Keys to victory for Gaylord, St. Mary and JoBurg football heading into week two
GAYLORD ― Week one of the MHSAA football season is officially in the books as coaches and players around Northern Michigan got their initial looks at live-action games this past Thursday and Friday.
It was an exciting week around the Otsego area as Gaylord and Johannesburg-Lewiston started their seasons with opening-night victories while Gaylord St. Mary returned from the U.P. on the wrong side of the scoreboard in a battle with Pickford.
The matchups don't get much easier in week two as all three teams will hit the road to play tough opponents; Gaylord travels to face Kingsley, St. Mary's opens Ski Valley league play at Central Lake and JoBurg goes to East Jordan to take on one of the top competitors for the NMFL-Legacy league title.
Check out the keys to look out for in week two:
Gaylord at Kingsley, Thursday, Aug. 31
Last matchup: Gaylord 17, Kingsley 16, Sept. 1, 2022
Last week: Gaylord (1-0) def. TC West (0-1) 13-7, Kingsley (1-0) def. Reed City (0-1) 46-12
Gaylord started 2023 the same way they started 2022, coming from behind before a game-winning drive gave them dramatic victories, a year ago against Lake Fenton and this year against TC West.
TAKEAWAYS: How Gaylord football topped TC West for first time in 18 years
If the Blue Devils want to start 2-0 just like last year, they'll have to travel to Kingsley and get another victory over one of Northern Michigan's toughest football programs.
The Stags also started their season off with a week-one victory, rushing for over 400 yards in a 46-12 victory over Reed City, another traditionally strong football team located in Mid-Michigan.
KEY: If last year's matchup is any indication, the game will be decided in the trenches; two run-first teams, Gaylord and Kingsley combined for 82 rushing attempts and 365 yards on the ground in last season's matchup.
Johannesburg-Lewiston at East Jordan, Thursday, Aug. 31
Last matchup: East Jordan 42, Johannesburg-Lewiston 12, Sept. 9, 2022
Last week: JoBurg (1-0) def. Harbor Springs (0-1) 26-6, East Jordan (1-0) def. Manistique (0-1) 43-20
The JoBurg program took a big step last week, winning its season-opening game for the first time since 2020 with a 26-6 victory over Harbor Springs.
TAKEAWAYS: Gaylord defense still elite, JL starts 1-0; week one in Otsego-area football
They will not use that success as an excuse to overlook their week two opponents, however; head coach Joe Smokevitch is aware of how talented the East Jordan Red Devils could be this season.
"East Jordan is probably the team to beat in the conference," Smokevitch said in preseason interviews. "They're loaded."
Returning all-conference wide receiver Braylon Grybauskas, EJ is among the top teams in the NMFL-Legacy and is looking to compete for a title this season, while JoBurg, a team featuring just 17 full-time varsity players, is hoping to find ways to be competitive again in a league it once dominated.
KEY: This matchup may be tough for JoBurg to come home with a victory, but how they compete against one of the league's top competitors will tell a lot about how far the Cardinals' program has come in the past year.
If Nate Hummel can run as well as he did against Harbor Springs (155 yards, two touchdowns), who knows what could happen.
Gaylord St. Mary at Central Lake, Thursday, Aug. 31
Last matchup: St. Mary 47, Central Lake 6, Oct. 28, 2022
Last week: St. Mary (0-1) loss at Pickford (1-0), 40-22; Central Lake (1-0) def. Brethren (0-1), 40-22
The Snowbirds were the lone area team to fall in their season opener, dropping a 40-22 battle against a tough Pickford team last Thursday evening in the U.P.
Meanwhile, Central Lake started their season with a win of the identical score at Brethren on Friday night, setting up a matchup between a 1-0 Trojans team and an 0-1 Snowbirds team; much like last season's week two matchup where GSM pulled out a 48-36 victory.
The two teams later met in the first round of the 8-player Division 2 postseason in October, where a fully healthy GSM team ran past Central Lake with ease, 47-6.
KEY: In the regular season matchup between these two teams last season, Dillon Croff ran for 134 yards and three touchdowns for the Snowbirds in their week two win over the Trojans. If GSM hopes to start 1-0 on SVC play, look for Croff to be involved in the GSM offense early and often.
Contact Sports Editor Dylan Jespersen at Djespersen@gaylordheraldtimes.com. Follow him on Twitter, @dylanjespersen, and Instagram, @dylanjespersen
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Keys to victory for Gaylord, St. Mary and Johannesburg-Lewiston football heading into week two
