Branch County High School Football Week 8 Previews and Predictions

In a blink we are preparing for Week 8 of the Prep Football season here in Branch County, meaning there are only two weeks of guaranteed football left on the year.

Two teams from Branch County are making a serious push for the MHSAA postseason, with one team a lock for the playoffs while the other may still have some work to do.

The Union City Chargers are essentially in at Division 7, now it’s just a matter of what seed, district and opponent they draw. Union City has one more conference game this week and with a victory will wrap up the outright Big 8 conference crown, leading to a matchup versus the Cascade Conference champion next week in the Big 8/Cascade Crossover event.

In 8-man football the Tekonsha indians are on the brink of another trip to the MHSAA postseason but two tough games to finish out the season could take that away from them. A long trip in week 8 followed by a meeting with one of the top teams in the land in week 9 could derail Tekonsha’s postseason dreams, so the job is far from done for the Gavin Wisel led Indians.

The three remaining teams in Branch County are now playing for pride as they look to close out the season with a flourish, hoping a few wins to finish up the year could lead to big things in the offseason.

So with that in mind and without further ado, let us take a look at the Branch County Prep Football Week 8 Previews and Predictions.

Game One- The Daily Reporter Game of the Week- Quincy Orioles (1-6) at Bronson Vikings (2-5), at Bronson High School for Bronson’s Homecoming, Friday night, kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m.

Outlook: Our The Daily Reporter Game of the Week will pit two long time rivals versus one another as the Bronson Vikings will host the Quincy Orioles for their annual Homecoming Festivities. These two teams have a long history, dating back to even before Bronson joined the Big 8 conference. These two teams would almost always meet in the first game of the season, a non-conference clash that would set the tone for either team entering the year. Now the game takes place inside the Big 8 conference where it belongs and both teams enter week 8 badly in need of a win.

The Quincy Orioles secured their first win of the season two weeks ago versus Springport but dropped last week’s match up with Jonesville 45-12. Quincy comes into week 8 with losses to Sand Creek, Union City, Reading, Homer, Manchester, and Jonesville, with their lone win coming over Springport. On the year Quincy has scored 13.71 points a game while allowing 34.14 points a contest.

In last week’s loss to Jonesville the Orioles continued to build some offensive momentum, scoring 12 points against a solid Comets defense. Senior running back Tre’Von Bodley had a big game, rushing the ball 22 times for 140 yards and two touchdowns. Also leading the Quincy offense are quarterback Brennan Allman and skill position players Sam Sawyer, Ethan Copas, Joseph Smith and Ryder Schmachtenberger. On defense the Orioles are led by Blaine Pish, Davin George, Nash Fitton, Hunter Tinervia and more.

Bronson on the other hand is on a deep skid, dropping five straight games after starting off the season at 2-0. Bronson kicked off the year with wins over Prairie Heights and Springport before dropping games to Homer, Jonesville, Reading, Union City and non-conference opponent Michigan Center. Bronson has had some ups and downs all season long, averaging 18.85 points a game while allowing 35.42 points a contest.

The Bronson Vikings are coming off a very tough loss to long time rival Union City, a loss that saw the Vikings turn the ball over eight total times. Bronson was able to get a little bit of the passing attack going, throwing for 111 yards, including a 13 yards touchdown pass from Kam Brackett to Drew Norton. The offense is still looking for the right people to carry the load and the likes of Seth Withington, Boston Bucklin, Devlin Duff, Drew Norton and Adam Riddle have all shown the ability to do so. On defense the Vikings are led by the tough play of sophomore Collin York along with tough as nails players Jacob Dixon, Boston Bucklin, Conner Harvey, Seth Withington, Drew Norton and many more.

Ultimately this game will come down to who can make play the most complete game, free of major mistakes and turnovers. Neither team has been able to do that with much consistency so Friday’s rivalry battle will be a true test of wills. Who will it be? Who will take home the win in the final Big 8 contest for both teams?

Prediction: Quincy 20, Bronson 13.

Game Two- Coldwater Cardinals (1-6) at Harper Creek Beavers (2-5) at Harper Creek High School, Friday night beginning at 7 p.m.

Outlook: The 2022 season did not go the way either team had hoped as the Coldwater Cardinals travel to Harper Creek to take on their Interstate 8 rivals.

Coldwater comes into week 8 after a tough loss in week 7, falling to the Northwest Mounties by the score of 29-22. Coldwater had a chance to win that game, with Northwest needing a late touchdown to take the win. Coldwater scored a clutch touchdown on a 1 yard touchdown run by Jackson Reilly with 5:39 left in the game. A huge 2 point conversion on a pass from Zach Coffing to Chase Lieby gave the Cardinals the late 22-21 lead. Northwest answered the call however, embarking on a 6 play, 74 yard drive that ended in a 8 yard touchdown run for Adam Haselius, pushing the Mounties into the lead at 29-22 with 2:50 left in the game. Coldwater could not complete the comeback, falling to the Mounties on the road.

