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Grayling QB Takes Over at Crunch Time

October 27, 2017

By Dennis Chase
Special for Second Half

GRAYLING – For the Grayling Vikings, it was Just-in time.

Propelled by senior quarterback Justin Nicholas, Grayling pulled out victories the last two weeks to secure an eighth MHSAA football playoff berth in the last nine years.

All the first-year starter at quarterback did was complete a staggering 66 of 120 passes for 995 yards and 15 touchdowns over the final eight quarters of the regular season to keep the 6-3 Vikings alive. Grayling travels to 8-1 Reed City tonight for a first-round Division 5 playoff game.

“We knew he had a golden arm,” Grayling coach Tim Sanchez said of Nicholas. “He just needed some reps, some time behind center. For quarterbacks, that first season can be tough. It doesn’t always come easy.

“But,” he added, “Justin’s made it look that way.”

In a wild 58-46 comeback win over Benzie Central in Week 8, Nicholas nearly set several MHSAA records by finishing 39 of 72 for 623 yards and eight scores. The 623 yards? Second to Omar Salih of Detroit Cesar Chavez Academy (674 yards in 2013). His 72 attempts? Second to Grayling’s Jimmy Osga (74 in 2008). His 39 completions? Two off the mark held by Osga, Jenison’s Steve Brander and Detroit Central’s Robert Hunt. The eight touchdowns? Second to Salih (nine in 2013).

It all came as a shock to Nicholas, who was more worried about a win than his stats that night. The Vikings trailed Benzie 46-30 after three quarters.

It was his older brother Darin, who was listening to the game on radio while watching from the stands, who alerted him afterwards.

“It’s still kind of surreal - 623 yards, that’s like video game stats,” Nicholas said. “When I came off the field, my brother said to me, ‘How does it feel to be in the record books?’ I kind of looked at him, not fully aware of what he was talking about. Then he said, ‘You just passed for more than 600 yards.’ I said, ‘C’mon, quit messing with me.’”

He wasn’t messing.

This past Friday, needing that all-important sixth win, Nicholas responded by completing 27 of 48 passes for 372 yards and seven more touchdowns in a 50-33 road triumph over Kalkaska.

“It was either win or go home,” Nicholas said. “We needed those last two games (to qualify), and I didn’t want to let anyone down.”

Grayling started the season 4-0, then lost three in a row to playoff-bound Boyne City (9-0), Traverse City St. Francis (8-1) and Elk Rapids (7-2). In the Week 6 loss to St. Francis, the 6-foot, 230-pound Nicholas suffered a severe ankle sprain during the first half that ended his night. In addition, his go-to receiver, Nick Hunter, broke his right arm in the contest. Up to that point in the season, the junior receiver had hauled in more than 40 passes for close to 600 yards and six touchdowns.

The following Monday, Hunter’s older brother, Chris, another top receiver, started experiencing some pain. He confided in Nicholas, one of his best friends.

“Justin had an appendix scare earlier in the season, just before the Boyne game, and I was telling him my symptoms,” Hunter recalled. “He said, ‘Dude, that’s not good.’ I was like, ‘Nah, it’s probably just cramps.’”

Soon, Hunter said he could barely move. He ended up in the emergency room and had surgery the following morning to have his appendix removed.

Just like that, the spread-oriented Vikings had a quarterback with a bum ankle and were minus their two leading receivers.

But Nicholas did not intend to sit, even though he knew rest would be best.

“I wasn’t going to let my team down,” he said. “If I’m capable of playing, I’m going to play.”

That’s what he told Sanchez at the Sunday film session following the St. Francis loss.

“I said, ‘I don’t know about that,’” Sanchez said. “(His ankle) looked bad. In fact, I thought he broke it at first. But, he said, ‘Nope, I’m playing.’ It was literally a game-time decision.”

Nicholas did not practice all week and with personnel changes at the receiving positions the Vikings struggled in a homecoming loss to Elk Rapids.

“The chemistry was not there,” Sanchez said.

Grayling also missed Nicholas’s ability to run the ball. He had rushed for nearly 400 yards and 11 touchdowns prior to the injury. That put even more emphasis on the passing game.

The backup quarterback, Logan Joseph, became Nicholas’s No. 1 target. In the last three games of the regular season, Joseph caught 34 passes for nearly 500 yards and five touchdowns.

Still, the Vikings were on the verge of a fourth consecutive loss in Week 8 when Benzie Central had them on the ropes.

“We were down two scores starting the fourth quarter,” Sanchez said. “A lot of kids/adults put their heads down when adversity hits. But Justin wasn’t done. He led us to four straight touchdowns to keep us alive. That was huge. He carried us.”

