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Lenawee County high school football playoff matchups

Doug Donnelly, The Daily Telegram
·8 min read

County football fans have been treated to a great regular season and now eight local teams have reached the postseason.

Here’s a look at the playoff matchups for Lenawee County’s elite eight:

More: Week 9 results High School Football: Clinton blanks rival Hudson to win LCAA title outright

Division 4 

Tecumseh (5-4) at Chelsea (8-1) 

Tecumseh's Tyler Clement carries the ball during a game earlier in the season against Chelsea.
Tecumseh's Tyler Clement carries the ball during a game earlier in the season against Chelsea.

Tecumseh playoff history: Tecumseh is in the playoffs for the 12th time and have six all-time playoff wins. The 1991 team reached the semifinals.

Chelsea playoff history: The Bulldogs won the 2021 state championship after falling in the state finals the year before. They have been in the playoffs 10 straight years, 24 of the past 25 years and 26 times all-time.

Tecumseh statistical leaders: AJ Bryan 165 attempts for 1,188 yards and 20 touchdowns rushing, 25 receptions for 452 yards and eight touchdowns receiving; Tyler Clement 60 attempts for 372 yards rushing, 25-37 passing for 361 yards; Ryan Mossburg 20 receptions for 157 yards; Bryant Batyik 11 receptions for 185 yards receiving; Braylan Zachlan 54 tackles, Cooper Barkway 52 tackles.

Notes: This is a rematch from Week 6 when Chelsea beat Tecumseh, 42-20. Tecumseh has not lost since. … The last time these two teams met in the playoffs was 2012 with Tecumseh winning 27-20. … Chelsea leads the all-time series 25-19-1.

Comment from Tecumseh coach Greg Dolson, eighth season, 32-40: “Our kids are resilient. They just kept battling and I think we finally kind of grew up. We have to play better defensively this time around and maximize our opportunities. We didn’t do that the first time we played them.”

Adrian (6-3) at Haslett (6-3) 

Adrian's Sean Parker carries the ball during a game against Pinckney in the 2023 season.
Adrian's Sean Parker carries the ball during a game against Pinckney in the 2023 season.

Adrian playoff history: The Maples are in the playoffs for the 19th time and are 18-18 all-time in the playoffs, including back-to-back appearances in the state semifinals in 1991 and 1992.

Haslett playoff history: The Vikings are in the playoffs for the 20th time. They have 13 wins and reached the state finals in 1998 and 2005.

Adrian statistical leaders: Chase Henline 153 rushes for 895 yards and eight touchdowns; Sean Parker 84 rushes for 483 yards, 102-170 passing for 1,592 yards and 19 touchdowns; Thomas Dayharsh 27 receptions for 528 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Notes: Adrian finished second in the SEC White to Chelsea. Three of the SEC-White teams reached the playoffs. … Haslett finished third in the Capital Area Activities Conference Red Division, which has three playoff teams.

Comments from Adrian coach Joel Przygodski, second season, 11-8: “We are happy to still be playing football. Haslett is a physical football team that wants to run the ball. Our guys are excited or the challenge they present.”

Division 7 

Blissfield (5-4) at Clinton (8-1) 

Clinton's Cole Breitenwischer lunges ahead for a score while Blissfield's Trey Bris-Bois tries to bring him down during a game earlier in the 2023 season.
Clinton's Cole Breitenwischer lunges ahead for a score while Blissfield's Trey Bris-Bois tries to bring him down during a game earlier in the 2023 season.

Blissfield statistical leaders: Kassidy Lenz 1,064 yards rushing; Jack Deatrick, 655 yards passing; Trey Bris-Bois, 135 yards receiving; Kipp Fisher, 57 tackles.

Clinton statistical leaders: Nik Shadley 99 rushes for 1,104 yards rushing, 12 receptions for 220 yards receiving, 17 touchdowns; Jacob Felts 96 rushes, 760 yards rushing, 10 touchdowns; Cole Breitenwischer 101 rushes for 600 yards and 11 touchdowns; Andy Fair 35-61 passing for 648 yards and five touchdowns; Bryce Randolph 68 tackles.

Notes: The Royals have been decimated by injuries over the last several weeks but welcomed four-year starting offensive lineman Julius Brown back to the lineup last week. … Blissfield’s opponents went 45-36 this season and five of the nine teams they played are in the post season. … Clinton’s only loss came to Pontiac Notre Dame Prep in the season opener. The Fighting Irish finished the regular season 8-0 and are in the Division 5 playoffs. … Clinton leads the all-time series 31-21-1.

Comment from Blissfield coach Ron Estes, 16th season, 102-59: “They do everything well, especially running the ball. We have our work cut out for us.”

Comment from Clinton coach Casey Randolph, third season, 29-5: “Blissfield is well coached and it’s hard to beat good teams twice in one season, so we must focus on the details of the game and our execution.”

Division 8 

Hudson (7-2) at Addison (9-0) 

Addison's Heith Burton celebrates during the Cascades Conference championship game in Week 9 at Napoleon.
Addison's Heith Burton celebrates during the Cascades Conference championship game in Week 9 at Napoleon.