Coldwater continued to struggle on the offensive side of the ball, putting up only 247 total yards versus Northwest, 77 through the air and 170 on the ground. The Cardinals were led by Jack Ruden who had 9 carries for 60 yards and Alex Robey who had 11 carries for 43 yards. Quarter back Zach Coffing completed 7 of 15 passes for 77 yards and a score while Hunter Munson hauled in four catches for 57 yards and a touchdown.

With the loss Coldwater dropped to 1-6 on the year with losses to Grand Ledge, Plainwell, Marshall, Lumen Christi, Hastings, and Northwest with their lone win coming versus Pennfield.

Coming into week 8 the Harper Creek Beavers sit at 2-5 on the year, boasting wins over Northwest and Pennfield while falling to the likes of Marshall, Hastings, Parma Western, Lakeview and Battle Creek Central.

Neither team scores much, with Coldwater averaging 12.14 points a game while Harper Creek averages 11.85 points a contest. On defense Harper Creek has a slight advantage, giving up an average of 27.14 points a game while Coldwater’s defense has allowed 37.28 points a game.

Harper Creek’s offense is led by KeyShaun Matthews and Matthew Wensaur while the defense relies on the likes of Jimmy Leamy and Brady Southfield. The Beavers like to mix things up with the pass and the run on offense, which will keep the Cardinal defense on its toes.

Coldwater has started to find some semblance of a run game in the past few weeks and will look to the likes of Jayden Kegler, Alex Robey, Jack Ruden and Jackson Reilly along with quarterback Zach Coffing to move down the field. Coffing has a talented group of receivers to pass to in 6’8” Donte Work, Chase Lieby and the ultra athletic Hunter Munson.

What this game will come down to is if the Coldwater defense can get key stops when they need to, and whether Harper Creek will be able to move the ball down the field. Both teams have struggled, but for one team this game will be a big win heading to the final week of the season.

Prediction: Harper Creek 20, Coldwater 12.

Game Three: Union City Chargers (6-1) at Springport Spartans (0-7) at Springport High School, Friday night beginning at 7 p.m.

Outlook: The Union City Chargers have been rolling since a week one loss to Centreville, having rattled off six wins in a row. With a win Friday night against Springport the Chargers will have wrapped up an outright Big 8 conference crown in the process. As it stands right now Union City has at the very least a share of the conference title, but it’s the whole thing the Chargers are looking for.

Union City comes into the game boasting wins over Quincy, Jonesville, Reading, Homer, Addison and most recently Bronson, with their lone loss coming to the 8th ranked team in Division 8 in the Centreville Bulldogs. During that span the Chargers are averaging 25.7 points a game, not exactly a huge number, however when your shut down defense is only allowing 12 points a contest it is more than enough.

The Chargers are unique on the offensive side of the ball in that they are multidimensional in the true sense of the word. They can and do employ several different offensive sets, having the ability to churn the ball down the field with their Wing-T and leading rusher Riley Laird, along with tough backs Owen Jackson, Dylon MacDonald, Colton Russell, Landyn Crance, Caden Hughes and more, or they can spread things wide open with playmaking quarterback Eli Payne and his talented group of receivers in Rick Austin and Jeremy Zehr.

The key to any football team however is the play of their line and Union City has one of the best in Grady Iobe, Jakob Fosmore, Hunter Gillies, Tyler Wagley and Phoenix Elkins.

On defense Union City is coming off a huge win over rival Bronson in the Battle for the Shield, a contest that saw the Union City defense force eight turnovers on the way to a 48-6 victory. Their line consisting of Iobe, Wagley, Elkins and Fosmore is one of the most disruptive in the state and linebackers Colton Russell, Luke Watson and Owen Jackson are as stout as anyone.

Springport is on a slide the other way, coming into week 8 at 0-7 overall, with losses to Stockbridge, Bronson, Homer, Napoleon, Jonesville, Quincy and Reading. The Spartans have scored in double figures only once all season long in a 50-12 loss to Bronson. Springport is only averaging 6.7 points a game on offense while having allowed 50 points a game, giving up 350 points coming into week 8.

For a team that is struggling to score going against a defense like Union City’s, a team that boasts one of the most disruptive lines in the state and one of the most talented groups of linebackers in the conference, well Friday night could be a nightmare for the Springport offense.