Chris Hunter was watching it play out from the sidelines. He sensed the urgency in the fourth quarter when the situation appeared dire.

“I remember looking at Justin and saying, ‘Dude, we’ve got three losses already. This is the season,’’ Hunter said. “He said, ‘I can do it. We’re going to win this game. And he went out and did it.’”

Two weeks after his surgery, Chris Hunter returned to action in the regular season finale at Kalkaska. He caught three passes for 67 yards and three touchdowns. The Vikings were back in the playoffs.

“When we won at Kingsford (in last year’s playoffs), that was hands down the most memorable game of our careers,”’ Hunter said. “We wanted another chance to do it again, make another little playoff run.”

For Nicholas, it was icing on the cake. This is his third year on varsity. Although he started at quarterback as a freshman on the JV team, the Vikings were set at that position with Cam Summers, a three-year starter, who earned all-state honors and played in the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association All-Star game last summer.

Nicholas found other ways to contribute. He played running back, linebacker, safety, defensive end.

“He was our best defensive lineman last year,” Sanchez said. “We played him there this year until he got hurt. He’s a tough, smart kid.”

Concordia University offered him a scholarship to play defensive end after he camped there this summer.

But with Summers graduating, Nicholas slid into the quarterback role and assumed a leadership position, something he had dreamed about since he was a ball boy in elementary school.

“Justin was behind a very good player (Summers), but he never complained,” Sanchez said. “He understood Cam was the guy. So he said, ‘Where else can I play? Where else can I help the team’?

“With Cam gone, Justin seized the opportunity this year.”

Through nine games, Nicholas is 216 of 379 for 2,965 yards and 28 touchdowns.

“I knew he had it in him, but I’d be lying if I told you I knew he would pass for 3,000 yards and almost 30 touchdowns,” Sanchez said. “It would be unfair to expect that from somebody.”

Unless you’re Justin Nicholas.

“It’s kind of our thing at Grayling,” Nicholas said. “We’ll throw the ball until you make us stop.”

Nicholas can rattle off the names of all the Grayling quarterbacks that preceded him – several are in the MHSAA record book.

“I thought those guys were gods,” the 17-year-old said. “I thought, I can’t wait to be there one day and get my chance.”

When it came, he was ready.

“He’s a great kid, a great teammate,” Hunter said. “He’s had a terrific year, maybe one of the top-five years in Michigan.”

Dennis Chase worked 32 years as a sportswriter at the Traverse City Record-Eagle, including as sports editor from 2000-14. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.

PHOTOS: (Top) Grayling quarterback Justin Nicholas surveys his options during a Week 1 win over Roscommon. (Middle) Nicholas prepares to run against Kalkaska last week. (Below) Nicholas unloads a pass during the Week 3 victory over Kingsley. (Photos courtesy of the Grayling football program.)

1st & Goal: Playoff Week 4 in Review

January 10, 2021

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Every chance to compete is an opportunity to accomplish something never achieved before.

The return of MHSAA football Saturday loudly reminded us how much we’ve been missing those moments.

Among four 8-Player Semifinals winners, one earned the championship game trip for the first time and two more will get another chance at claiming a first title. Stories were unfolding as well all over the 11-Player Regional Finals as the sun seemed to shine extra brightly on teams playing the first January football games in Michigan high school history.

Below is a glance at all of those games, with highlights from those that especially jumped off the page. Keep up-to-date by visiting the MHSAA Football Playoff Home and watch many of this weekend’s games on demand on MHSAA.tv.

8-Player

Division 1

SEMIFINAL Adrian Lenawee Christian 47, Martin 12 The Cougars (10-0) will play for a championship for the first time after yet another big win – Lenawee Christian’s average margin of victory this season is 50 points. Martin (8-2), which was making its first Semifinal appearance since 1987, is a combined 18-3 over two seasons of 8-player. Click for more from the Adrian Daily Telegram.

SEMIFINAL Suttons Bay 1, Indian River Inland Lakes 0 The reigning Division 1 runner-up Norseman advanced to the championship game due to an Inland Lakes forfeit.

Division 2

SEMIFINAL Powers North Central 50, Marion 2 The Jets (10-0) launched to a 36-0 first-quarter lead to get back to the championship round for the first time since 2016. North Central has given up only 24 points total over four playoff games. Marion finished its winningest season since 1992 at 8-2. Click for more from the Iron Mountain Daily News.

SEMIFINAL Portland St. Patrick 34, Kinde North Huron 12 The Shamrocks (10-0) will play in the championship round for the third time in four seasons and second straight. This was the third time in those four seasons these two met in the playoffs. North Huron finished 8-1, its best since 2017. Click for more from the Lansing State Journal.

