MHSFCA East-West All-Star Game this Saturday

by Jeff Fisher
High School Football America

88 of Michigan high school football seniors will take the field at Alma College Saturday afternoon for the 32nd Annual Michigan High School Football Coaches Association East-West All-Star Football Game.

Thursday night, I'll be joined by Gus Kapolka, who has served as director of the game for the last seven years, on the High School Football America radio show to talk about some of the challenges of putting-on a statewide all-star football game with the changes occurring at the NCAA level.

If you can't make it to Saturday's game that kicks-off at 4 P.M. Eastern Time, you can watch it LIVE on Fox Sports Detroit.

Click here to listen to Thursday's show LIVE at 7 P.M. Eastern Time.

After 342 Wins, Menominee's Hofer Retires

by Jeff Fisher
High School Football America

Michigan High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Famer Ken Hofer of Menominee is retiring after 41 seasons.

Hofer's teams won three state championships in 1998, 2006 and 2007.  The 77-year old's overall record is 342-136-3.

High School Football America Names Brother Rice's Fracassa National Coach of the Year

by Jeff Fisher
High School Football America

With over 50 years coaching experience and 400+ victories, it's hard to say if Brother Rice's Al Fracassa could say one season is better than the other.  But, there's no doubt that 2011 has to rank high on his list.

After a 4-4 start, the state's all-time winningest head coach went on a six-game win streak to capture Michigan's Division 2 state championship.  That championship, his seventh overall, coupled with winning his 400th game led to Coach Fracassa being chosen as High School Football America's 2011 Coach of the Year.

Fracassa is the tenth coach in America to win 400 games.

Fracassa was selected over finalists Bob Beatty of Trinity (Kentucky) and Hank Carter of Lake Travis (Texas)

Before the start of the 2011 season, I spoke with Coach Fracassa on the High School Football America radio show.  Click here to listen to that interview.

Flint Powers Catholic Head Coach Bob Buckel to be a Guest on High School Football America Show

by Jeff Fisher
Michigan High School Football Huddle

The man who turned a 1-8 football team into a state champ, will be a guest on Thursday night's High School Football America radio show at 7 PM Eastern Time.

Bob Buckel brought Flint Powers Catholic back from the brink of a sub-.500 season to win the Michigan Division 5 state football championship Thanksgiving weekend.  After an 0-2 start that moved to a 2-4 beginning, Buckel righted the ship that sent the team on an 8-game win streak that culminated with a 56-26 win over previous #1 Lansing Catholic Central.

The victory avenged a 37-17 loss to Lansing Catholic Central in Week 2 of the regular season.  Powers lost the season opener to Saginaw Nouvel Catholic Central that won the state's Division 7 title this year.

Buckel will be the fourth guest from Michigan to appear on High School Football America this year.

Click on the links below to listen to previous interviews:

Gabe Dean, quarterback Lowell & 2011 Division 1/2 Associated Press Player of the Year
Al Fracassa, head coach Brother Rice
John Herrington, head coach Farmington Hills Harrison

Click here to listen to Thursday's show LIVE.

Brother Rice Grabs Another Michigan State Football Championships...the Hard Way

by Jeff Fisher
Michigan High School Football Huddle

At 4-4 and one game to go in the regular season, nobody expected Brother Rice to have a shot at giving head coach Al Fracassa his seventh state football title.  Today, the Warriors are Michigan's Division 2 champ.

Brother Rice won its final six games, including Saturday's 24-14 victory over Lowell to claim the state title and give the state's winningest coach his 404th career victory.

Warrior senior running back Devin Church led the champs with 244 yards rushing on 33 carries and three touchdowns.  Brother Rice's defense contained Lowell senior QB Gabe Dean, who was playing in his third straight championship game.

Dean, who was last year's Division 1/2 Associated Press Player of the Year, was held to 190 yards passing and 34 yards rushing.  Dean ends his career with over 12,000 yards in total offense.



