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Kicker Steps Into Historic Moment
December 8, 2020
By Doug Donnelly
Special for Second Half
CLINTON – After what Jonathan Baughey has gone through, kicking a football through two yellow goal posts doesn’t seem like a very big deal.
But, when it came against an undefeated, state-ranked team on the last play of the Division 6 District championship game, it was just that.
“It was definitely a scary moment,” said Baughey, a junior from Clinton High School in Lenawee County.
Baughey’s 22-yard field goal as time expired gave Clinton a 16-13 victory over Blissfield and sent his team into a Regional Final against Warren Michigan Collegiate.
It’s been a long road for Baughey, who thought that after a successful kidney transplant in 2015 that his football career was over. At the urging of a family friend and Clinton middle school coach, however, Baughey tried kicking. It was a good choice as he’s now etched his name into Clinton football lore by making probably the biggest field goal in school history.
“He’s been through so much, and I couldn’t be happier for him,” said Clinton football coach Jeremy Fielder. “We had a lot confidence in him kicking in that situation. There was no hesitation.”
Baughey was born with one kidney functioning at 25 percent and the other at 75.
“From birth he always had kidney issues,” said his mother, Kelly Baughey. “We knew growing up he would need a transplant. They tested his father and I, and we were both matches. His dad (Kevin) decided that he wanted to do it for him. He was his donor.”
Kevin Baughey never hesitated.
“It wasn’t a decision at all,” he said. “I would have given him both if I needed to.”
For years, dealing with the kidney issue was just part of Jonathan’s life. He would tire easier than other kids, but he learned to cope with it.
“I was more of a tired kid,” Baughey said. “When I was younger, it wasn’t about contact, it was about how tired I would get. I couldn’t keep up with a lot of other kids. It was hard.”
He had a kidney removed in December of 2012. After that, he said, “it was a roller coaster.” The transplant didn’t come until June of 2015, soon after he finished the sixth grade.
It took roughly six weeks in the hospital for Baughey to recover from the transplant.
“As soon as I had the transplant, I started feeling better than I had felt,” he said. “I had more energy.”
Baughey played flag football as a kid and had started playing tackle football. But when he neared the time for a transplant, he figured his football days were done. That’s when family friend and Clinton middle school coach Keith Tschirhart suggested he try kicking for the Clinton middle school team.
“I had played soccer and thought it was something I could do, so I tried it,” Baughey said. “I went out with him to the football field to see how I would do. It was pretty rough at the beginning. It took some time.”
He didn’t get much practice that first season.
“We never really kicked extra points,” he said.
Baughey kept working at it though and made it through his eighth-grade season. As a freshman he figured he would continue kicking, most likely for the Clinton JV team. He went to the tryouts.
“I kicked my first football and the coach said I was on the varsity,” he said.
Fielder said Baughey made an immediate impact.
“We didn’t have a kicker,” he said. “We had no one. I even told the coaches, ‘What are we going to do?’ Then, I saw him kick the ball and it was like, ‘He’s our kicker.’”
It was big adjustment for Baughey. Not only had he once thought he would never play football again – but he found himself suddenly on the varsity as a freshman, not knowing anyone on the team. And, being exclusively a kicker, meant he practiced mainly by himself.
“That was the struggle that I went through,” he said. “I didn’t know anyone. The only kids I knew were the snapper and the holder.”
Clinton grad Erik Bouse stepped in to help Baughey. Bouse had been a standout kicker for Clinton for three seasons before graduating in 2017.
“He was the one who I mainly worked with,” Baughey said. “He helped me a lot. He really started me out not creating bad habits and helped with the mental part of it.”
As a freshman, Baughey made 42 of his 50 extra-point attempts and a 21-yard field goal. As a sophomore he made 48 of 54 with a 19-yard field goal. This season he has made 29 of 37 extra-point attempts. The winning field goal against Blissfield was his only field goal of the season, on two tries.
Baughey is exclusively a kicker because of the potential risk of injury following the transplant. He wears a special pad on his stomach under his uniform because that is where doctors put his new kidney.
His mother said the no-contact rule causes some angst for her.
“He knows there is a chance he could get hit,” she said. “He wears a shield for padding. The transplant team has okayed him to play.”
Baughey practices every day, often by himself. He goes to the game field and starts at the extra point yardage and works his way back, making at least two kicks at each distance before moving on to the next level. He’ll use his cell phone to record himself, then watch the videos to make sure he is kicking correctly and not developing bad habits.
“The biggest part for me is to go out and know that I can do it,” he said. “You have to know you are going to kick it through the uprights, not just think you are going to. I like to pick out a small target, even a leaf or something, and just clear my mind and just kick the ball.”
When Clinton got the ball back with just over three minutes to go in the District Final against Blissfield, Baughey started thinking the game might come down to his foot.
“I went to the net and started kicking,” he said.
Clinton drove the ball inside the Blissfield 10-yard line, but did not reach the end zone. Fielder called a timeout on fourth down with only a few seconds left. Baughey jogged onto the field and lined up when Blissfield called a timeout.
“I remember walking to the sidelines and taking a deep breath,” he said. “People came up and talked to me and told me I could do it”
Baughey blocked everything out.
“I was really mentally focused,” he said. “After I made the kick, I started clapping. I turned around and all my teammates were jumping up and down. I ran to our coaches and everyone started hugging.”
His father, his donor, could not have been happier to see the ball go through the uprights.
