2021-22 Broadcasts Kick Off with Big Football Weekend
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
August 24, 2021
Michigan High School Athletic Association member schools will be featured on more than 300 live-streamed broadcasts during this first full week of the 2021-22 school sports year, headlined by 16 broadcasts of opening-weekend football games on MHSAA.tv and the NFHS Network and partner Bally Sports Detroit.
Bally Sports Detroit will be providing coverage of all six games of the Xenith Prep Kick Off Classic from Oct. 26-28 at Wayne State University’s Tom Adams Field, including both Aug. 26 games on live cable television. All six Xenith games also will be available on the Bally Sports Detroit website and Bally Sports app.
Meanwhile, MHSAA.tv and the NFHS Network will have live coverage of all six games from the Battle at the Big House at University of Michigan and all four games from the Vehicle City Gridiron Classic at Kettering University’s Atwood Stadium.
Here’s the schedule, with links to watch those games online:
Thursday, Aug. 26
► Battle at the Big House: Lapeer vs. Grand Rapids Catholic Central – 12 p.m. – MHSAA.tv
► Battle at the Big House: Midland vs. Traverse City West – 3 p.m. – MHSAA.tv
► Xenith Prep Kick Off Classic: Dearborn Fordson vs. Canton – 4 p.m. – Bally Sports Detroit (also LIVE TV)
► Vehicle City Gridiron Classic: Frankenmuth vs. Goodrich – 4 p.m. – MHSAA.tv
► Battle at the Big House: DeWitt vs. Traverse City Central – 7 p.m. – MHSAA.tv
► Xenith Prep Kick Off Classic: Detroit Catholic Central vs. Clinton Township Chippewa Valley – 7 p.m. – Bally Sports Detroit (also LIVE TV)
► Vehicle City Gridiron Classic: Flushing vs. Flint Powers Catholic – 7:30 p.m. – MHSAA.tv
Friday, Aug. 27
► Battle at the Big House: Midland Dow vs. Fenton – 12 p.m. – MHSAA.tv
► Battle at the Big House: Saline vs. Hudsonville – 3:30 p.m. – MHSAA.tv
► Vehicle City Gridiron Classic: East Lansing vs. Grand Blanc – 4 p.m. – MHSAA.tv
► Xenith Prep Kick Off Classic: Dexter vs. Birmingham Groves – 4 p.m. – MHSAA.tv (also available on BallySports.com/Detroit)
► Battle at the Big House: Clarkston vs. Davison – 7 p.m. – MHSAA.tv
► Xenith Prep Kick Off Classic: Chicago St. Patrick (Ill.) vs. Warren De La Salle Collegiate – 7 p.m. – MHSAA.tv (also available on BallySports.com/Detroit)
► Vehicle City Gridiron Classic: Pontiac Notre Dame Prep vs. Linden – 7:30 p.m. – MHSAA.tv
Saturday, Aug. 28
► Xenith Prep Kick Off Classic: River Rouge vs. Eastpointe – 1 p.m. – MHSAA.tv (also available on BallySports.com/Detroit)
► Xenith Prep Kick Off Classic: Southfield Arts & Technology vs. Detroit Cass Tech – 4 p.m. – MHSAA.tv (also available on BallySports.com/Detroit)
Total, more than 150 varsity football games, more than 100 varsity volleyball matches and nearly 90 varsity boys soccer contests will be available this week on MHSAA.tv and the NFHS Network, with production by participants in the School Broadcast Program. More than 400 MHSAA member schools are participants in the School Broadcast Program, now in its 13th year, producing games using traditional hands-on student crews or via Pixellot cameras installed at stadiums and gymnasiums across the state. Click for a complete list of upcoming events.
Other intriguing football matchups appearing on the Network include (all 7 p.m. starts):
► Aug. 26: Sterling Heights Stevenson at Rockford
► Aug. 26: Saginaw Swan Valley at Cedar Springs
► Aug. 26: Utica Eisenhower at Lake Orion
► Aug. 26: Alpena at Marquette
► Aug. 26: Edwardsburg at Montague
► Aug. 27: Clarkston Everest Collegiate at Montrose
NFHS Network subscriptions begin at $10.99 a month. Subscribers have access to all live video and streaming statistics across the country. School Broadcast Program participants benefit as a portion of every subscription sold by a school goes to benefit its program. A complete list of participating schools can be found on the School Broadcast Program page of the MHSAA Website.
MHSAA.tv on NFHS Network Surpasses Decade of Providing Fans Another Way to Watch
By
Jon Ross
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties
August 30, 2024
The way high school sports fans in Michigan follow their favorite teams changed forever 11 years ago.
MHSAA Championships began airing on the NFHS Network in 2013, and one of the oldest games archived was the season-opening varsity football game between Adrian and Carleton Airport on Aug. 30, 2013. Adrian would go on to win that game 26-7. John Koehn of WLEN in Adrian provided the play-by-play. (Watch the entire game here.)
The second, third, and fourth oldest archived streams were also Adrian football games. The first MHSAA basketball game to air was Cheboygan vs. Newberry on Dec. 10, 2013.
Since that start, more than 172,000 events in Michigan have been broadcast on the NFHS Network. Last school year alone, more than 50,000 events aired. This includes games from all levels – freshman, JV, and varsity. It includes regular-season matchups, all the way through MHSAA Finals. Most games are produced with automated cameras installed in gyms and stadiums. Schools also use student crews to produce broadcasts – providing hands-on learning opportunities for future broadcasters.
More than 600 of the MHSAA’s 752 member schools are partners of the NFHS Network. A monthly subscription to watch is $11.99 – and a portion of that goes back to schools in Michigan. To date, the NFHS Network has shared nearly $1.5 million with partner schools.
If you can’t attend a game in person, watching on the NFHS Network is a great way to support your favorite school.