Football: A look at where Ann Arbor teams currently stand for the postseason
With the football season getting off to a late start and teams missing games for various reasons across the state, the MHSAA created a Regional playoff system in which every team qualifies for the postseason.
Let’s take a look at where the local teams fall and how a few of the teams in those regionals are faring so far in this rollercoaster 2020 season.
The teams will be seated 1-8 in each region and that will create the first round of playoff games with the first seed playing the eighth seed and so on down the list.
All three Ann Arbor schools landed in Region 1, District 2 so Huron could still play Skyline at some point this season after the two city rivals missed each other in the regular season. They are joined by one heavyweight – Saline.
The Hornets have been their usual dominant selves this year, beating Ypsilanti, Huron and Monroe comfortably. They have scored 33 or more points in all three games, including a 43-19 win over Huron in the River Rats’ first game of the season and Saline’s second game.
The Hornets finish with Bedford, Skyline and Grand Blanc.
Both Huron and Skyline are 1-1 on the season. The River Rats (1-1) defeated Pioneer 18-8 last Friday after their loss to Saline. They were scheduled to face Ypsilanti (0-3) this Friday but that game has been cancelled. They are scheduled to play Adrian and Flat Rock – a combined 0-5 on the year – but those games also are now in doubt.
Skyline beat Pioneer 23-7 in the season opener and lost 27-6 to Bedford (3-0) on Friday. The Eagles have games left with Tecumseh, Saline and Lincoln.
Pioneer lost starting QB Conor Easthope in their opener but haven’t given up hope on the 2020 season. Despite falling behind last week to Huron, the Pioneers fought hard in the second half and made a game of it. The Pioneers (0-2), who could still be a factor when the playoffs roll around, play Monroe (2-1) on Friday before facing Ypsilanti and Dexter (1-2).
Holt has played just twice this season and have split their two games, beating Waverly and losing to Fowlerville in two close games.
Grand Ledge is 2-1 on the season with wins over St. Johns and Mattawan. They lost 64-38 to DeWitt (3-0) in their middle game. They finish with Okemos, East Lansing and Holt.
Kalamazoo Central, 0-3 on the season, won just three games last year after making the state playoffs in 2018.
Kalamazoo Loy Norrix also is 0-3 this year and won just one game in each of the past two seasons.
The number one goal for the local teams is to avoid Saline in the first round of the playoffs. Games without the Hornets should be pretty competitive and getting a few more games under your belt before facing Saline should be a big plus. Remember, Ann Arbor schools started a week after most other programs in the state.