11-Player

Division 1

HEADLINER Davison 20, Detroit Catholic Central 7 Davison quarterback Brendan Sullivan (now at Northwestern) is one of the most high-profile seniors who has moved on to college football, and it’s fair to say most expected that to be an additional boost for Detroit Catholic Central (9-1). But the reigning Division 1 champion Cardinals (10-0) instead enjoyed an incredible breakout performance by new quarterback Dion Brown Jr. plus a defensive effort that held the Shamrocks 22 points below their season average. Click for more from the Flint Journal.

Regional Roundup Belleville 43, Detroit Cass Tech 16 This was arguably the most high-profile Division 1 game heading into the weekend, and the Tigers (10-0) put up their most impressive victory of what’s now a fourth-straight double-digit win season, holding Cass Tech (9-1) to 25 points below its average. Rockford 40, Saline 17 The Rams (8-0) are headed to the Semifinals for the first time since 2012 after locking up a Saline offense that averaged 40 points per game during an 8-1 start. West Bloomfield 52, Romeo 14 The Lakers (9-1) clinched their first Regional title since 2017 with a third-straight scoring output of 50 points or more thanks in part to four Donovan Edwards touchdowns. Romeo (5-5) still has much to celebrate after entering the postseason 2-4.

Division 2

HEADLINER Muskegon Mona Shores 24, East Lansing 21 The reigning Division 2 champion Sailors (10-0) advanced by connecting on a 25-yard field goal as time expired. The Regional championship was Shores’ third straight. East Lansing (9-1) meanwhile came back to tie in the fourth quarter before falling short; the Trojans also had come up just three points short in its most recent previous Regional run in 2017.  Click for more from the Muskegon Chronicle.

Regional Roundup Oak Park 30, Livonia Churchill 23 The long break didn’t derail Oak Park’s dream postseason, as the Knights improved to 5-5 after entering the postseason 1-5 with only a forfeit win. Churchill (6-3) reached the Regional Finals for the second-straight season. Traverse City Central 50, North Farmington 22 The Trojans (9-1) are headed to the Semifinals for the first time since 1988, which came before the old Traverse City High split into Central and West. North Farmington (7-3) saw the end of its deepest tournament run since 1978. Warren De La Salle Collegiate 45, Warren Mott 3 The Pilots (6-4) entered the playoffs 2-4 and have outscored its four postseason opponents on average 44-6. Mott (8-2) can celebrate its winningest season since 2013, which came despite the abbreviated schedule.

Division 3

HEADLINER River Rouge 33, Detroit Martin Luther King 30 The reigning champion Panthers (13-1) won another classic matchup with King, which had won their 2018 playoff meeting by a point. Like Mona Shores in Division 2, River Rouge clinched its Regional title with a late field goal. King (6-4) had won five straight Regional titles. Click for more from the Detroit Free Press.

Regional Roundup Muskegon 24, East Grand Rapids 0 The Big Reds (9-1) claimed a fifth-consecutive Regional title with their first shutout of the season, stopping the Pioneers (6-4) who had entered averaging 31 points per game. This was the third straight season Muskegon defeated EGR in the playoffs, and second straight in this round. Chelsea 38, Flint Kearsley 22 The Bulldogs (10-0) secured a third-straight Regional title and third-straight double-digit win season, while ending the deepest postseason run for the Hornets (6-4) since 1998. DeWitt 1, Stevensville Lakeshore 0 The Panthers advanced to the Semifinals as Lakeshore withdrew from the tournament.

Division 4

HEADLINER Cadillac 27, Ada Forest Hills Eastern 23 Less than 24 hours after Cadillac had to move its home game to Traverse City, the Vikings (7-2) came back to win its first Regional title in six tries. Forest Hills Eastern (6-4), playing for its first Regional title since 2015, led by 14 points at halftime. The Hawks did complete their best season since that 2015 run, with two more wins than a season ago. Click for more from the Traverse City Record-Eagle.

Regional Roundup Edwardsburg 47, Grand Rapids South Christian 7 The Eddies (9-0) marched to their fourth Regional title in five seasons, continuing a streak of scoring at least 43 points in every game this season. South Christian (8-2) closed its winningest campaign since 2014. Williamston 38, Milan 21 The Hornets (9-1) won their second Regional title in three seasons with their second-highest scoring output of this one to get past Milan (8-2) as it played in a Regional Final for the second-straight season. Detroit Country Day 38, North Branch 0 The reigning Division 4 runner-up Yellowjackets (7-2) slowed a North Branch offense that was averaging 43 points per game during its first run to the Regional Finals. The Broncos finished 9-1, their winningest season since 2006.

