Scott Keyes
Sports Scene
First the good news.
The Mt. Pleasant football team was a perfect 13-0 heading into the Division 3 state final November 26 against Orchard Lake St. Mary’s.
The Oilers held the top spot in Division 3 all season. The team won its fourth straight Saginaw Valley League championship and had not lost a regular season game since 2008 under coach Jason McIntyre. In fact, prior to the 2011 final, the Oilers had lost only 11 games during McIntyre’s six-year coaching tenure.
Their greatest accomplishment was beating East Grand Rapids 38-37 in overtime the week prior to the final, earning the Oilers a trip to Ford Field.
Now the bad.
The Oilers’ quest for a perfect season came crashing down as Orchard Lake St. Mary’s ground attack was too much to overcome. The Eaglets won the title game 45-7.
“We knew we were overmatched coming into this game,” McIntyre said. “We knew they were going to run the ball, but they are so tough to stop and they can throw so many backs at you, which makes them even more tough to stop. We tried something different, and it didn’t work out. This environment was a little crazy for all of us. I am so proud of our kids and everything that we have done.”
St. Mary’s rushed for 478 yards and its first state championship since 2000. In the past two state finals, the Eaglets have been upended by East Grand Rapids.
The win was extra special for University of Michigan recruit James Ross.
“To get here three times and finally win one is pretty amazing,” he said. “This is what you work hard for all season long, and to pull off a victory can’t be described in words.”
The Eaglets (12-2) lost to East Grand Rapids by eight points and three points in the last two finals, and by seven points in a five-overtime classic in 2007. They entered the playoffs ranked No. 4 by the Associated Press – but as champions of the Detroit Catholic League Central, which sent three teams to Ford Field this fall.
Senior Spencer McGinnis led the Eaglets with 213 of the team’s 478 yards and scored three times. His brother, junior Parker McGinnis, ran for 96 yards and a score, as did junior fullback Grant Niemiec. Ross added another running touchdown.
McIntyre was impressed by the slew of running backs the Oilers faced.
“We were in position to make some tackles, and it wasn’t a scheme thing or guys getting blocked,” he said. It’s just that their athletes made our guys miss, or we couldn’t tackle them. I’ve never seen backs that we couldn’t tackle one on one or two on one. A lot of teams will have one great back, and you can focus and rally there. But they had three and four.”
Mt. Pleasant sophomore running back Michael Tweh came into the state final game with close to 1,900 yards and 25 scores, but the Eaglets held Tweh and Mt. Pleasant in check, allowing the Oilers to gain just 122 yards on the ground, led by senior Ryan Elliott’s 40. Elliott also had Mt. Pleasant’s lone score in the game.
“Even though we had a big lead at the half, we knew Mt. Pleasant was a strong second half team, so we had to play within ourselves until the final play of the game,” Orchard Lake coach George Porritt said. “This team came into this game confident, and we played like it tonight. Our seniors deserve to go out with a win like this.”
Junior defensive back Cory Williams led the Oilers with nine tackles. Senior lineman Dylan Zerki led the Eaglets with 11, and Ross had 10.