MHSAA Football - Week Eight Review

Week Eight is behind us. There isn’t much regular season football left now! One week from today, we will know which teams are playing each other and how the brackets are set. I’ll put another reminder in my Friday preview, but Selection Sunday on Fox Sports Detroit will begin at 6pm. The games last week were pretty awesome. More teams have made the playoffs. Some other squads missed in their attempt. Others have one more chance. Let’s get right into the games!

Clarkston 21 Lake Orion 14

This game lived up to its billing. These two teams were ranked #1 and #2 in Division 1 coming into the game. It was also for the Oakland Athletic Association Red Division crown. Clarkston won the game on an Ian Eriksen touchdown with 14 ticks left in the game. The game wining drive lasted 10 minutes and featured two fourth-and-one conversions and overcoming penalties. Quarterback D.J. Zezula came off the bench and completed a HUGE 37 yard completion on first and 38 with less than two minutes left to play. Starting quarterback Caine Watlington missed his only pass attempt, but did run 10 times for 30 yards. Ian Eriksen was the workhorse. He ran an incredible 43 times for 166 yards and both of his team’s touchdowns. The big pass catch was made by Alex Dicea. Shane Hynes nailed two field goals; one from 37 yards and the other from 38. On the Lake Orion side, quarterback Derek Delaura completed six of his nine passes for 57 yards. Jacob Miller led the rushing attack with 20 runs for 84 yards and a score. The other touchdown was made by Dominick Giovinazzo who finished with four runs for 49 yards. Chaz Miller hauled in three passes for 36 yards.

Stevensville Lakeshore 28 Mattawan 16

The Lancers of Stevensville Lakeshore used a strong running game to take home a win over a good Mattawan squad. Running back Andrew Seawood ran 10 times for 104 yards and scored once. Zach Ellis ran 17 times for 79 yards. Zak Drake ran seven times for 39 yards and a score while also hauled in two passes for 21 yards. As a team, they rushed 46 times for 276 yards. Johnny Nate completed all five of his passes for 45 yards and a touchdown. He ran seven times for another 45 yards. For Mattawan, it was a tough loss. They couldn’t finish drives and ran into a defense that kept playing downhill and bringing the secondary. Quarterback Ryan Payerle completed six of his 11 passes for 54 yards. David Stafford caught three of those passes for 44 yards and also racked up 28 yards on five runs. Trevor Sweeney ran 20 times for 120 yards and a score while teammate Brok Lamorandier carried 16 times for 115 yards and a score.

Midland 42 Bay City Western 15

These two have been consistent winners in the Saginaw Valley League. Although the last time Midland won the title was 2007 and Bay City Western back in 2008, these squads have been very good. This past week, things kept going wrong for the Warriors of Western and Midland capitalized consistently. Quarterback Alec Johnson completed 16 of his 19 passes for 236 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran 11 times for another 20 yards and two more scores. Travis Patten ran 23 times for 147 yards and two scores. Will Williams grabbed five passes for 96 yards while Thomas Smith hauled in five for 60 yards and a score. For BCW, quarterback Joe Ivan completed five of his 10 passes for 75 yards before leaving the game due to a head injury. Cameron Pine came in and completed one of his two passes for a negative one yard. Mason Myers ran 21 times for 157 yards and both of his team’s touchdowns. Charles Proctor ran five times for 18 yards and also hauled in five passes for 66 yards.

Portland 37 DeWitt 7

The story of this game was turnovers. Portland forced eight turnovers by DeWitt. It’s hard enough to overcome two or three turnovers, but eight is a mighty high hill to climb. Jacob Kimmel ran 15 times for 160 yards and a score. Caleb Hickling ran for 135 yards and two scores on 14 totes. Quarterback Tanner Allison only completed three of his 11 passes but it went for 130 yards and two scores. Auston Brandt caught one of those passes and raced 73 yards for a touchdown. For DeWitt, quarterback Jacob Heath completed 17 of his 36 passes for 220 yards, a touchdown, and four interceptions. Andrew Clements grabbed five balls for 119 yards and a score. Ryan Anderson caught four passes for 49 yards.