Week four is in the bag
Where has the time gone. It's hard to believe that four weeks of the 2007 high school football season have come and gone. I spent all weekend nursing a cold (which I'm not entirely over yet) and I tried to watch the entire Michigan-Notre Dame game (the Suphredrine had kicked in with about four minutes to go)....beside watching a predictable UM offense beat up on a bad ND team, here's some questions and thoughts on area teams with four games in the bag...
Tri-Valley East
Is Millington is the real deal? Yes. The Cardinals are averaging over 40 points a game in their first four games, and yes, the wins have come against Mt. Morris, Bridgeport, North Branch and Caro...not the most impressive list of opponents. But it's the way that Furno and crew are winning games, with a dominant defense, a tough running game and a senior quarterback who has great command over the offense. Dustin Griesing is, hands down, the best QB in the Thumb. The kid is smart, runs the ball extremely well when he has to, and has some of the best throwing mechanics of any QB I have seen in the last three years. Now that Corban Stewart has emerged as a threat out of the backfield (21-202 four TDs on Friday), the Cardinals are still my top choice for best team in the area.
What about Frankenmuth? Frankenmuth is also 4-0, but the Eagles are beating teams with a good defense and a one-sided offense. I'd be surprised if the Eagles defeat the Cards. But Millington still has to travel to both Birch Run and Garber, so the deck is stacked against Millington. I still think that they will do it, though.
What about the rest? As for the rest of the league, Vassar, Caro and North Branch are doing exactly what I thought they would...the Vulcans are 2-2, Caro 0-4 and NBHS 2-2. A lack of talent on these teams have doomed them to losing records in 2007.
Greater Thumb.
Are the Rockets really that good? I saw Reese play on Friday against at the time 3-0 Deckerville, and all I have to say about the game is that the Eagles were overrated! That's no knock against coach Bob Saylor's boys, but the Deckerville team was really bad. Reese has some speed on offense, and their D is tough, but once again, a one-threat offense (run all the time) will not benefit them in the long run. Their offensive line is not big enough to play with the big boys, and when they reach the playoffs, they won't be able to run the ball as easily as they have in the regular season. That's a shame, because Rocket QB Josh Bierlein has all the tools, and with the left handed release looks like Steve Young. But when the Rockets had to pass against Deckerville, they looked like a team that had not worked on pass plays in practice; their receivers ran nothing more that streak patterns down the field, TEs dropped the ball and were out of position, and the line looked lost when the job was pass protection. Running the ball is important, but you have to be able to throw the ball when needed. Reese is good....but unless there is some improvement, I have them ranked only third in the area.
What happened to Cass City and USA? I have no idea! My best guess about the Red Hawks is that having to play the first four games of the 2007 season finally took its toll on coach Scott Cuthrell and his team. As for USA....my preseason pick for the GTW champs are really making me look bad!! The Patriots not only lost to Laker...they got their butts whipped by a score of 32-8! That all makes this weeks game between USA and Cass City either really intriuging or a sure bet for a snoozer.
Does Marlette have a chance at the GTE title? Sure, but the Raiders have to pull of the upset of Harbor Beach, in Pirate-country this Friday night, and that might not be as easy as previously thought. Ofcourse, who have the Pirates beat this year....a USA team that all of a sudden doesn't look very good....an Ubly team that USA defeated....so maybe Marlette can pull it off. Austin Comment is tough to stop, and coach Lester still has the Hayward brothers and John Bishop to call on....I'm picking the Raiders to run the table and finish the year with a 8-1 record.
Why can't Mayville win? Simple...they lack the talent it takes to compete in the GTE. Coach Mike Campbell needs time and he needs to convince these tough wrestling kids to start playing football (I don't buy the undersize argument...Marlette's Jon Hayward barely weighs 140 and he's one of the area's best). It just doesn't add up...the Wildcats won the GTC in wrestling and went 12-0 in the GTE in baseball. Add to the two together and you have a nice mixture of athletes and, for the sake of a better word, the grunts to play football. Now, you just have to have a coach who can sell his program to those who don't want to play.
North Central Thumb.
