Week 7 Notebook: 8-player football heats up with teams fighting for postseason bids
HILLSDALE COUNTY — Things are heating up in 8-player football as Pittsford locked up a playoff berth at 7-0. Litchfield and Camden-Frontier prepare to battle for their playoff hopes. For 11-player football teams, the door has seemingly closed for postseason chances.
Game of the Week: Pittsford line helps lead No. 10 Wildcat football to 34-8 win over Bellevue
This is the Week 7 notebook for Hillsdale County prep football teams.
Camden-Frontier keeps playoff hopes alive another week
The odds are stacked against every 3-loss team in 8-player football. The MHSAA playoff points will not be forgiving to teams, even if they finish with a winning record, or six wins.
Camden-Frontier navigated a brutal opening half of the season and now faces an easier trajectory to earning a final record of 6-3. Even with that, they might not be a playoff team. The team continued to add to their playoff résumé with a dominating 48-14 win over rival Waldron.
The Battle for the Jug saw both teams combine for 10 turnovers, with four of those contributed to C-F.
The story of the game came when Kayden Hanning had to take over for injured QB Logan Leggett. Hanning helped lead the Camden-Frontier offense to a night of 451 total yards.
Hanning had 134 rushing yards, 99 passing yards and four total touchdowns. Before Leggett was injured, he had 88 yards, four tackles and one interception. Worm Wickham had five catches for 94 yards and two touchdowns.
Player of the Week winner Kaiden Conroy had 80 yards and one touchdown on offense and hauled in two interceptions on defense. Brayden Miller had seven total tackles and three 2-point conversions. Chance Friskney had three tackles, one sack and an interception.
Sam Williams led the Spartan defensive effort with 19 tackles. Seth Williams completed 14 passes for 166 yards and one touchdown. Collin Williams had 142 total offensive yards and two touchdowns.
Up Next:
Camden-Frontier (4-3) at Litchfield (4-3); Friday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m.
Waldron (2-5) at North Adams-Jerome (0-7); Friday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m.
Hillsdale’s field goal attempt to win gets blocked by Dundee
The Hillsdale varsity football team had its playoff hopes on the line when it visited LCAA rival Dundee. The 4-2 Vikings nearly got toppled by the Hornets, who dominated defensively through three quarters.
The Vikings would mount a comeback and put a touchdown on the board with 1:30 left in the game. The ensuing 2-point conversion gave Dundee the 15-14 lead.
Hillsdale moved down the field with efficiency, setting up a chance at a field goal shot to put them into the lead and potentially win the game. The John Petersen attempt would end up getting blocked by Dundee Viking Braiden Whitacker. Dundee had blocked a PAT earlier in the game.
The Hornet defense held Whitacker to just 12 receiving yards. Hillsdale senior Jack Bowles had five tackles in the secondary and had another interception. At quarterback, Bowles had 10 completions for 126 yards and one touchdown.
The rushing effort from the Hornets was led by junior Jace Lennox, who added another 127 yards and a 21-yard touchdown to his stats for the season. Stephen Petersen had 58 rushing yards and led the team with four catches for 66 yards.
Lane Pearson had a 29-yard reception for a touchdown. Declan Flannery had three catches for 30 yards.
Stephen Petersen led the defense with 14 solo tackles, 18 total. Wyatt Coshatt had 10 tackles, including six solo. John Petersen had six tackles. Wyatt Wahtola had seven tackles. Declan Flannery contributed eight tackles.
Up Next:
Hillsdale (2-5) at Clinton (6-1); Friday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m. (NFHS broadcast)
Jonesville falls on senior night to D7 No. 6 Pewamo Westphalia
The Jonesville varsity football team was decked out in pink uniforms for its senior night showdown with Pewamo-Westphalia. The Pirates improved to 6-1 overall with their 48-6 win over Jonesville.
The Comets fell to 2-5. They will play their final Cascades West showdown with a road game at Homer.
Up Next:
Jonesville (2-5) at Homer (0-7); Friday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m. (NFHS broadcast)
Litchfield keeps playoff hopes alive with second-straight shutout
Coach Michael Langhann and the Terrier varsity football team earned their second-straight shutout victory with a 24-0 Homecoming win over Tekonsha.
Trending: Trio of Terriers catch touchdown passes in Litchfield's homecoming win over Tekonsha
It is the second shutout in 8-player program history. The Terriers have outscored their recent opponents 74-0 in their chase to earn a playoff berth.
The Terriers will have to win their games against 4-3 Camden-Frontier and against 4-3 Bellevue to earn a shot at making it in. Right now, the Terriers sit four spots out of the currently projected field of 16.
You can read more about Litchfield’s win – and thoughts from coach Langahnan - over Tekonsha in our game breakdown.
North Adams-Jerome falls victim to No. 1 team in 8-player football
It was a tough task for the North Adams-Jerome Rams and coach Dave Price as they welcomed in the No. 1 Adrian Lenawee Christian Cougars for Week 7.
Lenawee Christian dominated the matchup in a 58-6 final.
Junior athlete Will Thielen ran away for a 79-yard touchdown in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter. The Rams look to defeat the Spartans in a road matchup this Friday.
Up Next:
Waldron (2-5) at North Adams-Jerome (0-7); Friday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m.
Pittsford locks up playoff berth and looks to play for league title
The Pittsford Wildcats have locked up a playoff berth in their second-ever season of 8-player football. Coach Mike Burger and the Wildcats earned their bid to the postseason by defeating a winning Bellevue team in a 34-8 final. Pittsford stays undefeated at 7-0.
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“We played hard,” said Burger. “Bellevue was physical, but I thought we were too. When you get to this stage of the year, everyone is a little beat up. It’s the teams that want to go out there and practice every day and go to work that win. We had a great practice in the rain on Thursday and I knew the kids were going to be ready to play for homecoming.”
The Wildcats head into Week 8 looking to compete for a league title with division rival and undefeated Lenawee Christian.
You can read more about Pittsford’s homecoming victory in our Game of the Week breakdown.
Up Next:
Pittsford (7-0) at Lenawee Christian (7-0); Friday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m.
Reading falls to D8 No. 1 Ottawa Lake Whiteford
The Ranger football team faced the best in D8 football with its road trip to Whiteford. Whiteford took advantage of its opportunities and shutout the Rangers in a 58-0 victory.
Readings falls to 1-6 for the 2023 season. Lukas Strine led the Ranger offensive effort with 76 rushing yards on 20 carries. Jeremiah Bedford had seven tackles. Lukas Strine had six tackles.
Five Whiteford rushers would total over 50 yards. Ryin Ruddy had a 28-yard interception return for a touchdown.
Up Next:
Erie Mason (3-4) at Reading (1-6); Friday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m.
This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: Week 7 Notebook: 8-player football heats up with teams fighting for postseason bids
