Michigan prep football notebook: Teams surprising us through three games

We were past three games into the 2022 high school football season and there are some teams throughout Michigan surprising everyone.

Over in the Ann Arbor area, Dexter is off to his first 3-0 start since 1966. While 56 years is a surprisingly long time between 3-0 starts, its not surprising when you factor in Michigan running back commit Cole Cabana. The four-star running back scored four touchdowns in a 27-6 win over Bedford last week, three on the ground and one on the receiving end of a pass. Its last 4-0 start was 1965 and it will look to match that this Friday against Ypsilanti Lincoln.

Over in Saginaw, the Heritage program is 3-0 for the first time since 2006 with a 52-40 win over Defending Division 1 semifinalist Grand Blanc. The Hawks have scored 174 in their three wins and gained 569 yards of offense to improve to 3-0. In the win over Grand Blanc, Heritage had 569 yards of offense. In the run game, Tommy Churchill racked up 245 yards and a touchdown, while Ty Robertson rushed for 122 yards and three more touchdowns.

Over in Grand Rapids, Grandville Calvin Christian is 3-0 for the first time since 2011. Excluding when it didn’t even have a team in 2020, Calvin Christian finished 1-8 in each of its last four seasons. Also in the Grand Rapids area, Grand Rapids Union is 3-0 for the first time since 1998.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, Jackson Lumen Christi is 0-3 for the first time since 1970. The perennial power was 11-2 last year, losing by a point in the Division 7 state semifinals. Still, its not like Lumen Christi should be counted out just yet as all three losses were by one possession, falling to New Lothrop, Traverse City St. Francis and Hastings. Lumen will look to get back on the winning track against Jackson County Western this week.

Speaking of New Lothrop, it is ranked No. 1 in the Division 7 coaches poll and it is 3-0 for the 11th time in 12 years after beating Clarkston Everest Collegiate 55-0. The Hornets, who have won two state championships in that stretch, have outscored their opponents 107-21 and their victims include perennial small-school power Jackson Lumen Christi.

Speaking of dominant teams, after a 54-0 Victory over Shepherd, Gladwin has now outscored its opposition 172-0 on the season. The Flying Gs — a Fantastic nickname, by the way — have recorded shutouts in nine of their past 13 games.

A NOTABLE COMEBACK

After trailing Bay City All Saints 30-8 at halftime, New Haven Merritt had managed just 22 points through the first 10 quarters of the season. But the Mustangs scored 30 points over the next two frames, rallying for a 38-30 victory in the eight-player football game.

BIG RIVALRY GAME IN DETROIT

The Matchup between Detroit Cass Tech and Detroit Martin Luther King each year is always a marquee matchup. However, both teams enter this season’s Matchup in dire need of a marquee win.

For Friday nights Matchup at Cass Tech, the hosts are 1-2 so far this season while King is 1-1 after having a bye in Week 2.

Both teams are filled with talent as both teams have the two best quarterbacks in the city. Kings five-star quarterback Dante Moore is a well-known Talent by this point while Cass Tech senior quarterback Dante Moore is in his third season as a starter for the Technicians.

Both teams want to avoid digging deeper holes to crawl out from. Cass Tech led Southfield A&T most of the way in Week 1, but eventually lost in OT, 56-54. Then it suffered a 35-21 defeat at the hands of Indiana’s Carmel High School. After a 66-0 win over Detroit Renaissance last week, Cass Tech will aim for its first winning streak of the season. After King lost to Indiana’s Warren Central, 44-26, in Week 1, it stomped Detroit Mumford, 68-0 in Week 3.

IN MEMORIAM

Michigan Lutheran Seminary beat St. Louis, 58-6, in a memorial game for Seminary Hall of Fame Coach Loren Dietrich, who died in May. Dietrich, who led Seminary to the state title in 1986, was an all-state player at Arthur Hill, a three-year starter at Central Michigan University and the first MVP in CMU program history.