Before the season, I spoke with Fracassa about his 52nd year as a head coach on the High School Football America radio show.  Click here to listen to the interview.

Grandville HS Hires Former Assistant

by Jeff Fisher
Michigan High School Football Huddle

Michael Lapciuk is the new head coach at Grandville High School.

Lapciuak, who began his career as a JV coach at Grandville, takes over for Scot Shaw, who resigned at the end of the season.

Royal Oak HS Hires New Head Football Coach

by Jeff Fisher
Michigan High School Football Huddle

Royal Oak football players and fans are hoping that Jeff Hill is the answer to its recent woes.

Hill has been hired to replace Dave Potter, who didn't win a game in three seasons as head coach.

The Royal Oak Patch reports that the community is very excited about the new hire.

Michigan High School Football All-State Game Rosters Announced

by Jeff Fisher
Michigan High School Football Huddle

The Michigan High School Football Coaches Association released the names of the 88 players that will take part in this year's 31st East-West All-Star Game.

This year's game has been moved from Michigan State's Spartan Stadium to Central Michigan University.


East Roster

Jamel Abrams: Marine City B FB 6' 210
Nick Beamish: Riverview B Center 6'4" 260
Bryon Bell: Walled Lake Central A Tackle 6'5" 300
Aaron Berthet: Henry Ford II High School A K 6'3" 180
RaBeah Beydoun: Fordson High School A TB 5'10" 200
Randle Brewer: Walled Lake Western A DB 6' 185
Spencer Cairo: Rochester Adams A Center 6'3" 290
Denell Carither: Ecorse High School C DB 5'7" 165
James Chappell: Detroit Southwestern B WR 6'5" 195
Courtney Williams: Melvindale High School B LB 6'3" 225
Eric Crume: Detroit Central B DL 6'2" 320
Michael Currie: Southgate Anderson A LB 5'8" 200
Justin D'Aqostino: Detroit Catholic Central A LB 6' 235
Alex Davis: Divine Child B Guard 6'1" 250
Nate Dreslinski: Clinton High School C TE 6'3" 230
Raphael Dunson: Taylor Kennedy A DB 5'9" 165
Ryan Fabbri: Croswell-Lexington B WR 5'10" 170
Kyle Foster: Ann Arbor Pioneer A WR 6'3" 210
Ashton Gaines: Crockett Tech B DB 6 180
Cody Gorman: Clawson High School B DL 6'4" 255
Loran Jaddon: Brother Rice High School A LB 5'11" 200
Taiwan Jones: Anchor Bay High School A LB 6'3" 220
Mike Keith: DeLasalle Collegiate A LB 6'1" 237
Brett Koch: Dearborn Edsel Ford A Guard 6'4' 260
Dejuan Lewis: Pershing High School A FB 5'11" 220
Ben McCord: Cousino A TE 6'3" 225
Blake McGhee: Lake Orion High School A Guard 6'2"
Aaron Mick: Parkway Christian D P 5'10" 140
Keith Moore: Detroit Cass Tech A QB 6'2" 180
Dylan Neff: Manchester C DL 6'1" 280
Kyle Osier: New Boston Huron B Tackle 6'3" 300
Rayshawn Nance: Warren Woods Tower A DB 6'3" 205
Will Reeves: Grosse Pointe South A LB 6'1" 230
Kody Richardson: Garden City High School A DL 6'2" 215
Aaron Richmond: Willow Run High School C DB 6'1" 185
Cody Ross: Deckerville D FB 6' 185
Valdez Showers: Madison Heights Madison C TB 6'1" 190
Davion Stackhouse: Canton A DB 6' 190
Nathan Theaker: Lakeland High School A DL 6'5" 295
Ray Tillman: Auburn Hills Avondale A WR 5"11" 180
Tommy Vento: Farmington Harrison A QB 6'1" 185
James Walsh: Howell High School A Tackle 6'5" 274
Jason Wilson: Farmington High School A WR 6' 182
Feerooz Yacoobi: Dearborn High School A DL 6'2" 225