Is there anything really worth talking about in the NCTL? Well, yes. Akron-Fairgrove's Adam Foster is having a great season, even though his team has not (0-4) and probably will not win a game this season. Foster has thrown for more than 100 yards in the last three games and is currently on pace to surpass 1,000 yards in both passing and rushing yards. Sad thing is that his team is, well, bad. It's a shame too, because surround this young man with some talent, and he could take a team to the playoffs. Reese or Caro could really use a kid like Foster, or for that matter so could any team in the area. Until last Friday, Owen-Gage had only scored six points in their first three games, and even though they put up 21 last week, to assume they might win more than one game this year would be a mistake. This week, when Foster and the Vikings make the trip north to Bulldog country, might just be either teams best chance at getting a win. Just don't ask me who will win. As for Kingston, they are as bad as coach Mike Rea said they would be, but coaches claim that every year will be a rebuilding year, so we wrote off Rea's preseason pessimism as coach-talk. Guess we should have listened.
Gonna see the oldest area rivalry on Friday. I'm going to be in Millington on Friday night for the Cardinals game with Vassar, which might not be the area's best rivalry (that belongs to Millington-Frankenmuth) but it is definitely the area's oldest rivalry. The two schools have played every year continuously since 1933, and the first matchup between the schools was around 100 years ago (I have heard conflicting stories...one says 1908, the other 1912, so I have to find out for sure.) Throw the records out on this one.
Tri-Valley East
Is Millington is the real deal? Yes. The Cardinals are averaging over 40 points a game in their first four games, and yes, the wins have come against Mt. Morris, Bridgeport, North Branch and Caro...not the most impressive list of opponents. But it's the way that Furno and crew are winning games, with a dominant defense, a tough running game and a senior quarterback who has great command over the offense. Dustin Griesing is, hands down, the best QB in the Thumb. The kid is smart, runs the ball extremely well when he has to, and has some of the best throwing mechanics of any QB I have seen in the last three years. Now that Corban Stewart has emerged as a threat out of the backfield (21-202 four TDs on Friday), the Cardinals are still my top choice for best team in the area.
What about Frankenmuth? Frankenmuth is also 4-0, but the Eagles are beating teams with a good defense and a one-sided offense. I'd be surprised if the Eagles defeat the Cards. But Millington still has to travel to both Birch Run and Garber, so the deck is stacked against Millington. I still think that they will do it, though.
What about the rest? As for the rest of the league, Vassar, Caro and North Branch are doing exactly what I thought they would...the Vulcans are 2-2, Caro 0-4 and NBHS 2-2. A lack of talent on these teams have doomed them to losing records in 2007.
Greater Thumb.
Are the Rockets really that good? I saw Reese play on Friday against at the time 3-0 Deckerville, and all I have to say about the game is that the Eagles were overrated! That's no knock against coach Bob Saylor's boys, but the Deckerville team was really bad. Reese has some speed on offense, and their D is tough, but once again, a one-threat offense (run all the time) will not benefit them in the long run. Their offensive line is not big enough to play with the big boys, and when they reach the playoffs, they won't be able to run the ball as easily as they have in the regular season. That's a shame, because Rocket QB Josh Bierlein has all the tools, and with the left handed release looks like Steve Young. But when the Rockets had to pass against Deckerville, they looked like a team that had not worked on pass plays in practice; their receivers ran nothing more that streak patterns down the field, TEs dropped the ball and were out of position, and the line looked lost when the job was pass protection. Running the ball is important, but you have to be able to throw the ball when needed. Reese is good....but unless there is some improvement, I have them ranked only third in the area.
What happened to Cass City and USA? I have no idea! My best guess about the Red Hawks is that having to play the first four games of the 2007 season finally took its toll on coach Scott Cuthrell and his team. As for USA....my preseason pick for the GTW champs are really making me look bad!! The Patriots not only lost to Laker...they got their butts whipped by a score of 32-8! That all makes this weeks game between USA and Cass City either really intriuging or a sure bet for a snoozer.
Does Marlette have a chance at the GTE title? Sure, but the Raiders have to pull of the upset of Harbor Beach, in Pirate-country this Friday night, and that might not be as easy as previously thought. Ofcourse, who have the Pirates beat this year....a USA team that all of a sudden doesn't look very good....an Ubly team that USA defeated....so maybe Marlette can pull it off. Austin Comment is tough to stop, and coach Lester still has the Hayward brothers and John Bishop to call on....I'm picking the Raiders to run the table and finish the year with a 8-1 record.
Why can't Mayville win? Simple...they lack the talent it takes to compete in the GTE. Coach Mike Campbell needs time and he needs to convince these tough wrestling kids to start playing football (I don't buy the undersize argument...Marlette's Jon Hayward barely weighs 140 and he's one of the area's best). It just doesn't add up...the Wildcats won the GTC in wrestling and went 12-0 in the GTE in baseball. Add to the two together and you have a nice mixture of athletes and, for the sake of a better word, the grunts to play football. Now, you just have to have a coach who can sell his program to those who don't want to play.
