Week Eight Results - I'm On Fire

Wow! Can you believe it? Week Eight is finished and we only have one more game left in the regular season. The games last week were tough; some were

Wow! Can you believe it? Week Eight is finished and we only have one more game left in the regular season. The games last week were tough; some were blowouts while other games came down to the wire. Many teams qualified for the playoffs with a victory last Friday while other teams are starting to think about basketball and wrestling. Let’s see the tale of the tape from last week. You know some of these guys who are doing well are saying, "I'm On Fire!"

Capital Area

Hudson 57 Stockbridge 27

This game was all about Hudson’s running back Dew Milligan. He accounted for 237 of the team’s 413 yards when rushing the ball. There were no passing yards as the Tigers ran the ball 55 times and only passed once. On those 21 rushing attempts that Milligan made, he scored a school record six touchdowns. For Stockbridge, they managed 339 total offensive yards. Quarterback Jeff O’Brien threw the ball for 102 yards on seven completions of 14 passes and one touchdown. He also ran the ball 13 times for 69 yards and another touchdown. His lone rushing touchdown run went for 69 yards. Devin Allen caught three footballs for 55 yards. Matt Klann ran nine times for 83 yards and a 61 yard touchdown run. Josh Ensine scored just before the game ended on an 83 yard jaunt. He finished with 83 yards on two attempts.

Detroit

Farmington Hills Harrison 28 Lake Orion 6

When you talk about legendary football coaches in the state of Michigan, there are a lot of names to mention. Some guys are living legends, like Birmingham Brother Rice’s Al Fracassa. Another coach who is a living legend is the only head man Farmington Hills Harrison has ever had, John Herrington. He has been the in charge of the program there for 40 years and won 12 state titles which is tied with Detroit St. Martin dePorres for the most. In the victory this past Saturday, the defense was able to shut down the prolific offense of Lake Orion. Quarterback Tommy Vento completed 13 of his 18 passes for 175 yards and two touchdowns. Receiver Aaron Burbridge hauled in five passes for 91 yards and also played pretty well at defensive back. Austin Hunter scored twice when running the ball. Lake Orion quarterback Sean Charette was able to toss a touchdown pass to Demitri Hudson to pull within eight at the break.

West Coast

Fruitport 29 Grant 28

There were no points scored in the first or fourth quarter so it was a battle from the opening kickoff to the final whistle. In the end, it took a defensive stop on fourth and one on the Fruitport 13 yard line with only 1:43 left to play. The win gave Fruitport a share of the Lakes 8 Conference title (with Spring Lake). Fruitport gained 456 total yards with 408 coming on the ground. Running back Mike Reyes carried the ball 19 times for 155 yards and a touchdown while backfield mate Bobby Steinman gained 138 on 12 carries and also caught a 45 yard touchdown pass from Steve Devries. Nicolas has 66 yards on 17 carries. Grant Quarterback Taylor Fahlen completed eight of his 13 passes for 99 yards. Jake Newton caught five of those passes for 69 yards. Both teams will make the playoffs.

North

Mancelona 44 Fife Lake Forest Area 6

It was a happy homecoming for the Ironmen as they won the outright Ski Valley Conference title and possibly secured a home playoff game. Running back Taylor Borst gained 129 yards on 21 carries and scored twice. Dustin Allen gained 114 yards on 10 carries and also returned an interception 95 yards for a score. Ironmen fullback Austin Spires ran the ball 12 times for 83 yards which included a 61 yard touchdown run. Quarterback Dustin Derrer completed three of his four passes for 44 yards. On the Fife Lake side, quarterback Robert Stiele completed 18 of his 28 passes for 191 yards. Tom Hall scored the Warriors lone touchdown. They need a win this week against Maple City Glenn Lake to secure a playoff spot.

Mid Michigan

Ithaca 55 Merrill 19

Once again, it was all about Alex Niznak. He completed 14 of his 18 passes for 256 yards and four touchdowns. Five of the footballs were caught by David Brown for 115 yards and two scores. Niznak also ran 13 times for 121 yards and two more scores. Running back Garrett Miniard toted the rock seven times for 37 yards and a score. Merrill’s Kyle Tack completed 15 of his 28 passes for 253 yards and three touchdowns. Jimmy Schoof caught four of them for 71 yards. Phil Pierce caught a 25 yard touchdown and the Tylers, Tyler Guthrie (3-65 yards one score) and Tyler Gross (4-48 yards one touchdown) caught the other two scores. Ithaca scored on all seven of hit’s first half possessions.  It’s hard not to favor Ithaca to win the state title in Division 6 this season.