West Roster

Thad Cook: Grant High School B Tackle 6'5" 280
Ramadan Ahmeti: Waverly High School A Tackle 6'6"
Cole Walderzak: Standish-Sterling B TE 6'8" 230
Ron Fancher: Constantine C TE 5'10" 220
Mike Weeks: Cadillac High School B WR 6'2" 190
T.K. Kubvoruno: Gull Lake High School B WR 6' 175
Luke Capen: Ithaca C WR 6'2" 180
Derek Sievers: Byron Center A FB 6'2" 222
Tyler Havens: Morley Stanwood B FB 6'1" 240
Thomas Rawls: Flint Northern A TB 5'10" 215
Jared Briguglio: Swan Valley High School B TB 6' 196
Caleb Higbie: Dewitt B QB 5'11" 185
Mack Sovereign: Central High School A QB 6'2" 190
Mitch Bredberg: Grand Rapids West Catholic B K 5'9" 160
Jared Barton: Fulton D P 6'1" 170
Lamontae Jackson: Orchard View B DL 6'3" 230
Tyler Lemke: Mt. Pleasant High School A DL 6'4" 230
Damon Knox: Muskegon A DL 6'5" 265
Kyle Fisher: Linden B DL 5'11" 200
Ryan Hankins: Davison High School A DL 6'2" 270
C.J. Lingus: Menominee B DL 6'3" 290
Desmond Morgan: West Ottawa A LB 6'1" 225
Brett Egnatuk: Rockford A LB 6'1" 220
Dalton Stenberg: Grand Haven High School A LB 6'2" 215
John White: Jackson High School A LB 6'3" 205
Colin Wilson: St. Johns High School A FB 6' 200
Justin Currie: Big Rapids High School B DB 6'2" 195
Brad Horling: Zeeland East High School A DB 6'4" 210
Austin St. Louis: LaSalle High School C DB 6'3" 195
Dylan Monette: Williamston High School B DB 6' 180
Corban Olson: Lawton High School C DB 5'10" 175
Chad Coleman: Carman Ainworth A DB 5'10" 170
Anthony Zettel: Ogemaw Heights B DL 6'5" 250
Chris Laneaux: Portage Northern A DB 6' 175
Jamie Potts: Oakridge High School B DB 6'3" 202
Nick Kolanowski: Manistee Catholic Central D TB 5'11" 180
Kyle Lints: Traverse City St. Francis C C 6'4" 275
Onaje Miller: J.W. Sexton High School B TB 5'11" 185

High School Football America Tickled Pink to be in Lowell

by Jeff Fisher

High School Football America

We're heading to Lowell for tonight's Pink Arrow Pride game between Lowell and Kenowa Hills.

The stadium will be awash in pink as the Lowell Red Arrows don pink jerseys to raise awareness and money for breast cancer research and prevention.  The first couple Pink Arrow Pride games have raised nearly $200,000.

After the game, I'll be back to post pictures from the game and update our scoreboards.

2010 Michigan High School Football Season Kicks-off Thursday

by Jeff Fisher
Michigan High School Football Huddle

The kick-off of the 2010 Michigan high school football season is less than 30 hours away.

In order to get everyone ready, I spent some time putting together some of the previews that are out there from around the state.

I especially liked the 6th annual edition of the Friday Night Titans, which gives fans a comprehensive look at teams and leagues from around the state.  Michigan Live (mlive.com) is always chocked full of info and they post game stories very quickly.  And, I can't forget the Detroit Free Press, which once again has done an outstanding job of gathering information on the Public and Catholic League schools as well as teams in-and-around the metro area.

I also want to give a shout-out to my former colleague, sports anchor Tom Leyden from WXYZ.  Tom is one of the good guys in the biz, and loves high school football.  Aside from watching him on TV, you can follow him on Twitter and read his Leyden's Log blog.

