Undermanned Mid Pen Falls, 28-0 Mid Peninsula Wolverines Football Coach Jeremy Herman never uses injuries as an excuse for losing, but Friday night's game with North Dickinson showed just how big of a factor they can be. Lineman Travis Depuydt and cornerback Brad Verbrigghe were both out with ankle injuries, and the Wolverines lost lineman Chris Micheau to a possible concussion in the second quarter. The Wolverines had just 15 bodies to put onto the field, and most of them were little...only two 6-foot or taller, and several 160 pounds or lighter. North Dickinson, meanwhile, had a full complement of 23 players, including four at 225 pounds or more. All of the above played a part in Friday's 28-0 Nordic victory, along with the fact that North Dickinson is the second-ranked team in the Upper Peninsua. The Nordics scored on four posessions in the first half, then the game was called at halftime after bad weather rolled in. After waiting for about an hour, and after the two coaches and athletic directors huddled, the game was declared official rather than have the teams return on Saturday to play the second half. Honestly, it would have been a waste of time and gas to come back Saturday. Despite a spirited (and hard-hitting) effort by the Wolverines, they were simply overmatched from the start. The Nordics took the opening kickoff and drove 75 yards on six plays, with quarterback Paul Roell scoring from 14-yards out...using a sweet fake with the ball behind his back to do it. Mid Pen appeared to tie the game up when quarterback Todd Winkelbauer got free for a 47-yard touchdown run, but a holding penalty brought it back. Mid Pen didn't threaten again. The Nordics drove 53 yards in 10 plays on their second posession, with Garth Budek scoring from five yards out. John Nurmi scored the two-point conversion to make it 14-0. The Wolverines were handcuffed by poor field position and went three-and-out. The Nordics took over at the 46 and five plays later, Mike Miller scored on a five-yard TD run to make it 20-0. Budek's two-point conversion run made it 22-0 The Wolverines put together a couple of first downs on their next posession, and drove to the Nordic 46 after Adam Soyring found Chris Tritt for a 25-yard strike. (You can hear replays of two of North Dickinson's touchdowns, plus a pass from Soyring to Tritt, by clicking the LISTEN button on the left side of this page). But Mid Pen ended up punting, and Winkelbauer buried the Nordics at their own one yard line. Sure enough, North Dickinson drove 99 yards and Budek scored a three-yard TD with 43 seconds left in the half to make it 28-0. When the Wolverines got the ball back. Winkelbauer was stopped for a one-yard gain and Micheau took a knee to the helmet. He was down for a long while before being carted off on a stretcher. The officials sent both teams to the locker room for an early halftime, and while both teams were indoors, weather rolled in. Officials waited for about an hour before calling the game official. About an hour after everybody went home, another batch of heavy thunderstorms rolled through the area, showing that the decision to end the game at 8:45 ET was a good one. North Dickinson had 252 yards rushing (Peter Leeman had 82, Budek 62, Damien Smith 58, Roell 42). Mid Pen had just 56 yards of total offense and ran a total of 16 plays from scrimmage.

Mid Pen Routed By L'Anse, 46-8 It was an old-fashioned butt-kicking Friday night as the L'Anse Purple Hornets used their size and skill advantage to top the Mid Peninsula Wolverines, 46-8. L'Anse rolled to a 38-0 lead in the second quarter and sat their starters for the entire second half, which was played with a running clock under the mercy rule. "They definately out-hustled and out-hit us," Mid Pen Head Coach Jeremy Herman said. "When you get guys that size, hitting that hard...we took the brunt of it. We were out-hustled and they were pushing us around out there." The Hornets featured a line-up with six lineman over 200 pounds, including two who are pushing 300. And their backs ran hard behind the holes opened up by the line. The tone for the game was set on the first play of the game when Cameron Aten rumbled for 43 yards. Five plays later, Dan Perrault was in teh end zone, completing a 77-yard drive. The Wolverines went three-and-out, with all three plays resulting in negative yards. After a punt, L'Anse took over at mid-field and Perrault and Jaron McIntyre broke off back-to-back 25 yard runs. Then Aten scored from one yard out to make it 14-0. "That's a tough way to start a game," Herman said. "I think after that first drive, maybe we got a little apprehensive. They were firing off the ball, they were lower, they were driving off their feet. Fundamentally, they just basically took it to us." The Wolverine offense continued to sputter, and early in the second quarter, the Hornets completed another nine-play drive, with Aten scoring from two yards out. When Perrault ran in the two-pointer, it was 22-0 and the Wolverines still didn't have a first down. A three-yard run by Todd Winkelbauer with 7:45 left in the half delivered that first first down, but moments later, Mid Pen had to punt again. The Hornets drove 67 yards in seven plays for another touchdown, with the big play being a 32-yard pass from David Pynnonen to Matt Salli. McIntyre scored from six yards out. Things got even worse for Mid Pen in the closing seconds of the half when Travis Depuydt's punt got blocked. McIntyre picked up the loose ball and ran 42 yards for a score. A pass to Salli for two points made it 38-0, and the sceond half was played by the mercy rule. L'Anse second-stringers put together a 55-yard drive in the fourth quarter, with Gary Gagnier scoring a touchdown. At that point, the Hornets were over 300 yards in offense and Mid Pen had negative two yards. But in the closing minutes, the Wolverines put together a 62-yard drive which ended on a nine-yard touchdown run by Justin Wigand. Winkelbauer ran in the two-pointer with 1:52 to go, but all it did was break the shutout for the Wolverines. "They didn't give up and I'm proud of them for that," Herman said. "I wish we had hustled a little better in the first half. But these guys have a lot of heart." L'Anse (2-0) ended up with 386 yards in total offense, with Perrault getting 119 and Aten 113. Mid Pen finished with 50 yards in total offense, with Wigand getting 40 of them. "They're not happy about the butt-kicking they just got," Herman said. "I told the guys, 'you should feel bad. Feel bad until maybe Sunday afternoon, then we have to regroup for Cedarville." Then, he added: "Maybe it's good that these guys got a butt-whipping this week because maybe they'll come out a little harder next week."