MHSAA football final: Detroit King mows down Muskegon for D-3 title, 56-27

Two of the state’s most freewheeling teams went toe-to-toe in the Michigan high school football Division 3 state championship game Saturday night at Ford Field, and it didn’t take long for Detroit King to make its mark against Muskegon.

King’s Jameel Croft took the opening kick to the end zone from 56 yards away, grabbing a 7-0 lead just 15 seconds into the contest and establishing the tone for King’s 56-27 victory. Croft scored again on a 13-yard reception from Dante Moore just over five minutes into the first quarter, and the Big Reds had to try to work back from the early deficit all night.

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Although Muskegon answered quickly on a 60-yard burst from quarterback M’Khi Guy on the first play of the next series to cut the deficit in half, Damon Stennis restored King’s two-score lead 1:55 before the end of the opening quarter. Stennis took a backward pass from Dante Moore and brought it to the end zone — credited as a 9-yard run.

Muskegon worked back to within a touchdown on their next possession, starting when Dustin Piggee’s 41-yard kickoff return brought the ball past midfield. With Guy and Jakob Price splitting the running assignments, the Big Reds quickly got the ball into the red zone.

On fourth-and-1 from the 8, Guy kept the ball and encountered a wall of King defenders. He reversed field and was able to make the turn around the right end and scrambled into the end zone to bring Muskegon within 21-14.

But the Crusaders (10-3) had an answer, and re-established their two-touchdown lead with 4:33 to play in the half, on Sterling Anderson’s 19-yard off-tackle run.

King’s defense forced Muskegon (11-3) to punt the ball back with 2:24 left, an eternity for Moore and his offense. The Oregon-bound blue-chipper hit four of five passes on the drive, including a delivery to Anderson in the open field at the Muskegon 23. Anderson made two tacklers miss before being driven out of bounds at the 2. From there, Moore hit Stennis streaking across the end zone to go up 35-14 at the half.

The score remained that way until five minutes remained in the third quarter, when Jakob Price scored on a two-yard dive. That was set up by a 51-yard burst on the prior play by Guy, who faked a handoff and hit an interior seam.

On the final play of the third quarter, Moore spotted Jacobe Oglesby in the end zone, who went up over a Muskegon defender to haul in a high ball. Terrence Moore’s sixth extra point set King’s lead at 42-21.

The teams traded two more scores in quick fashion to start the fourth quarter. Piggee streaked into the end zone on a 71-yard pass reception, but King answered the blow on the first play of the next series with an 80-yard Anderson sprint, making the count 49-27.

King struck again with 5:17 to play, as Moore threw a 12-yard pass to Croft, who fell across the goal line while being tackled.

Both quarterbacks kept the tempo up all night. Moore completed 21 of 26 pass attempts for 275 yards and four touchdowns while rushing for another 29 yards. Guy only threw four passes, completing two, but they went for 97 yards and one score. He led Muskegon with 135 rushing yards.

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Anderson had 207 yards on the ground on 13 attempts, averaging just short of 16 yards per carry, as the Crusaders racked up 529 yards of total offense.

For so much ball movement, it was a clean game, with just one turnover — a Muskegon fumble on its opening possession of the second half.

Muskegon seems to have King’s number everywhere but Ford Field. The Big Reds hold a 6-2 edge in head-to-head competition all-time, but King’s two victories came Saturday and in the 2018 Division 3 title game — another high-scoring affair at 41-25.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: MHSAA football final: Detroit King mows Muskegon for D-3 title, 56-27