North Central Thumb.
Is there anything really worth talking about in the NCTL? Well, yes. Akron-Fairgrove's Adam Foster is having a great season, even though his team has not (0-4) and probably will not win a game this season. Foster has thrown for more than 100 yards in the last three games and is currently on pace to surpass 1,000 yards in both passing and rushing yards. Sad thing is that his team is, well, bad. It's a shame too, because surround this young man with some talent, and he could take a team to the playoffs. Reese or Caro could really use a kid like Foster, or for that matter so could any team in the area. Until last Friday, Owen-Gage had only scored six points in their first three games, and even though they put up 21 last week, to assume they might win more than one game this year would be a mistake. This week, when Foster and the Vikings make the trip north to Bulldog country, might just be either teams best chance at getting a win. Just don't ask me who will win. As for Kingston, they are as bad as coach Mike Rea said they would be, but coaches claim that every year will be a rebuilding year, so we wrote off Rea's preseason pessimism as coach-talk. Guess we should have listened.
Gonna see the oldest area rivalry on Friday. I'm going to be in Millington on Friday night for the Cardinals game with Vassar, which might not be the area's best rivalry (that belongs to Millington-Frankenmuth) but it is definitely the area's oldest rivalry. The two schools have played every year continuously since 1933, and the first matchup between the schools was around 100 years ago (I have heard conflicting stories...one says 1908, the other 1912, so I have to find out for sure.) Throw the records out on this one.
Comments
Bragging rights for that year’s victorious school appeared to have been significant. And legend has it that quite a few dollars were waged on the annual game. The two teams were members of different conferences until 1989, which added to the mystique.
The rivalry aspect lost a bit of its luster in recent history, as beginning in the 1980’s Millington became the dominate team. The Cardinals posted 22 wins in the past 25 games, and have outscored the Vulcans by a margin of 787 to 255 in that twenty five year span. Prior to this, Vassar fielded the superior football teams winning 15 with 3 ties including ten shutouts in the previous 25 meetings.
What the future brings will be of interest as Vassar moves to the Greater Thumb Conference next year. I am hoping that this game will continue yearly; and maybe the true rivalry will be rekindled.
Fortunately for both squads, opening game contracts on both sides had expired, so in week one of 2008, we will see Millington vs Vassar, just like it used to be.
I say this because of Millington's offensive juggernaut. They run and throw extremely well. They are beating up lesser opponets, and not letting up when the game gets out of hand. The only reason I have Frankenmuth ranked ahead of Reese is because Muth has defeated both Birch Run and Garber. If Reese had buried BCAS the way they have everyone else, then I would have them just below Millington.
USA wins this week on the road based on the fact they play defense and Cass City does not. USA has the better running attack, and should take full advantage of that fact.
If Marlette can some how beat Harbor Beach (which does not sound very likely), then they will finish the season 8-1 with the only loss coming to Ubly. But I believe the Pirates will put a beat down on the Marlette 11.
And yes, I agree with you 100%. Millington-Vassar may be the oldest rivalry in the Thumb, but in my opinion Millington-Frankenmuth is the biggest rivalry.
I'm not from here, so when I think rivalry, I think NMU/MTU hockey and Negaunee/Ishpeming football (the Miners vs. the "rocks"), followed closely by Marquette/Negaunee basketball. We HATE each other.
Funny story...a factoid for ya. My secondary bachelor party (Oct. 11 2002) started with beer and pizza for the rehersal dinner...then straight over to the Superior Dome for IHS/NHS football.
Nothing like a bunch of 25 year old drunk guys wandering around the "Yooper Dome" while having people stop and recognize us, since my groomsmen were almost all former TV guys in the Marquette area.
TVE: Millington is the real deal. 'Muth was just ranked No. 4 in the state...and that's hogwash...they are good, but I don't think they are going all the way to the state semis... Michigan AP polls are bogus to the max (to coin a phrase from 1985).
The Eagles are good and will win more down the line...I just don't see them beating Millington (which makes me REALLY wanna call this game on the radio)
GTW: Still haven't seen Reese, but I will with three of the final four games of the season being run on the radio (although I am having doubts about how good the Sugar Bowl will be).
USA is down to 14 healthy bodies...And one of those is kicker Erik Kuhl from the soccer team...so it's essentially iron-man football for the Pats. I think they may have a rough time with Cass City...but I think it could be a good game. They are fighting essentially for the playoffs in this Friday's game.
