This Week in High School Sports History: Muskegon Scored 216 Points in a Record-Setting 1912 Rout

The Michigan football powerhouse rewrote the record books with a 216-0 victory, plus a look back at remarkable high school football and soccer performances.

Muskegon remains a football power to this day, but in 1912, it had a performance that made national headlines. | Mariusz Nowak

High school sports history is filled with remarkable moments that have largely disappeared from the larger story of American sports. This Week in High School History looks back at significant, unusual, and sometimes forgotten events in high school athletics.

For the Week of Sept. 28-Oct. 4:

Muskegon (Mich.) scored what was then a national record 216 points in a 216-0 high school football season-opening victory over Hastings (Mich.) on Sept. 28, 1912, at Hackley Field. 

Nine players scored a total of 32 touchdowns, with team captain and right halfback Fred Jacks leading the way with nine. Fullback Lamoreaux scored eight. The game was so lopsided that right tackle Robbins scored a pair of touchdowns, and right guard Hoeker found the end zone once.

Place-kicker Nelson Stuit converted 24 of 30 PATs. Two additional attempts were failed passes. Stuit's 24 extra points established a Michigan single-game record that still stands and ranks second nationally in the NFHS record book. He also scored a touchdown.

The Muskegon Chronicle game report, published Sept. 30, 1912, offered a blunt assessment of the mismatch, stating that Hastings “had about three men that knew a football from an egg and those three could not make the Muskegon second team.”

A national wire report called the performance a "world record football score" and stated, “most of Muskegon's touchdowns came on the kickoff or by drives lasting only one play.” News of Muskegon's record-setting victory spread across the country, with reports appearing in newspapers from Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Memphis, Minneapolis, New York, Pittsburgh, and Washington, D.C.

Why Did Hastings Keep Kicking Off?

The reference to touchdowns coming “on the kickoff” is intriguing because, under modern football conventions, a team that is shut out generally would kick off only once in the game. However, there is a seldom-utilized rule that remains on the books to this day: the opponent of the scoring team can designate which team will kick off after a score, providing an explanation for how Muskegon could have repeatedly scored on kickoff returns.

While this rule has vanished from college and professional football, it remains on the books today as NFHS football rule 8-3-9 regarding touchdowns and 8-4-2 regarding field goals for high schools playing under NFHS rules.

The 216-point outburst also came during the first season in which a touchdown was worth six points. Before 1912, touchdowns were worth five. Had the same scoring performance occurred under the previous rules, Muskegon's total would have been 184 points.

102 Points by Halftime

Muskegon led 40-0 after one quarter, then exploded for 62 second-quarter points to take a 102-0 halftime lead. Seven touchdowns and six extra points in the third quarter made it 150-0 before the Big Reds added another 66 points in the fourth.

Muskegon's national record stood until 1923, when Staunton (Ill.) scored 233 points. Muskegon's 216 points remain the Michigan high school record. 

Stuit’s kicking performance topped the school and state record of 19 set a year earlier by teammate Heinie Bauer in a 114-0 victory over Holland (Mich.).

Muskegon went on to finish 7-1 that season, outscoring its opponents 499-16. The 216-0 victory over Hastings wasn't even the team's only triple-digit shutout; Muskegon also defeated Ferris Institute 130-0. Muskegon's only loss was the finale to Grand Rapids Central, 13-12.

And Hackley Field is still around.

It is now known as Hackley Stadium, located in Muskegon's Nelson neighborhood, and remains a football venue more than 110 years after Muskegon put itself in the national record book there. 

Also This Week in History

Sept. 28

2002 — Kevin Parker of Round Lake (Ill.) set a state record with a 109-yard interception return for a touchdown against Wauconda (Ill.). Reid Baumgarte of Benton (Ill.) matched the Illinois state record in a game against Pinckneyville (Ill.) on Sept. 11, 2021.

2001 — Jason Bainum of Williamsburg (Ohio) established an Ohio state record by rushing for 532 yards against Batavia Clermont Northeastern (Ohio). Bainum finished the season with 3,386 rushing yards, currently No. 3 on Ohio's all-time single-season list. His 8,216 career rushing yards were the state record until 2004.

Sept. 29

2021 — Kevin Hubbell of Benzie Central (Mich.) scored a national-record 16 goals in a lopsided boys soccer victory over winless Kingsley (Mich.). Benzie Central's coach allowed Hubbell to continue playing in an effort to set the record, prompting criticism and discussion by the Kingsley school board.. Hubbell later played NCAA Division I soccer at Oakland University but never scored a collegiate goal.

Sept. 30

1985 — David Weil of Decatur St. Teresa (Ill.) set a national record with 52 saves in a boys soccer contest against Jacksonville (Ill.). While the NFHS recognizes the record, it remains disputed by newspaper accounts of the day.

Oct. 1

1948 — Leonard Vandehey of Loyola (Wis.) converted what is reported as the longest drop-kick field goal in high school history, a 58-yarder against Abbotsford (Wis.). His kick, with 25 seconds remaining, lifted Loyola to a 9-6 victory. Vandehey scored all nine of Loyola's points.

Oct. 2

1987 — Manzano (N.M.) scored 30 goals in a 30-1 boys soccer victory over Rio Grande (N.M.). The 30 goals far surpassed the previous high of 22, set the previous spring by Irmo (S.C.). Manzano's mark was tied in 1990 but remains a national high school record.

Oct. 4

1924 — Everett Horner of Gallatin County (Mont.) scored 16 touchdowns and 92 points in the team's 187-0 victory over Sheridan (Mont.). At the time, Horner's performance would have been a national record, at least until Leroy Matthews surpassed it three years later. Horner's performance, however, was only recently unearthed.

This Week in High School History is compiled by Sheldon Shealer, a sports historian and lecturer at Mount St. Mary’s University, whose research focuses on the history and development of American high school football. Shealer compiles entries from newspaper accounts, state and school records, historical publications, archival collections, and other documented sources. Special thanks to the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), whose records help preserve high school sports history.