Milan (10-0) is coming off of a week one playoff victory over Huron League foe Airport 14-7. Tecumseh (8-2) is coming off of a come from behind victory over SEC White champion Chelsea 27-20. These two teams last met in 1999 when then SEC Milan beat Tecumseh 40-28.
Tecumseh has made a huge turn around under coach Al Romano after finishing 2-7 last season. Offensively, the Indians are led by QB Ben Dreslinski. The 6′ 3″ 190lb senior has thrown for over 1,900 yards and rushed for another 608 yards. The Indians have four seniors who have 20 or more catches in the lineup as Dreslinksi has thrown 22 TD’s against only 6 INT’s.
Defensively, Tecumseh is led by 6′ 3″ 220lb junior MLB Preston Pelham. The athletic junior leads the Indians in tackles with 123 while junior OLB Stephen Bloxam and senior CB John Terry provide athleticism for a defense that gives up just 16.3 ppg.
Milan, the Huron League champions are led offensively by senior RB Arthur Dukes III and passing QB Justin Aceves. Dukes has rushed for 1,558 yards while Aceves leads an offense that averages an impressive 34.5 ppg.
Defensively, the Big Reds are led by seniors Ben Fick and Blaine LeClair. Fick leads the Big Reds with 120 tackles. Milan also boast two outstanding LB’s in juniors Robert Kanitz and Austin Hoover Kanitz may be the best all around player in the Huron League. The Big Red defense give-up a meager 10.8 ppg.
This should be a great game and will most certainly be the game that I attend. It should be fun to watch the young Jesse Hoskins match wits with the veteran Al Romano who has won everywhere he has coached. Hurricane Sandy the frankenstorm may have something to say about this game. Bad weather would favor the rugged Big Reds while nice weather would be the Indians. With the nicknames of these two teams let’s call this the Politically Incorrect Bowl. Pick: Milan 31 Tecumseh 28
Tecumseh’s Ben Dreslinski Video
From freep.com / usatodayhss.com
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Tecumseh rising
One of the biggest upsets of the first round of the state football playoffs was Tecumseh's 27-20 victory over Chelsea, which had beaten the Indians, 31-28, in Week 7.
In the first game, Chelsea's Berkley Edwards ran for 232 yards. This time, he ran for 83 yards on 28 carries while Tecumseh's Spencer Hite ran for 114 yards to complement the 216 passing yards from Ben Dreslinski.
"The main thing is we got a little running game going, and that makes a big difference," coach Al Romano said. "And we held Edwards to under 100 yards. I think our defense just kind of took away all the cutback lanes and we had him bottled up pretty good. It was a team defensive effort."
Tecumseh trailed, 17-0, in the first quarter. In years past, Tecumseh would have lost the game, 42-0.
"We've changed the culture of the program these last two seasons and they bought into it," Ramano said. "We're a two-platoon football team, so we specialize a lot. We've got a good strength coach in Joe Linde, and it's probably about the fifth year of the strength program in school and I'm the right man in the right spot right now."
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From AnnArbor.com
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Kyle Austin | AnnArbor.com, October 30, 2012 7:59 p.m.
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Milan came into the playoffs with a perfect 9-0 record, barely tested in the last month of the regular season when it won each game by three touchdowns or more.
So coach Jesse Hoskins can see the good in the punch in the mouth that was his team’s 14-7 win over Carleton Airport Friday night. The Big Reds, against a team they had beat by 41 two weeks earlier, had their weaknesses exposed while still earning the win.
It was definitely a wake-up call, Hoskins said.
“I think in a lot of respects, it’s the best thing that could have happened to us,” Hoskins said.
Hoskins said his players arrived Saturday “humbled and refocused” as they began preparation for their home district title game against Tecumseh on Friday in the AnnArbor.com "Game of the Week" in which Milan will be going for its first district title since 2007.
The Milan vs. Tecumseh game won the Game of the Week voting with 997 of the 2,064 votes cast. The Pioneer versus Saline game came in second with 745 votes.
Practices this week have been sharp, as the coaching staff hones in on correcting the slew of offensive mistakes — including dropped balls and missed blocking assignments — that held the team to its lowest scoring output of the season.
“We just did a whole variety of things that we haven’t done all year,” Hoskins said.
In the fourth quarter of Friday’s game, needing a touchdown to avoid heading to overtime, Milan gave the ball to quarterback Robert Kanitz, who carried on every play on the last drive and scored the game-winning touchdown.
The 192-yard performance marked Kanitz’s continued emergence over the last three weeks. In a backfield that includes Washtenaw County’s leading rusher, Arthur Dukes, Kanitz has been in the spotlight for the last three weeks, averaging nearly 200 yards per game.
