1976 A total of 29,423 fans turned out for the
first year of football finals at the Pontiac Silverdome. In Class A, Scott
Alexander racked up 169 yards and two touchdowns in leading the
Chargers
of Midland Dow to a 36-27 win over Farmington Hills
Harrison. Quarterback Jeff Thorne completed 7
of 13 passes for 185 yards, including two TD’s to Brad Bache
for the Hawks.
Okemos struck first on a three
yard scoring run by Kevin Bufe, but could not shut down
the powerful East Grand Rapids attack, falling to the Pioneers,
26-7, in Class B finals action. Andy Cole, Doug VerMeulen, Greg
Yeakey and Mark Zabrofske all scored touchdowns
for the victors.
The Flat Rock Rams ended an
11-0 season with the Class C crown by downing Onaway, 30-8.
Joe Mangin scored the team's first touchdown, while Al
Summers led the team in rushing, with 177 yards, including a 51-yard
touchdown run.
In a rematch of the 1975 Class D title game,
Crystal Falls-Forest Park again defeated Flint
Holy Rosary, this time by a margin of 14-6. Late in the first quarter,
Martin Ball raced 74-yards untouched for the first score
of the game. Less than two minutes later, Davis picked up a Rosary fumble
and dashed 25 yards into the end zone for a 14-0 lead. Flint scored on a
18-yard pass from Ron Fray to Dan Lehoux just
before the half.
1981 Strong defense coupled with two pass interceptions and a fumble recovery gave Escanaba a 16-6 win in the Class A title game with Fraser. Kevin Tapani's second quarter interception set up Dick Olsen's 21-yard field goal, to put the Eskymos on the scoreboard. Tailback Dean Altobelli scored with 40 seconds left in the half, following the recovery of a Rambler fumble. Olsen's conversion put Escanaba up 10-0 at the intermission. Rambler quarterback Mike Apfel rounded out the scoring on an 11-yard bootleg with 1:25 remaining in the contest.
A one-yard touchdown run by John Miller,
and a Dave Blackmer extra point gave Farmington
Hills Harrison the only points they needed as the Hawks defeated
defending Class B champion Muskegon Catholic Central
7-0 in a defensive battle. It was the Crusaders first loss in 20 games.
The Thumb area took home its first MHSAA grid
title in any class, as Elkton-Pigeon Bay Port slipped past
North Muskegon 15-6. Leading 8-6 late in the contest, the
Lakers Mark Manial recovered a Norseman fumble in the end
zone to seal the victory.
In Class D, Detroit St. Martin dePorres
racked up 532 yards of total offense - all of it on the ground
- in a 34-0 blowout of Crystal Falls-Forest Park. Clint Childs paced
the attack, finishing with 203 yards on 13 carries and a touchdown. Kevin
Bozeman also scored once, and ended the day with 156 on 20 attempts.
1986 Defense was the name of the game as Muskegon downed Sterling Heights Stevenson, 10-0, for the Class A crown. The "Smurfs" - Muskegon's nickname for its small quick defensemen - limited the Titans to four yards rushing and 73 yards of total offense, while scoring eight points in the contest. A safety in the second quarter, and Mario Hoffman's 25-yard interception return for a touchdown with 6:34 remaining in the game, pushed the lead to eight.
Marysville quarterback Randy
Socha scored twice on runs of 9 and 7 yards, and passed for another
as veteran Coach Walt Braun's squad defeated Grand
Rapids South Christian, 38-15, in Class B. Socha ended the day
11 of 17 for 161 yards through the air including a 20-yard TD toss to Ross
Pleiness. Tim Werkema thrilled fans with a beautiful 86-yard scoring
run to open the scoring for South Christian.
In one of the most spectacular finishes in playoff
history, Detroit Country Day defeated Muskegon
Catholic Central, 18-14. Late in the fourth quarter, the Crusaders
ended a 74-yard drive with a 6-yard scoring strike from Brent McCarthy
to Mark Martinez. Tom Walunas added the kick and
MCC was up, 14-12, with just over two minutes to play. Running a no-huddle
offense, the Yellowjackets marched 66 yards for the winning score. Quarterback
Charlie Johnson's passing gave Country Day the ball on
the Chrusader 17. On the final play of the game, Johnson hit Steve
Mann at the back of the end zone, and the Yellowjackets were Class
C champs.
In Class D, Saginaw Michigan Lutheran
Seminary beat Fowler, 36-24. Bill Wilson
led the victorious Cardinals on the ground with 91 yards, while
teammate Todd Dillon added 87 yards and two touchdowns.
Matt Hufnagel scored twice for the Eagles.
1991 With 46 seconds to play in the game, Saginaw Arthur Hill's Howard Foster grabbed his second pass interception of the day to preserve a 13-12 victory over defending Class AA champion Detroit Catholic Central. Despite frustrating the powerful Shamrock defense all day long with a potent option offense, Arthur Hill required a dramatic 12-play, 72-yard drive in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter to earn the victory. With 1:43 remaining, quarterback Marvin Wright scored from 2 yards out for the lead.
On Friday, East Lansing's defense
held Birmingham Brother Rice to a net nine yards rushing
enroute to a 14-0 win in Class A. Running back Randy Kinder, a
junior, racked up 150 yards on 27 carries and scored once. Offensive guard
Mark Langkos scored
the first Trojan touchdown from five yards out, on a fake sweep to Kinder.
Farmington Hills Harrison downed
Cheboygan 34-7 in Class BB. Roy Granger rushed
for 295 yards (a new finals game record), including a touchdown run of 50
yards on the first play from scrimmage, and a 73-yard scoring dash in the
third quarter. Shannon Scarbrough led the Chiefs with 161
yards on 20 attempts.
Backup fullback Chris Lipford scored
on an 83-yard run early in the fourth quarter to break a 7-7 tie, as Monroe
St. Mary Catholic Central defeated Coopersville, 16-7,
for the Class B championship trophy. Lipford had replaced the Falcons’
top rusher, Brian Bellino, who was injured.
Battle Creek Pennfield overcame
three first-half turnovers and a never-say-die Negaunee squad
to post a 14-8 victory in the Class CC title contest. Trailing 2-0 in the
first quarter, Pennfield defender Jason Livengood picked off Ron Logan's fourth-down pass in the end
zone. Livengood broke a tackle at the five, and raced the remaining 95 yards
for a finals game record interception return and a 6-2 Panther lead. The
Miners led 8-6 at the half but Pennfield scored the game winning points
o n the opening drive of the second half as Jim Martens swept
five yards around left end to cap a 19-play, 63-yard march.
Muskegon Catholic Central rolled
to its second consecutive Class C crown with a 34-0 trouncing of Harbor
Beach. Senior quarterback Paul Siembida led the
Crusaders with three TD's and three extra points. Defensively, Nate
Cierlak added a 56-yard fumble return for a touchdown.
Mendon's Don Riley rushed for
108 yards and two touchdowns, while backfield mate Randy Monroe
added 115 yards and a TD as the Hornets downed Lake Linden-Hubbell,
30-14, for the Class DD crown. The Lakes jumped out to a 14-0 first
quarter lead but Mendon rallied for a big win.
Frankfort repeated as champions
in Class D, downing Portland St. Patrick, 21-7. J.J.
Lamerson scored on a pair of 1-yard runs, while quarterback Derek
Klein added a 43-yard touchdown dash. Frankfort ended the year
undefeated at 13-0, while allowing a total of 21 points on the season.