Now Laker has me scratchin the rest of the hair on my head...can they start contending? Hmm...
NCTL: Coach Rea made me laugh when he said it will be a tough season. Guess he was right...
I'm going with the strength of Foster...a great player and a very nice gentleman... and pick A-F. I heard so much barking (pardon the pun) from the Bulldogs before the season started that I am now sour on picking them in any game.
Another reason to hate the MI AP? They put Peck on the HM in Div 8, no sign of life from North huron...who is better. F them HOs.
Although, I already see a fight happening in some random restaurant for the Thumb's best back.
Michael Mann, Peck - almost 800 yards and 11 TDs, playing in the NCTL
Lance VanHoost, USA - 600 yards and ??? on how many scores (at least five...if the coach would send us info, we'd know!), but on a 2-2 team
Corban Stewart, Millington - nearly 500 yards and 10 TDs, playing the weak half of the TVE
Jon Hayward, Marlette - 369, 6 scores rushing, but add in his receiveing (6-144, 2 TDs) which a lot come from screens... and you have another 500 yard rusher with 8 TDs on a 3-1 team in the GTE
And lest not we forget a few more
Name Car Yds TDs
Messing, CC 75 443 5
Cimini, NB 47 431 4
Hell, if Vassar picked a back (which good for them in not), they would have a kid with nearly 700 yards, instead Arksey, Woolwine and Adkins combine for those yards...so they, unfortunetly, cancel out each other.
As for QB: If Griesing doesn't win Thumb's best...I will run down M-15 in Millington, wearing a pink teddy bear costume. You heard it here!
Top 5 receivers right now in our area:
Tyler Reinert, Mill 15 327
Nick Walters, A-F 12 236
David Bliss, Mar 10 167
Ryan Keith, Muth 9 145
Andrew LaPointe, Caro 8 60
I'm sure Isaac Zimmer (reese) is up there too...he should be, we picked him as a pre-season All-Advertiser...which means he is good.
Cause the media is never wrong!
That's my thoughts...man, 4 weeks gone already? Boo!!!
I'm at home and don't have any numbers in front of me, but here are a couple of more names I would like to add.
At running back in our area, North Huron's Kurt Dhyse has to be mentioned. I think he's gone over 100 yards every game and has at least five touchdowns.
Also in the backfield, Harbor Beach's Brion Gornowich and Brett Buchholz. I don't have the numbers on these guys, but they're both studs on a very good team.
Also at QB, North Huron's freshman Erik Dhyse has been a man. This kid has come out of nowhere to lead the Warriors to a perfect 4-0 record. I'm not going homer with these guys, they're just that good.
Meanwhile, if Bad Axe keeps improving, coach Dave Rowland is the run away winner for Coach of the Year. Seriously, the Hatchets have a legit chance at making the playoffs. They have games left with BCAS (1-3), USA (2-2), Sandusky (0-4), EPBP (2-2) and Ubly (2-2). Keep in mind, this team won I think two games in the last four years.
I really can't think of any receivers and you covered most of the runningbacks.
I didn't know the Millington-Vassar rivalry was so old. It's great to see they'll have a chance to continue it.
I will withhold thought on VanHoost and Stewart until I see VanHoost in motion this Friday.
So far the only person who can compete with Griesing is Comment from Marlette, but Dustin still gets the nod because of his passing ability.
Why pick on the soccer player, he is having an outstanding year playing soccer. He can always go onto the field and kick Cass City into submission. Anyway, USA still wins.
Tyler Reinert has been impressive with his ability to pick up yardage after he catches the ball. Millington gets Stier back this week, which should make them even more dangerous in the air.
Frankenmuth, on the other hand, has three quality wins in the bag. Right now the Eagles are the "team to beat".
Call me if this doesn't happen........I wanna see this AND get pictures!!!
But the kid still has to get his team by Birch Run, Garber and Frankenmuth, so I'll reserve judgement until then.
I will say this though...for any NCTL kid to truly be condsidered, shouldn't they have to get at least double the stats of his GTC or TVC counterparts? The kid fron Peck is a good example...you have to judge these kids against the Thumb competition, not just who they play against. The NCTL is weak this year....but if Mann makes a push at 2,000 yards, scores over 20 TD's and leads the Pirates to a 9-0 record...then my vote for player of the year might change.
LOL
Unless you find a magical portal from Peck to Caro...then maybe you can go to that game.
Time to brush up on your quantam physics.