“I was beside myself happy,” Kevin Baughey said. “Thinking about all of the time he spent working in the offseason, and then seeing the confidence his coaches showed with making the call to go for the field goal ... I was as proud as I could possibly be.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Clinton's Jonathan Baughey connects on a kick. (Middle) Baughey, following through on another kick this season, clinched his team's District title with a game-winning field goal. (Photos courtesy of the Clinton football program.)
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Bear Lake Looks to Begin New Streak
September 25, 2020
By Tom Spencer
Special for Second Half
When Bear Lake takes steps on the football field at Brethren tonight, the Lakers have a chance they never had last fall.
It’s a chance to win two games in a row and remain undefeated. Bear Lake is coming off a 26-6 win over Ashley last week, the Lakers’ first win since 2018. The victory sparked a lot of relief and a great celebration in the Bear Lake community.
“It was a long time coming,” said assistant coach and offensive coordinator Samantha Mullet. “Seeing the guys get to experience the results of all their hard work was rewarding.
“But it’s just the beginning,” she continued. “They’ve set the bar now. They know that feeling only comes if you’ve earned it.”
Mullet, who goes by Sam and Coach Sam, has been an assistant coach with head coach John Prokes since 8-player football began at Bear Lake four seasons ago. She was also an intern the summer of 2019 for the Baltimore Ravens and coach John Harbaugh.
The Lakers’ seniors who have played football since their freshman year are thrilled to take the field tonight. Wins have been hard to come by and they were 0-9 in 2019. COVID-19 nearly took away their chance to play football in 2020 and feel the jubilation of victory.
It was long, hard summer of training not knowing the future of all MHSAA sports. The Lakers’ last victory was 28-18 over Big Rapids Crossroads Academy during the 2018 campaign.
“Participating in sports is one opportunity that provides our young adults with an experience that will only continue to help them with the trials and tribulations throughout their own life,” noted Prokes, who also teaches science in the middle and high school. “We are fortunate to have football at our school and in our community.
“The memories we've established will last well beyond the wins and losses.”
Mullet and Prokes have been together since Bear Lake exited a football co-op with Onekama to start the exciting 8-player football option. It hasn’t been a smooth road, but both feel the ship is righted now and the future is bright.
Bear Lake athletic director Karen Leinaar couldn’t be happier with the football program. She had never served a school district previously that didn’t offer football.
“The cool thing was the community stepped up and the board made a commitment to football,” she said. “They took a chance and it paid off.
“These two coaches have given hundreds and thousands of hours to these kids,” she continued. “Taking it from nothing to where it is today is great!”
A new culture of football began this summer as training for a possible 2020 season began. Not knowing how COVID-19 would impact MHSAA sports, the Lakers embarked on significant changes.
“With students having been out of school and away from each other since March, we felt it was important to get the kids together and active again, even if it was just for socially-distanced outdoor workouts,” recalled Mullet. “They were really the shift from there – they showed up and worked hard day after day, even when the future of sports was uncertain.
“Their attitude and commitment made us realize this could be the group to really establish our program,” she continued. “We’d been building, but without much of an identity. These guys committed to defining the vague ‘success’ we’ve always talked about and hashed out exactly how things were going to go down – what would be required of everyone and what would not be tolerated of anyone.”
The Lakers took their name and turned it into a “LAKES” acronym for core qualities that all players and coaches must be – Loyal, Accountable, Knowledgeable, Excellent, Resilient, and Selfless.
“We took an Edward Everett Hale quote and used it to establish our creed,” Mullet said. “‘I am only one. But I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do. What I can do, I should do. And what I should do, by the grace of God, I will.’”
The Lakers’ new creed and culture also came with new helmets featuring improved safety components to start the season. The helmets were made possible by a grant from the Manistee County Community Foundation.
The Lakers were led offensively to victory Saturday afternoon by Bryce Harless and Jake Griffis. Harless connected on 5 of 8 passes for 100 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 105 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. Griffis had five receptions for 109 yards and two touchdowns.
Tate Aultman led the Lakers defensively with 10.5 tackles and a sack. Griffis and Quentin Ruize each had nine tackles and combined on a sack. Jack Cook recorded nine tackles.
“We are not the biggest team, by no means,” Prokes said after the Bears snapped their losing streak. “We’ll probably be outsized in every game we play, but we play with a lot of heart.
“Our guys aren’t going to back down from anybody.”
And, when they walk on the field for every practice and tonight’s game, each player must contribute, Mullet believes.
“Every single player has been instrumental in pushing our culture forward,” she said. “As our creed implies, if one person doesn’t do their job, doesn’t give 100 percent effort, doesn’t buy in, the whole team fails.
“You may only have one job, but that one job is critical to the success of the whole team.”
Prokes and Mullet are appreciative of tremendous support they've received from everyone in the Bear Lake community, especially the boosters.
“The town has really embraced the team and has shown nothing but encouragement and patience with our development,” Mullet said. “They've enjoyed the experience that comes with having a football program including the tailgating, Friday Night lights, and even Saturday afternoons.”
And every Laker tonight will be playing with an undefeated helmet.
Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. 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) Bear Lake’s Jack Cook makes a move upfield during last week’s win over Ashley. (Middle) Bear Lake assistant Samantha Mullet, far left, during her Baltimore Ravens internship, with, following left to right, John Wolfe (co-founder of ShirtFaced), Tim Goins (coach from Japan’s X League) and Jordan Hogan (formerly at Cornell, now a new assistant coach for the Arizona Cardinals). (Below) Bear Lake head coach John Prokes in his science classroom. (Photos courtesy of the Bear Lake football program.)