Week 12 - Regional Finals - No Guts No Glory

Week 12 means Regional Finals (or quarterfinals). These teams have been grinding for 14 weeks now and the end is in sight. The bumps and bruises mean nothing

Week 12 means Regional Finals (or quarterfinals). These teams have been grinding for 14 weeks now and the end is in sight. The bumps and bruises mean nothing at this point. All the teams are in the same boat and no one is 100% healthy at such a late point in the season. Hopes and dreams for the players still in the hunt are very high. For some, the emotional rollercoaster will crash this weekend while others still are heading toward that peak. This is the point when games really begin to get exciting and close. No team would have made it this far unless they had a pretty good squad. With that said, let’s take a look at the Week 12 SpartanNation Games of the Week!

Detroit – Division 1

Detroit Southeastern (10-1) at Sterling Heights Stevenson (11-0) (Friday, 7pm)

The Jungaleers are loaded with collegiate D1 talent. Even though there have been rumblings of William Gholston decommitting from MSU, Hondo says that he’s not going anywhere. Southeastern beat Detroit Cass Tech 41-0 in their fourth meeting in the past two seasons. This year, they didn’t allow Cass Tech to score a single point.  They’ve posted five shut-outs this season and haven’t allowed a point in the playoffs. Coach Donshell English is a great coach and shows his team how to play football the right way. He’s said that this is one of the best defenses he’s ever had. Running back Paris Powell had a great game last week. He carried 17 times and gained 208 yards and scored three times. On the defensive side of the ball, James York had eight tackles and two sacks. Edward Thomas, their quarterback, is another player to look out for.

Sterling Heights Stevenson is the largest high school in Michigan with nearly 2,800 students. They have an 11-0 record on the season and have beat up most teams with their potent passing attack. Jason Fracassa set the all time passing mark back in late September and has kept his team rolling through the first two rounds of the playoffs. They will need to keep the Jungaleer defense off-balance by utilizing both the pass and the run. They are well coached by Rick Bye and are ranked #1 in the Division 1 poll by the Associated Press.

North – Division 4

Saginaw Swan Valley (9-2) vs. Kingsford (9-2) (Yooper Dome, NMU, Saturday 4pm)

This isn’t the first time that the Vikings have played the Flivvers. They have met twice in the playoffs with Kingsford winning both games (1992 and 1993 seasons). Heck, this isn’t the first time the two have played at the Yooper Dome! Last week Swan Valley got running back Jared Briguglio in their lineup for the first time since mid September. He had a great game in his return, running 34 times for 232 yards and four touchdowns in their 28-22 win over Stanton Central Montcalm. The Viking defense came though, forcing two three-and-outs on the Hornets’ final two possessions to get the victory. Coach Rich Bell acknowledges that his offensive line has paved the way for Briguglio, Dan Berden, and Jonathan Grace. They will depend on the running game and only pass if forced to.

The Kingsford Flivvers had a great game as well last week. They rallied from two scores down to beat Big Rapids 48-42 in overtime. It was back and forth most of the game, with the two teams combining to rack up nearly 1,000 yards of total offense (500 for Kingsford, 497 for Big Rapids). Dylan Tengesdahl was the big player for the Flivvers. He ran in a 40 yard touchdown to start the scoring, caught a 62 yard touchdown pass, and returned a punt 99 yards for another score. He finished the day with 44 yards rushing on three attempts and caught seven footballs for 133 yards. It looked like Kingsford had it wrapped up after they pulled ahead 42-35 with only three minutes left, but they gave up a score after Big Rapids moved the ball 80 yards and put the points on the board with only seven seconds left in regulation. In overtime, they intercepted the first pass and scored two plays later to win the game.

West – Division 8

Muskegon Catholic Central (7-4) at Colon (10-1) (Friday, 7pm)

The Crusaders of Muskegon Catholic Central didn’t rest on their laurels after winning a state championship last season. Even though they lost players, they pumped up their schedule and went hard into the season. MCC didn’t go 14-0 like in 2008, but they made the playoffs at 5-4. Now they are in a Regional Final for the fifth straight season. Last week, they played Climax-Scotts and won 28-27. The Panthers took an early lead, but Major Metcalf, back after a one game suspension, put the team on his back and carried the load. He carried the ball 21 times for 221 yards and two touchdowns. He scored from 63 yards out to tie the game at 7 early on. Quarterback Tom Pallas attempted three passes and completed one for a 66 yard touchdown to JaMicah Cooper. Will Perri carried 10 times for 44 yards and another score.