That mark includes a 256-yard performance against Lincoln two weeks ago, when the Railsplitters defense keyed in on Dukes, opening things up for Kanitz. With the game on the line Friday, Hoskins went with the hot hand.
“We just stuck with it because it worked,” Hoskins said.
The Milan defense, though, may need a little more help from the offense this week against the Indians. Tecumseh’s offense is averaging more than 35 points per game, led by 1,686 regular season passing yards from quarterback Ben Dreslinski.
But Hoskins said his gameplan centers around taking away Tecumseh’s running attack — which put up 184 yards last week against Chelsea — and forcing the Indians to pass.
That means Hoskins is challenging his team’s pass defense, which doesn’t see a lot of action in the Huron League, to shut down a team that has shown it can pass.
“Defending the pass is something that we work on every single day,” Hoskins said. “I wouldn’t say we’re at a disadvantage, I’d say it's a challenge for our guys.”
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Hey 216. Start paying attention. Adrenalin only goes so far.
Seen them both play, should be a great game. 2 good teams that played some of the same competition.
News flash.. playing both ways is nothing new. That should never be an excuse for a teams poor performance.
Milan will probably win this one. The Tecumseh QB is good but not alot of depth on that team. Airport picked them 2x and dropped 2. Difference here as with the Airport game is the Milan QB. His running was the difference between a win and a playoff upset last week. Milan's D line pass rush was unstoppable down the stretch not allowing Airports QB to put together another come from behind win like the week before.
The Airport team or S.M. doesn't deserve that comment. This was a team whose stars were up and down all year due to lack of depth. When your main receiver plays corner,qb plays safety and many lineman play both ways it will usually not end well.
The Tecumseh and Milan games were heroic efforts by the entire team!
Upset? Errr wouldn't really call it an upset if Tecumseh won.
The key matchup to look for is Milan's front 7 putting pressure on Dreslinski. If they do they win, if not Tecumseh could pull the upset. I like Milan 28-14. As for 1:47 poster, it's pretty impressive that a "one man team" made the playoffs at all. Any "one man team" should feel lucky to make the playoffs. Btw smart guy its McCormick, not Mackormick. EM
Milan fan base seem to be able to get the votes out for the AnnArbor.com game of the week 🙂
Here are some keys: can Milan's secondary stop the quick post when split out wide?
Will the offense unleash their passing game when if the run game gets stopped on some drives?
Will Milan's special teams come through? Kick-off, punt, field goal? The kick-return put them up last game.
Crowd: Milan folks are like fans at a Michigan game…unless it is 4th and 2 in the 4th quarter, not much noise!
So, final question, Will the crowd make some noise?
Tecumseh and Milan common opponents (for what it's worth):
Ypsilanti (1-8)
Milan 42, Ypsi 8
Tecumseh 35, Ypsi 13
Monroe Jefferson (1-8)
Tecumseh 49, Jefferson 14
Milan 38, Jefferson 14
Ypsi Lincoln (5-4)
Tecumseh 41, Lincoln 14
Milan 36, Lincoln 14
Very similar outcomes, although I will admit sometimes it's tough to make determinations based on final scores against 1-8 teams. Lincoln did have some talent but not the overall depth needed to excel for a full game against a playoff-caliber team.
Go Indians!!!!
1:47am…I wonder what is going on at that hour..lay off the sauce pal! these are kids!
I agree with Tom. The stands were pretty quiet last week. I guess the fans were the ones with a case of the nerves for playoffs. lol We knew it wouldn't be a blowout, but that game was too close. Nervous about this week too. Hopefully, the kinks from last week will be worked out.
It wont be easy to beat a Romano coached team. Its not fluke that he takes over and BAM they are tough. Same can be said probably for Hoskins. Next year will be the test for Hoskins. Can he sustain the greatness? This is a cool matchup. One that I called out a month ago. cant wait.
from AnnArbor.com (http://annarbor.com/sports/high-school/playoff-notes-and-leaders/):
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Milan win underwhelming
Milan coach Jesse Hoskins didn’t have the look of a coach whose team just won its tenth straight game on Friday night. Milan beat Carleton Airport 14-7, but Hoskins was not shy in labeling it his team’s worst performance.
“(In the first half) we moved the ball between the 20s — up and down the field — but we left 21, 28 points off the board. And then the second half, same thing,” Hoskins said after the game. “Am I happy that we won? A little bit, but we didn’t play nearly the way we’re capable of playing.”
Milan beat Airport 41-0 just two weeks prior. But a pair of goal line stands and several dropped would-be touchdown passes led to the Big Reds putting up a season low in points, more than three touchdowns less than their season average. Milan didn’t score an offensive touchdown until the final two minutes of the fourth quarter.
