. Byron Center, 1085, 6-2, 74.500
103. Allen Park, 1069, 7-1, 88.875
104. Richland Gull Lake, 1064, 4-4, 46.964
105. Auburn Hills Avondale ^, 1056, 5-3, 58.000
106. Orchard Lake St. Mary's, 1054, 7-1, 85.875
107. Mt. Pleasant ^, 1050, 5-3, 59.125
108. Mason ^, 1032, 5-3, 61.125
109. St. Joseph, 1028, 4-4, 50.214
110. Redford Thurston ^, 1024, 5-3, 62.875
111. East Grand Rapids ^, 986, 5-3, 69.250
112. Petoskey, 965, 6-2, 77.375
113. Trenton ^, 955, 5-3, 60.250
114. Romulus, 950, 6-2, 65.500
115. Riverview ^, 935, 5-3, 55.250
116. DeWitt, 930, 8-0, 107.000
117. Gaylord ^, 927, 5-3, 59.875
118. Linden, 921, 6-2, 74.500
119. Detroit Mumford ^, 919, 5-3, 61.125
120. Middleville Thornapple Kellogg, 914, 4-4, 46.000
121. Cedar Springs, 910, 7-1, 87.500
122. Grand Rapids Christian ^, 895, 5-3, 65.125
123. Fruitport, 890, 4-4, 48.625
124. Stevensville Lakeshore, 887, 6-2, 80.071
125. Sault Ste. Marie, 886, 4-4, 46.750
126. Niles ^, 885, 5-3, 60.589
127. Coldwater, 876, 7-1, 73.875
128. Haslett, 874, 4-4, 55.750
129. Tecumseh ^, 869, 5-3, 62.125
130. New Boston Huron, 867, 7-1, 78.875
131. Warren Fitzgerald ^, 857, 5-3, 55.625
132. Zeeland West, 850, 8-0, 95.000
133. Dearborn Divine Child, 848, 6-2, 66.857
134. Bay City John Glenn, 847, 6-2, 59.500
135. Battle Creek Harper Creek ^, 845, 5-3, 53.250
136. St. Clair, 844, 6-2, 76.375
137. Edwardsburg, 839, 7-1, 84.625
138. Chelsea, 838, 6-2, 75.125
139. Detroit Old Redford ^, 837, 5-3, 47.889
140. Charlotte, 836, 4-4, 41.500
141. Milan, 828, 4-4, 40.750
142. Plainwell, 812, 7-1, 77.750
143. Ada Forest Hills Eastern, 808, 4-4, 46.750
144. Marysville ^, 806, 5-3, 62.250
145. Spring Lake ^, 802, 5-3, 56.625
146. Detroit Denby, 800, 4-4, 54.375
147. Ionia, 796, 4-4, 46.375
148. Vicksburg, 794, 6-2, 68.250
149. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood ^, 790, 5-3, 44.750
150. Eaton Rapids ^, 773, 5-3, 55.000
151. Cadillac, 747, 8-0, 103.000
152. Goodrich, 737, 7-1, 76.875
153. Ferndale, 723, 4-4, 47.500
154. Three Rivers ^, 722, 5-3, 62.000
155. Dearborn Heights Robichaud, 717, 7-1, 79.786
156. Yale, 716, 6-2, 61.625
157. Comstock Park, 703, 4-4, 46.875
158. Hudsonville Unity Christian, 693, 4-4, 46.000
159. Harper Woods Chandler Park Academy, 691, 6-2, 67.875
160. Detroit Country Day, 690, 4-4, 46.500
161. Allendale, 689, 4-4, 46.250
162. Muskegon Orchard View ^, 662, 5-3, 50.750
163. Williamston, 659, 6-2, 69.250
164. Paw Paw ^, 657, 5-3, 53.875
165. Grand Rapids Catholic Central ^, 655, 5-3, 60.000
166. Lansing Sexton, 652, 8-0, 111.000
167. Whitehall, 644, 6-2, 59.500
168. Grosse Ile, 640, 6-2, 67.625
169. Kalamazoo Hackett ^, 635, 5-3, 45.536
170. Detroit Collegiate Prep, 634, 4-4, 42.250
171. Richmond, 630, 7-1, 77.875
172. Imlay City, 629, 4-4, 36.500
173. Grand Rapids South Christian, 623, 6-2, 74.125
174. Wyoming Kelloggsville ^, 610, 5-3, 51.750
175. Wyoming Godwin Heights ^, 609, 5-3, 44.625
176. Saginaw Swan Valley, 602, 8-0, 89.000
177. Clawson ^, 589, 5-3, 49.125
178. North Muskegon, 577, 4-4, 36.250
179. Birch Run, 575, 7-1, 75.750
180. Essexville Garber ^, 574, 5-3, 51.250
181. Remus Chippewa Hills, 567, 6-2, 70.250
182. Flint Powers Catholic, 553, 6-2, 68.500
183. Marine City, 553, 8-0, 96.000
184. Freeland, 549, 7-1, 74.875
185. Kingsford, 546, 4-4, 45.667
186. Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, 545, 6-2, 56.786
187. Stanton Central Montcalm ^, 539, 5-3, 55.750
188. Portland, 538, 4-4, 48.875
189. Menominee, 532, 8-0, 91.730
190. Detroit University Prep, 530, 6-2, 60.264
191. River Rouge, 530, 7-1, 73.143
192. Frankenmuth, 528, 7-1, 75.750
193. Gladwin ^, 528, 5-3, 47.000
194. Ida, 527, 6-2, 58.500
195. Hopkins, 522, 7-1, 74.804
196. Grayling, 517, 4-4, 41.643
197. Lansing Catholic, 515, 8-0, 94.000
198. Almont, 512, 8-0, 85.889
199. Carrollton, 511, 4-4, 37.250
200. Newaygo, 506, 7-1, 73.625
201. Olivet, 505, 6-2, 64.125
202. Berrien Springs ^, 501, 5-3, 53.500
203. Muskegon Oakridge, 501, 7-1, 72.875
204. Onsted ^, 499, 5-3, 41.125
205. Ovid-Elsie ^, 487, 5-3, 53.000
206. Chesaning, 480, 4-4, 41.375
207. Detroit Central Collegiate ^, 479, 5-3, 52.018
208. Manistee, 479, 4-4, 40.375
209. Stockbridge ^, 462, 5-3, 50.625
210. Reed City, 461, 7-1, 77.750
211. Clare, 445, 6-2, 65.625