Week Eight - Getting To The Playoffs

Week Eight is finished. Hard work and preparation paid off for some teams while others…well others went home with their tails between their legs. Now is when teams can sigh with relief that they’ve made the playoffs, or sigh that they missed out on what could have been. The slate of games this past week had a few championships on the line and others had some tough out of conference games. I’ll quit blathering and we’ll get into the results of this past week.

North

Kingsford 34 Gladstone 7

The defense for Kingsford stepped up big time and led the way to victory. There were interceptions by Dylan Tengesdahl and Ryan Kleisner. Dylan snagged the ball and ran 80 yards in the second quarter to go up 14-0 and Kleisner’s interception with just over four minutes left in the game helped to seal the deal. Gladstone had many mistakes and far too many penalties to get much of an offensive game going. They tallied just 158 total yards on the night. The only score for the Braves came on five yard run by Bruce Anderson late in the second quarter. Adam Mattord, Chris Huebner, and Sean Williams all ran the ball in for touchdowns in the winning effort. Flivver quarterback Chris Siegler went 10 of 21 for 157 yards and a touchdown (57 yard screen pass to Tengesdahl for his second touchdown in the second quarter). Gladstone has made the playoffs with a 6-2 record and Kingsford needs a win over Escanaba (who also needs the win to punch their ticket to the dance) to get into the playoffs. With the win, Kingsford won a share of the Great Northern Conference football title.

Detroit

Lake Orion 34 Rochester Adams 28

At the beginning of the game, neither defense could get off the field. Each team drove and scored with ease. By the second half, the defenses tightened up and made it a bit tougher. Lake Orion only allowed seven second half points. Unfortunately for Rochester Adams, they turned the ball over too many times. They had an interception inside the Dragon 30 yard line just before halftime and another just outside the 30 in the fourth quarter. Both of Adams quarterback Andrew Waszak’s passes were picked off by Dragon cornerback Robby Lentz. There was also a fumbled ball that Lake Orion recovered. Kim Bruce carried the ball 20 times for 235 yards and two touchdowns in the winning effort. On the Adams side, Cody Wilson rushed 15 times for 145 yards and a touchdown, also catching eight receptions for 95 yards and blocked an extra point. Both teams have qualified for the playoffs and both have a 7-1 record.

Lansing Area

Grand Ledge 48 Holt 34

Holt came out and punched Grand Ledge in the mouth early, but it was Holt who left with the black eye. The Rams led 21-7 in the first quarter but Grand Ledge rallied to tie the game at 27 going into halftime. For Holt, senior running back David Lopez had 248 yards (161 in the first quarter) and two touchdowns. The Comets held him to 10 rushing yards in the second half. To open the third quarter, Grand Ledge had an 18 play drive, which included three fourth down conversions, and scored a touchdown to give them the lead. GL quarterback Nick Kissane went 18 of 29 for 286 and three touchdowns. He also ran in two more. Grand Ledge won the outright Capital Area Activities Conference Blue Division football title and is qualified for the playoffs with an 8-0 record. They finish next week against Charlotte. Holt still has their playoff hopes alive with their 5-3 record and need a win over Davison (also at 5-3 and needing that win) to make the playoffs.

Mid Michigan

Carrollton 21 St. Charles 14

It was a game of firsts for the Carrollton Cavaliers. For the first time, the football team is 8-0. For the first time since 1980, they have won a football title. This game played out just how you’d want to win a conference title too!  On the Cavaliers first possession, they took the ball and ran six minutes off the clock before Robert Essex ran the ball in for a touchdown. In the second quarter, St Charles got a score of their own on a five yard Marshall Davenport touchdown run. Before halftime, the Bulldogs hit Davenport on a 73 yard pass from quarterback Dugan Roosa. In the fourth quarter, Carrollton quarterback Zach Palmreuter scored on a one yard run. On the ensuing possession by St. Charles, the Cavaliers caused a fumble which they turned into 7 more points for a 21-14 lead. The Bulldogs weren’t finished though. They had a chance but couldn’t capitalize with just under two minutes remaining. Fortunately, the defense held tough and forced a punt by Carrollton. With 23 seconds and 50 yards to go, penalty flags started flying against Carrollton. They had a roughing the passer penalty which moved the ball to the 34. Then they had another roughing penalty, and the ball was placed at the 10. A pass into the end zone fell incomplete as time expired, but a pass interference penalty was called and St. Charles was given one more play at the five yard line with no time remaining. This time, Roosa tried a quarterback sneak, but was stopped inside the one yard line, just inches from the goal line. Game over, Carrollton won their first football title in 28 years. Both teams made the playoffs before this game and will probably meet up very early in the playoffs.

West

Muskegon 34 Rockford 6

At Ted Carlson Memorial Stadium in Rockford, 13,657 people gathered to watch a game between the two top teams in the OK Red and coincidently, two top teams in the state. In the end, it was Muskegon’s dominating defense that stole the show. They held Rockford to -13 yards of total offense (31 yards passing and -44 rushing) and two first downs. The Big Red defense had five sacks on Rockford quarterback Tim McGee. For Muskegon, quarterback Elan Banks went six of 17 for 105 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for 85 yards and a score. Jason Hannett had 124 yards on 18 carries and scored a TD. Anthony Davis had 107 yards on 13 carries and two touchdowns. The Big Red offense had 529 total yards with 424 of those coming on runs. The only time the Rams scored was in the first half. They were set up by long kickoff returns. Rockford kicker Paul Mudgett hit a 20 and 39 yard field goals to give them their only points of the night. Muskegon will play in Division 2 as they have already made the playoffs. Rockford, who also has made the playoffs, will be in Division 1.