This Week In High School Sports: 2/19/21

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

February 19, 2021

This week's edition celebrates two new members of the 1,000-point basketball scorers club and provides a glance at the skiing postseason as it races toward its conclusion.

The 5-minute program each week includes feature stories from around the state from the MHSAA’s Second Half or network affiliates, along with "Be The Referee," a 60-second look at the fine art of officiating.

Listen to this week's show by Clicking Here

Past editions

Feb. 12: Scholar-Athlete Awards, Winter contact sports return - Listen
Jan. 29:
11-Player Football Finals in review - Listen 
Jan. 22:
8-Player Football, Girls Volleyball, Girls Swimming & Diving Finals in review - Listen
Jan. 15:
Game-winning kicks, playing for mom - Listen
Jan. 8:
Fall sports return, sacrificing for sportsmanship - Listen
Nov. 13: Cross Country champions, Soccer Finals in review, official selection - Listen
Nov. 6: University Liggett's William Cooksey, boys tennis four-time individual champions - Listen
Oct. 30: Upper Peninsula Cross Country Finals in review - Listen
Oct. 23: Lower Peninsula Girls Golf, Boys Tennis Finals in review - Listen
Oct. 16: Byron Center volleyball, girls golf aces - Listen
Oct. 9:
Grand Rapids Union football, first 2020-21 champions - Listen
Oct. 2:
East Lansing football, late Port Huron sportswriter Jim Whymer - Listen
Sept. 25: 
Sturgis football, soccer official Alexus Little - Listen
Sept. 18: COVID-19 review, this year's broadcast opportunities - Listen

Century of School Sports: On This Day, December 13, We Will Celebrate

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

December 10, 2024

This Friday, December 13, 2024, the Michigan High School Athletic Association will commemorate its 100th anniversary, a special day selected from a milestone school year as the MHSAA continues to celebrate a “Century of School Sports.”

But why December 13?

Short answer: On that day, the first Representative Council of the newly-formed MHSAA met for the first time.

Longer explanation: The MHSAA’s predecessor – the Michigan Interscholastic Athletic Association – had provided oversight of school athletics from 1909-24, and adjourned its final annual meeting Dec. 5, 1924. The reasons for the end of the MIAA and formation of the MHSAA are fascinating on their own, and we’ll cover that at a later date.

But as for this important date we are discussing this week:

  • At the end of the MIAA, all that remained was a committee elected to represent various sections of the state and various sizes and types of schools during the transition – a 12-member Representative Council.
  • Prior to the MIAA’s conclusion, a basketball rules interpretation meeting had been scheduled and publicized for Saturday, Dec. 13, 1924, in Ann Arbor. Several athletic directors, basketball coaches and officials were expected to attend, and it was decided to also conduct the first meeting of the Representative Council that day as well.
  • The Council meeting was held at the Michigan Union. Ten of 12 Council members were present, with the board including representatives from multiple regions and both peninsulas, schools large and small, public and nonpublic; junior high schools and the state department of education, and with expertise in physical education, administration and coaching – in essence, the same mix that makes up much of the Council a century later.
  • Officers were elected, funds were transferred from the former MIAAA to the new MHSAA, a committee was appointed to begin discussing policies for junior high sports as they had begun to emerge, and the first Executive Committee – then known as the “Committee on Appeals” was formed to consider appeals of eligibility decisions made by the state director. The 1925 MHSAA Basketball Tournament was discussed and a committee formed to work toward those arrangements. Finally, a football eligibility situation was considered and a member school suspended, to be reinstated two months later after satisfying a series of conditions to make restitution for the use of ineligible players.

And the rest is history, with more made every year.

To commemorate this 100th anniversary, the MHSAA has received tributes from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II, and the Michigan Legislature signed as well by Sen. Sam Singh and Rep. Penelope Tsernoglou from the MHSAA office’s legislative districts.

The gubernatorial declaration states in part, “We honor the MHSAA’s rich legacy and the countless athletes, coaches, and volunteers who have contributed to the success of Michigan high school sports. The MHSAA’s commitment to enhancing the lives of student-athletes and strengthening communities across the state is truly remarkable.”

The legislature’s proclamation adds, “May this day serve as a testament to the MHSAA’s remarkable achievements and its enduring commitment to the advancement of high school athletics and the well-being of student-athletes across Michigan.”

Previous "Century of School Sports" Spotlights

Dec. 3: MHSAA Work Guided by Representative Council - Read
Nov. 26: 
Finals Provide Future Pros Early Ford Field Glory - Read
Nov. 19:
Connection at Heart of Coaches Advancement Program - Read
Nov. 12:
Good Sports are Winners Then, Now & Always - Read
Nov. 5:
MHSAA's Home Sweet Home - Read
Oct. 29:
MHSAA Summits Draw Thousands to Promote Sportsmanship - Read
Oct. 23:
Cross Country Finals Among MHSAA's Longest Running - Read
Oct. 15:
State's Storytellers Share Fall Memories - Read
Oct. 8:
Guided by 4 S's of Educational Athletics - Read
Oct. 1:
Michigan Sends 10 to National Hall of Fame - Read
Sept. 25: MHSAA Record Books Filled with 1000s of Achievements - Read
Sept. 18:
Why Does the MHSAA Have These Rules? - Read
Sept. 10: 
Special Medals, Patches to Commemorate Special Year - Read
Sept. 4:
Fall to Finish with 50th Football Championships - Read
Aug. 28:
Let the Celebration Begin - Read

PHOTOS At left, gubernatorial and legislative commemorations recognize the MHSAA's 100th anniversary. At middle, the book "Athletics in Michigan High Schools - The First Hundred Years" is opened to the chapter introducing the early days of the MHSAA.