Huddle up! Here’s a look back at this weekend on the gridiron, with three key takeaways from the state’s football scene -- and a glimpse at what’s to come next week.
Recommended Videos
Big Ten has morphed back into ‘70s era. Why is that?
Once again, it will come down to “The Game” on Nov. 25 to determine the Big Ten title and probable berth in the College Football Playoff.
Barring miraculous upsets on Saturday, Ohio State and Michigan will meet as unbeatens on Nov. 25 in Ann Arbor.
It’s as if we’re all in a “Back to the Future” movie and have gone back in time to the ‘70s and much of the ‘80s, when the only game that had any significance in the Big Ten was Ohio State-Michigan.
Even in this era of limited scholarships, the transfer portal and NIL money, the gap between the Buckeyes and Wolverines and the rest of the Big Ten is as wide as it was when Bo and Woody were around.
Wisconsin just lost at home by two touchdowns to Northwestern.
Michigan State might be at its lowest point in program history.
Penn State has shown it can beat up on everyone else, but not challenge OSU and U-M.
Iowa is winning despite having one of the worst offenses in the country, probably by default because everyone else in the Big Ten West is so bad.
With this in mind, we want to hear your thoughts.
Why is the rest of the Big Ten so bad? It’s obviously a credit to OSU and U-M for staying as powerhouses, but the regression of other programs is stunning.
Is there not good enough NIL programs at these other schools? Have population losses in states destroyed recruiting bases? Is it just plain incompetence among administration or coaches at these schools?
Feel free to chime in below and give us your thoughts as we all prepare for Nov. 25 and continue to ride that DeLorean back in time.
Prep semifinals to be held Saturday
High school football teams in the state are now one step away from reaching the grandest stage, the state finals Thanksgiving weekend at Ford Field. Here are the best semifinal matchups to watch this weekend involving Detroit-area teams. Game times are 1 p.m. Saturday.
Davison (12-0) vs. Belleville (12-0) at Novi — Both these teams can light up the scoreboard, but two-time defending Division 1 champion Belleville has the edge on defense.
Southfield A&T (11-1) vs. West Bloomfield (10-2) at Troy — A rare semifinal matchup between two teams that are in the same league, but they were in different divisions within the OAA. West Bloomfield won the regular season meeting, 31-20.
Waterford Mott (10-2) vs. Warren De La Salle (10-2) at Troy Athens — Mott is a great story that’s making its first ever semifinal appearance. But it might be daunting challenge dethroning two-time Division 2 champ De La Salle.
Detroit Martin Luther King (7-5) vs. Mason (12-0) at Chelsea — Fresh off a thrilling one-point win over River Rouge, Martin Luther King looks to hand Mason its first loss.
Western Michigan wins two trophies with triumph over Central Michigan
With a 38-28 win last Tuesday over Central Michigan, Western Michigan did more than just beat the Chippewas for the fourth time in five years and 10th time in the last 13 years.
The Broncos also held on to the Victory Cannon trophy the teams play for each year and won the Michigan MAC Trophy after beating both CMU and Eastern Michigan this year.
Western Michigan head coach Lance Taylor also became the first WMU head coach to ever beat CMU in his first year.