Division 5

HEADLINER Frankenmuth 31, Marine City 7 The Eagles scored 24 unanswered points during the second half to clinch a third Regional title in five seasons and first since 2017. Frankenmuth (10-0) was able to get its running game going to break away, while the defense held Marine City (8-2) to 33 points below its average. Click for more from the Saginaw News.

Regional Roundup Grand Rapids Catholic Central 58, Muskegon Oakridge 7 Last season’s Division 4 champion, the Cougars (9-0) are in Division 5 for the first time and won their fifth straight Regional title. The loss was the second for Oakridge (7-3) to a team still undefeated this season. Lansing Catholic 28, Grosse Ile 5 The reigning Division 5 champion Cougars (8-2) pulled within two wins of a repeat with their third single-digit defensive performance of the playoffs and with Grosse Ile (6-4) averaging 33 points per game entering the afternoon. Freeland 1, Reed City 0 The Falcons advanced with a forfeit win.

Division 6

HEADLINER Clinton 13, Warren Michigan Collegiate 12 Defense dominated this matchup, especially during a scoreless second half. In the end, Clinton (9-1) held on for its second-straight win by three or fewer points and first Regional title since 2015. Michigan Collegiate (9-1) completed its fifth straight season with two or fewer losses, keyed by a defense that gave up only 3.1 points per game. Click for more from the Adrian Daily Telegram.

Regional Roundup Grayling 56, Negaunee 26 After two straight three-win seasons, Grayling (7-3) is headed to the Semifinals for the first time after getting past the Miners (6-4). The Vikings found success against a Negaunee defense that had given up only 47 points total over its first three playoff games. Montague 41, Montrose 16 The Wildcats (10-0) reached 10 wins for the fourth-straight season with their third-straight Regional title, as the Rams (8-2) ended in this round for the second-straight season. Constantine 33, Michigan Center 14 The Falcons (9-1) ran their winning streak to nine and now have their winningest season since 2012 and first Regional title since that fall after downing Michigan Center (6-2), which also hadn’t lost since its season opener. The Cardinals can still celebrate bouncing back from their 4-5 finish in 2019.

Division 7

HEADLINER Cass City 50, Ithaca 24 Both entered undefeated, and Cass City (10-0) is moving on to the Semifinals for a second-straight season after getting more than a 100 yards rushing from a pair of backs and two touchdowns rushing and a third passing from quarterback Bryce Fernald. Despite the shortened schedule, Ithaca (9-1) finished with its winningest season in three, improving on eight victories in both 2018 and 2019. Click for more from the Bay City Times.

Regional Roundup Schoolcraft 29, Jackson Lumen Christi 22 In its third-straight trip to the Regional Finals, Schoolcraft (9-1) broke through for its first win in this round since 2001. In the process, the Eagles ended Lumen Christi’s season at 5-5, bringing to a close a streak of 31 consecutive with winning records. New Lothrop 41, Detroit Loyola 7 After missing the Semifinals by a one-point Regional loss last season, New Lothrop is headed back thanks to its sixth single-digit defensive effort of this run. Loyola (8-2) did finish its winningest season since 2016, two victories better than in 2019. Traverse City St. Francis 1, Oscoda 0 The Gladiators advanced after Oscoda withdrew from the tournament.

Division 8

HEADLINER Johannesburg-Lewiston 7, Iron Mountain 6 The Cardinals (10-0) journeyed to the Superior Dome and held on after scoring their lone points during the final minutes of the first half. Iron Mountain (8-2) had gone for two on its touchdown early in the second quarter, but was unable to convert a two-point try. The Regional title was Johannesburg-Lewiston’s first since 1998. Click for more from the Gaylord Herald Times.

Regional Roundup Ubly 36, Carson City-Crystal 6 The Bearcats missed making it to Ford Field a year ago by a one-point Semifinal defeat, and they’ve earned another chance with another impressive defensive effort – they’ve given up a combined 28 points over four playoff games. Carson City-Crystal (6-2) finished its deepest playoff run since 1999. Centreville 8, Sand Creek 0 The Bulldogs (9-0) put up their sixth shutout of the season, this one to earn their first Regional championship. Sand Creek (8-2) completed its deepest playoff run since 2007. Clarkston Everest Collegiate 35, Petersburg Summerfield 0 The Mountaineers (10-0) won their first Regional title, in the process reaching double-digit wins for the first time in the program’s eight-season history. Summerfield (4-6) entered the playoffs just 1-5 but reached the Regional Finals for the first time since 2011.

PHOTO: Muskegon, on offense, returned to the field Saturday with a Division 3 Regional Final win over East Grand Rapids. (Photo by Tim Reilly.)