Milan plays Tecumseh on Friday at Milan High School in a Division 3 district championship game.
“We need to raise our level of play, play the way Milan’s capable of playing, and then we can compete,” Hoskins said.
Quarterback/running back Robert Kanitz saw the silver lining in the sub-par performance: hopefully the team got the hiccup out of its system.
“I think it will be good because it’s kind of like a wake up call,” Kanitz said. “You just gotta go back and work even harder this week and come out ready to play even harder next week.”
Twin turnarounds
Raise your hand if your preseason predictions included Milan vs. Tecumseh as a district title game.
Nobody? That’s what I thought.
The two teams combined to go 3-15 last year: Milan went 1-8, and Tecumseh went 2-7.
Yet the two schools both roared back this year, and meet Friday with a combined 18-2 record. The Big Reds are undefeated at 10-0, and Tecumseh is 8-2.
The matchup will be the continuation of an old Southeastern Conference rivalry dormant since 1999, Milan’s last year before jumping to the Huron League. The Big Reds won the last eight contests between the two teams.
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I couldn't agree more with the 8:42 poster. Milan's defensive backs have been up to the challenge this season, but this could be their biggest test. Ypsi Lincoln was very effective by spreading Milan out and identifying individual matchups in the passing game, but their QB just wasn't quite accurate enough to really make things click throughout that game. In a close game, all it takes is one blown coverage or one broken tackle to turn the tide of the game, though, so it will be a great test.
Milan wants to own the clock, but the Big Reds need to cash in on their drives. Also, Milan, don't shy away from the FG to cap a long drive. Hoover is a decent HS kicker and has earned his chances. Last week, Milan had too many deep drives end in no points. You have to cash in 3 isn't 7, but it's not zero neither.
Lastly, anyone crowing too loud for Milan must not have been at the game last week. The nerves weren't a problem for the players alone–the stands were pretty quiet, too. And I love what the team has accomplished this season, but the spectre of 1-8 isn't that far behind us. It should be pretty easy to stay humble and celebrate with class.
I agree, this should be a close game. Milan has been a proven winner all season long and Tecumseh has proven that they can beat some good teams. Both Milan and Tecumseh played poorly against Airport, so don't use that as a measuring stick. Milan does have a good defense, but so does Tecumseh, they help Edwards of Chelsea in check for a good part of the game.
I think it will boil down to mistakes. Who has the least penalties, turn overs that sort of thing.
Good luck to both teams.
I pick Tecumseh because they can pass the ball very effectively and that might lead to an advantage for them.
Should be a great game for both teams and fans.
Just for the record, I like the nicknames of each school.
This should be a great game. What it boils down to is can Milan stop a legitimate passing attack, something they haven't seen all season long. On the other side, can Tecumseh stop Milans power run game ? If you ask me, I can't pick a winner…. I've seen both teams numerous times. However, I agree that weather will be a main factor
Every game is tough from here on out. Through out the records. This will be a great match up.
If Milan's passing game is there, they will be hard to stop.
If Milan's defensive backs can stop the long pass, that would be key.
Looks like decent weather!
Like the Milan Grosse Ile game, it came down to some grind it out drives, and tough defense for Milan.
I agree with the Milan win. I believe this comes down to Milan being a more complete team than Tecumseh. Tecumseh may have an advantage throwing the ball, but that is the only spot. Milan has a better run game and defense. I think if Milan controls the clock and puts some pressure on the QB from Tecumseh, it could be a blowout. I have seen both these teams play this season against Airport. I know some on here will say that is not a good gauge of competition, but that is simply opinion. I will agree their play was inconsistent this year, but against both teams in weeks 9 and 10 played quality ball. I believe the Huron League is stronger than the SEC and it will show on Friday. Good luck on Friday to all Huron League teams.
LOL, wow. I think somebody needs to eeeeeaassee of the throttle.
Are you okay big fella?
Go BIG REDS! !!!
I dont see Milan having a problem with Tecumseh. Airport beat them and they are horrible. I know the game with Milan was close last week but Milan had a down game. Airport should feel lucky they even made the playoffs. This is a one man team Scott Mackormick. If the coaches had a clue and would use this kid right then Airport would have a better record. And as far as Airports playoff streak that is a joke. When have they won anything or gone anywhere. When they do something like CC, Jefferson, or GI has done then they can talk until then who cares that you make it because when you get there you produce nodda ! Just sick of the Airport chirpers.
Good pick… should be a darn good game. I wish I could attend. I wonder if the American Indians really do take offense to the word Indians being used. I guess I understand why maybe Big Reds could be offensive but Indians? Maybe thats for another blog.
Should be a great game; the Big Reds will be ready!