Addison statistical leaders: Spencer Brown 113 carries for 1,059 yards and 21 rushing touchdowns; Byron Creech 78 attempts for 556 yards rushing; Mike Trumble 61 attempts for 491 yards rushing; Jaxen Sword 18-26 passing for 362 yards.

Hudson statistical leaders: Brennan Marshall 158 carries for 1,170 yards and 12 touchdowns rushing; Beckett McCaskey 143 carries for 808 yards and 11 touchdowns rushing; Coy Perry 10-22 passing for 176 yards; J. Pickford 56 tackles.

Hudson's Brennan Marshall carries the ball during a game against Onsted.
Hudson's Brennan Marshall carries the ball during a game against Onsted.

Notes: This series dates back to 1918 and the two teams have met 61 times with Hudson holding a 52-7-2 advantage … Addison has played some of the best teams in Division 8 the last couple of seasons and this year is no different. In 2021, Addison opened the playoffs by playing the defending 2020 Division 8 champion Centreville. The Panthers won 24-16, then lost to eventual state champion Hudson the following week. Last year Addison opened the playoffs with eventual state champion Whiteford, losing 64-22. … Addison’s opponents this year went 31-50. Hudson’s opponents went 36-45.

Comment from Addison coach Joshua Lindeman, 10th season, 57-37: “Their defense is so well coached. They play very physical. We must put drives together and score on those drives. It doesn’t do you any good if you drive all the way down and don’t score.”

Comment from Hudson coach Dan Rogers, fourth season, 34-8: “They score a ton of points. They run that offense really well. The quarterback is good at ball fakes. We must stay disciplined on defense.”

Sand Creek (5-4) at Whiteford (9-0) 

Sand Creek's Ivan Wilkinson carries the ball during the Week 9 game against Erie Mason.
Sand Creek's Ivan Wilkinson carries the ball during the Week 9 game against Erie Mason.

All-Time Series: Sand Creek leads 34-30-1

Last meeting: Whiteford beat Sand Creek 48-8 in Week 5.

Whiteford playoff history: This is Whiteford’s 12th straight playoff appearance and 24th all-time with state championships coming in 2017 and 2022. Sand Creek is in the playoffs for the 25th time in program history.

Whiteford statistical leaders: Jake Iott 96-685 rushing, 114 tackles; Hunter DeBarr 86-626 rushing; Drew Knaggs 83-474 rushing; Tre Eitniear 36-69 for 821 yards passing; Kolby Masserant 32 catches for 670 yards receiving, 5 interceptions; Ryin Ruddy 364 yards rushing, 237 yards passing, 136 yards receiving.

Sand Creek statistical leaders: Ivan Wilkinson 199-1007 rushing; Jordan Illenden 80-460 rushing; Cole Scharer 42-98, 412 yards passing; Carson Preston 8 catches for 111 yards receiving; Nathan Lakotos 56 tackles.

Game notes: The Aggies are in the playoffs for the first time since 2021. … The Bobcats have won 23 straight games, one shy of tying the Monroe County record they set from 2017-2018 … Sand Creek was 1-4 before winning its last five games to reach the playoffs.

Comments from Whiteford coach Todd Thieken, second year, 23-0: “They have improved a lot since we saw them in Week 5. Our kids are locked in and, no matter who we play, must play to our level of football.”

Comments from Sand Creek coach Marc Spicer, third year, 14-15: “I knew we had a tough schedule to start the season. It was a rough start, but the guys have learned how to win. We’ve been in the playoffs since week five. We’ve had that sense. It’s literally one play, one game at a time.”

Division: 8-Player, Division 2 

Camden-Frontier (6-3) at Lenawee Christian (9-0) 

Lenawee Christian's Elijah Lutz runs in for a touchdown during the Week 8 game against Pittsford.
Lenawee Christian's Elijah Lutz runs in for a touchdown during the Week 8 game against Pittsford.

Camden-Frontier playoff history: Camden-Frontier is in the playoffs for the eighth time in eight years of playing 8-player football. They bring a 0-7 playoff record into this matchup.

Lenawee Christian playoff history: The Cougars won state championships in 2020 and 2021.

LCS statistical leaders: Sam Lutz 49 rushes for 603 yards and 18 touchdowns, 81-for-115 passing for 1,312 yards passing with 22 touchdowns; Brenner Powers 27 rushes for 434 yards rushing, 16-31 passing for 260 yards; Jesse Miller 26 receptions for 402 yards; Easton Boggs 26 receptions for 321 yards; Paul Towler 20 receptions for 457 yards receiving, 91 tackles; Seth Davis 81 tackles.

Notes: LCS beat Camden-Frontier 44-8 in Week 3. … LCS went 9-0 for the third time in four seasons in 8-Player football. Their all-time record since moving to 8-player football is 41-3.

Comments from LCS coach Bill Wilharms, 11th season, 87-27: “We are focusing on the fundamentals this week as we always feel like this game comes down to blocking and tackling. That keeps our players from focusing on the opponent and focusing on us and controlling those variables that we can as we get better. We have to do those things and then we feel that we have a chance against whoever we face.”

This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: MHSAA football playoff matchups in Lenawee County