Speaking of Detroit, the 6th annual Big Prep Showdown kicks things-off tomorrow with two games.  There will be a total of seven over five days at Eastern Michigan University.

Finally, sports writer Jane Bos of the The Grand Rapids Press looks at the numbers that add-up to the start of the 2010 season.


Happy High School Football Season Everyone!

Jeff

High School Football Practice Begins in Michigan Tomorrow

by Jeff Fisher
Michigan High School Football Huddle

The pads can't go on until Thursday, but the 2010 high school football preseason begins across the state on Monday.

Tim Staudt of the Lansing State Journal takes a look at some numbers.  One of the best is 44,000-plus players will hit the field at the state's 631 schools.

Michigan Pre-Season High School Football Practice Begins August 9th

by Jeff Fisher

Michigan High School Football Huddle

Welcome to our new look for the 2010 Michigan high school football season!

With the first day of practice beginning August 9th, I wanted to take the time to thank all of my readers, who have made this blog successful over the past three years.  I have bigger-and-better things planned this year with more original content.

Also, don't forget to check-out High School Football America for great high school football stories from around the country.  If you have story ideas that I should know about, please feel free to email me.

Here's a look at important dates for the 2010 season...

First Practice - August 9th

Regular Season Begins - August 26th

Playoffs Begin - October 29th

Championships - November 26th-27th

Jeff Fisher is Founder/Editor-in-Chief of High School Football America

Former NFL Wide Receiver Andre Rison Still Waiting to Hear if He's the Head Coach at Northwestern HS

by Jeff Fisher
Michigan High School Football Huddle

Dan Feldman in The Flint Journal is reporting today that more than a month after Andre Rison indicated he'd be the new head football coach at Northwestern High School, he's still waiting for official word from the school.

In the story, a Flint schools spokesman, who said the former NFL wide receiver was the front-runner for the job in February, says the school hopes the have the situation resolved soon.

Is 13-Year Old Dylan Brock the Next Phenom Quarterback...or Just a Teenager with a Strong Arm?

by Jeff Fisher
Michigan High School Football Huddle

13-year old quarterbacks with rifle arms seem to be popping-up all over the place.

Last month, 13-year old David Sills from Delaware gave his verbal commitment to USC head coach Lane Kifflin.  Now, comes news from former colleague Tom Leyden, sports anchor at WXYZ-TV in Detroit, that Dylan Brock from Brownstown Township in Michigan is turning some heads before even making his freshman football team.



What do you think?  Comment

The Huddle Road Show in Paw Paw

by Jeff Fisher
Michigan High School Football Huddle



Trish and I took a relaxing drive 129 miles east of Chicago yesterday to enjoy a little High School Football America in the village of Paw Paw, Michigan.

Paw Paw is a village of 3,300 people at the confluence of the east and south branches of the Paw Paw River and is named after the pawpaw trees which once grew along the river. Pawpaw trees are pretty elusive to find these days, but Trish and I did, and we'll share that story with you early next week.

Actually there's a pawpaw song that Village Manager Larry Nielsen (video above) shared with Trish in front of a pawpaw tree that was planted recently along side the Paw Paw Post Office.

Paw Paw is also the home of Charlie "Paw Paw" Maxwell, who played for the Detroit Tigers, Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles and Chicago White Sox...as well as Jason Babin of the NFL's Seattle Seahawks.

As far as the game, Paw Paw lost to Gull Lake 40-20, but we got to check-out Paw Paw junior quarterback Andrew Buskirk, who looks like he's going to be a good one. Below are two highlights from the 6-1, 170-pounder...one a touchdown toss to Raleigh Rushing and the other a nice option run.



Check-out the entire trip to Paw Paw and and Trish's search for the elusive fruit early next week at The High School Football Huddle and the Michigan High School Football Huddle.