Colon is a good team. They use the triple option offense and will keep other teams guessing where the football is. Quarterback Brendon Shallack has rushed for 1,675 yards and passed for 905 in 2009. Last week, he ran the ball 35 times for 221 yards and four touchdowns. He also passed five times, completed two of those passes for 68 yards, and tossed one touchdown. Curtis Hiler ran the ball nine times for 40 yards. He also made 12 tackles. The Magi blocked two punts and recovered two fumbles. That kind of defense will help you win games. Coach Spencer Henley knew that it would be a tough game because many of his players had been sick in the days leading up to the game. He was also proud of how the offensive line came though at the end when they needed to move the ball and get a game winning touchdown.

Mid Michigan – Division 2

Birmingham Brother Rice (7-4) at Midland (10-1) (Saturday, 1pm)

Brother Rice had their ups and downs this past season. At one point, they lost three straight games and it didn’t look like they’d make the playoffs. Well, they made the show as a 5-4 team and have proven to be a tough squad in battle. They beat Rochester Adams 27-7 last week. Running back Jimmy Pickens had a nice game for the Warriors. He rushed for 115 yards on 22 carries and scored on a seven yard run. Quarterback Frankie Popp completed seven of his 11 passes for 122 yards and two touchdowns. One of those TD passes went 18 yards to Kevonte Martin-Manley. The other was caught by Nate Saldivar-Garcia for an18 yard score as well. Rochester kept the game close, but when a team goes on a drive of over eight minutes and scores in the fourth quarter like Coach Al Fracassa’s Warriors did, it’s tough to come back from. The linebacker duo of Justin Cherocchi and Tim Hamilton took care of business on defense, getting 11 tackles each.

Like Brother Rice, Midland is always good. They haven’t had a losing season since America was celebrating it’s bicentennial. Eric Methner is coaching a good squad. Although teams are looking for running back Charlie Leffingwell, quarterback Alex Rapanos is apt at making plays as well. Last week, Leffingwell ran 22 times for 168 yards and two touchdowns. Rapanos completed seven of his 11 passes for 93 yards and two more touchdowns in their 26-20 win over Lapeer West. Unfortunately, receiver Matt Alcott was injured, but he is expected to play this week. Although Midland might not have played the caliber of teams that Brother Rice has, they have played some pretty tough teams. Their lone loss on the season is to Division 3 Mount Pleasant. They beat Detroit Country Day and Flushing in the past month. This will be a real test in the first game between these two teams since the 1990 Class A State Championship game.

Capital – Division 3

Adrian (10-1) at DeWitt (11-0) (Friday, 7pm)

The Maples have pushed further this season than they have in a few years. It was 2001 the last time they won a district trophy. Coach Phil Jacobs, a former player in his sixth season as the head honcho, was proud of his team’s 30-20 victory over Chelsea. They were able to contain Michigan State bound Nick Hill and not allow him to run for 100 yards (98 yards on 33 carries) by shutting down his running lanes…according to defensive back Matt Vallade. Adrian accomplished this by switching from a 4-3 defense to a 5-3, which means they brought in another defensive lineman to help stop Hill. Vallade also had a big play, stripping the ball from Chris Ballow and running it 88 yards the other way to paydirt. Mikale Perez booted three field goals in the game when drives stalled. Quarterback Drew Collins had two touchdown tosses to Cam Moorehead. The first went 24 yards and the second covered 50. They will need a big game from the defense and offense going against a very tough DeWitt team.

DeWitt faced more adversity in the first half of the game last week against Lansing Sexton than they had faced the whole season. Northwestern bound lineman Paul Jorgensen pumped his team up and they turned a 14-14 halftime score into a 42-14 victory. Nathan Deak ran 25 times for 139 yards and two scores. Quarterback Jimmy Williams completed seven of his 13 passes for 62 yards and a score while also running the ball 11 times for 86 yards and two more touchdowns. On the defensive side of the ball, they held Onaje Miller, who was averaging 170 yards and three touchdowns per game, to 22 yards on 16 carries. Even the Panther special teams got in on the act, playing keep-away from Miller who is an explosive returner. This kind of adversity and the response to it can carry a team far in the playoffs. Sometimes, being tested like this will turn on a light for a team and ensure that they don’t get surprised again.