Union City is on a mission and Springport just happens to be in the way here at the end of the Big 8 schedule. Look for the Doug Counterman/Fred Bradford led Chargers to win big and wrap up their Big 8 conference title in a big win. This game may just be over by the half.

Prediction: Union City 56, Springport 0.

Game Four- Tekonsha Indians (6-1) at Holgate Tigers (5-2) at Holgate, Ohio for 8-Man Football. Game is scheduled for Saturday night at 6 p.m. at Holgate High School.

Outlook: The Tekonsha Indians have a tough road to end their 2022 regular season campaign, facing off with two very good teams to finish off the season. Their first test is a nearly 2 hour drive to Holgate, Ohio to take on the Tigers who enter week 8 at 5-2 on the season. Holgate is a very good team, ranked number two in the state of Ohio in their division, coming in with wins over St. Mary Central Catholic, Washtenaw Saints, Danbury, Tri-State Crusaders and Stryker, with losses to Toledo Christian and Tri-State Crusaders in their first game of the season.

Holgate can score the football, averaging just over 36 points a game while the defense allows 26 points a contest. Holgate is a true dual threat team, mixing up the pass and the run to near perfection. Although the Tigers did struggle in their last game, a 48-6 loss to Toledo Christian, a game that saw Holgate put up 158 yards passing and minus 20 yards rushing, they were much more balanced in a 50-14 win over Stryker two weeks ago. Holgate passed for 241 total yards and ran for another 200, while only allowing 116 total yards for Stryker.

Carrying the load for Holgate was quarterback Xavier McCord who is a dual threat kind of signal caller, passing in that game for 241 yards and four touchdowns with one interception while adding five carries for 35 yards and a score. Isaac DeLong led the team in rushing with five carries for 113 yards and a score while Chris Plotts added 10 carries for 34 yards and a score. The receiver corps is deep, led by Dylan Boecker, Ezekiel Belmares, and DeLong. On defense Holgate is led by Boecker and Delong while Adon Corser can get after the quarterback and blow things up in the backfield with his disruptive play.

Holgate has to contend with one of the most potent offenses in the state of Michigan, as Tekonsha comes into the game averaging just over 55 points a game and just under 532 yards of total offense. Tekonsha has been known much of the year for their running game, averaging 380.6 yards per contest, however in their win over Burr Oak this past week the Indians opened up the passing game, as quarterback Wyatt Blashfield threw for six total touchdowns. Heading into week 8 Tekonsha averages 151 yards per game through the air.

The Tekonsha offense is led by quarterback Wyatt Blashfield who has rushed the ball 107 times for 1379 yards and 15 touchdowns, averaging 197 yards per game, while also adding 41 for 65 passing for 1057 yards and 15 touchdowns with only four interceptions. Joining Blashfield in the potent rushing attack is junior running back Xander Kilbourn who has 76 carries for 879 yards and 15 touchdowns, averaging 125.6 yards rushing per game. Kilbourn has also hauled in 15 catches for 300 yards and three scores as a true dual threat back. Also aiding in the passing game are tight end Isaac Henry and receivers Kyle Redd and Jake Boring who is coming off a career day last week versus Burr Oak.

The Tekonsha defense is led by seniors Derek Booker (76 total tackles), Claude Wart (53 total tackles, 12 for a loss) and leading tackler Ben Mead (108 total tackles, 14 for a loss), among other highly athletic players.

The key for Tekonsha in this game may just be their aggressive and dominant offensive line, a group of young men who know they are one of the best in the state and act like it. Holding down the line are the Griffith’s squared in Dylan Griffith and Blake Griffith along with Claude Wart and tight end Isaac Henry. If they can continue to open up holes like they have all year this could be another big win for Tekonsha.

In the end this is perhaps Tekonsha’s biggest challenge to date and could go a long way in determining if they actually make the 8-man playoffs in the state of Michigan, as only the top 16 teams in each division are invited to the postseason. This is a big one for the Indians and driving two hours to get there can either hurt them or help them. Either they will be tired and tight from the drive or they will look at it as we aren’t coming this way for nothing. It may just be an ole fashioned shoot out between these two teams, and it’s going to be exciting.

Prediction: Holgate 34, Tekonsha 28.

Sports Editor Troy Tennyson went 3-1 with his picks last week, with his lone loss coming in the Coldwater vs. Northwest contest. How do you feel about this week’s picks? Do you agree with Troy or disagree? Let him know via email at ttennyson@thedailyreporter.com. Follow The Daily Reporter all night Friday night for up to minute stats, scores and more news as it becomes avaialbe for all games across the county. Stay tuned to The Daily Reporter Facebook page for scoring updates as they become available all night on Friday and at nigh ton Saturday for the one Saturday game.

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Branch County High School Football Week 8 Previews and Predictions