Week 7

This is the seventh article in the nine-week series about the history of Frankenmuth Football in the quest for the program’s 500th win

2010 - 2019

New Coaching Era – String of Championships

By Al “Chick” Rodammer

The 2010 season opened with the highly ranked Swan Valley, but Muth dropped the opener 42 – 16.  The Eagle gridders TVC East season started with a road win over Caro 35 – 7.  Quarterback Doug Ham’s 108 yards rushing and 178 yards passing led the offense in a 33 – 0 win over North Branch.  Missed defensive assignments and fumbles doomed the Eagles to a 33 – 20 loss to Birch Run.  The defense would shine in a 42 – 6 victory over Garber, led by Cameron McMeans’ eleven tackles and three QB sacks.  The Eagles bounced Bridgeport 56 – 8 behind the hard running of Travis Davis and his 187 yards rushing.  This would set up a match with Millington, with a shot for a share of the TVC East title.  A pair of Davis TD runs in the 2nd quarter gave Frankenmuth a 19 – 14 halftime lead.  Midway through the third quarter, Muth increases the lead to 26 – 14 on a Tony Warnemuende TD run to cap off a 12 play - 80-yard drive that took up half of the quarter.  But Millington scored the next three touchdowns to overcome the Eagles in a 34 – 26 Cardinal win.  In a non-conference game, the Goodrich Martians handily beat the Eagles 38 – 15.  One of the few highlights for the Eagles was a Carter Murlick 90-yard kickoff return for a TD.  To end the regular season, the Eagles took on Vassar and defeated their rival neighbors 35 – 7.  The 5 – 4 record for the season narrowly missed making the playoffs for the third year in a row.

The 2011 season would have an unusual, unbalanced schedule of six road games and only three home games.  Poor execution and four turnovers doomed the Eagles in the season opener against highly regarded Hemlock 42 – 14.  Week two brought some confidence back to the Eagles with a 42 – 22 victory over Otisville-Lakeville.  Blaine Malochleb broke out with 162 yards rushing to lead the offense.  Traveling to Birch Run, offensive efficiency and four interceptions lifted Frankenmuth to a 26 – 7 win, nearly 400 yards of offense with Malochleb rushing for 158 yards and two interceptions by Chris List sparked the win.  The defense shined with a 49 – 0 win over Caro, limiting the Tigers to 47 yards of total offense, Mack Corl tallied 13 tackles for the defense.  Muth’s defense would earn a second consecutive shutout with a 35 – 0 whitewash of North Branch, limiting them to 53 yards of offense.  Doug Ham’s 183 yards rushing led the offense.  With first place in the TVC East on the line against Millington, the Eagle team could not overcome three first quarter fumbles in a driving rain.  Trailing 14 – 0 at the half, Malochleb single-handedly spearheaded an attempted Eagle comeback with scoring runs of 36 and 80 yards to narrow the Millington lead to 21 – 12 entering the fourth quarter.  A Millington 4th quarter score scorched any comeback attempt in a 28 – 12 final score.  Malochleb accounted for 165 yards rushing.  The Eagles would score early and often in a 57 – 6 thrashing of Bridgeport.   A regular season ending contest against Vassar was held at Saginaw Valley State University.  A nip and tuck game had Frankenmuth leading 28 – 21 at the half.  Unfortunately, the Eagle offense was held scoreless in the second half, as Vassar kicked a field goal with just under two minutes remaining.  It was the difference in a 31 – 28 loss.  Frankenmuth would enter the playoffs for the first time since 2007 with a 6 – 3 record to take on Flint Powers on their home field.  Frankenmuth could not overcome twenty-one first quarter points by Powers enroute to a 35 – 13 loss.  The season would end with a 6 – 4 record.   Defensive player Mack Corl received All-State Honorable Mention.  

Optimism would fill the air around the 2012 Eagle team.  Frankenmuth opened with Hemlock, the # 4 ranked Division 6 school.  Ian Fischer scored the first three touchdowns in three different ways.  A 4-yard run, an 18-yard pass reception from Quarterback Chris List and an 80-yard interception return to give the Eagles a 21 – 0 lead midway through the second quarter.  The defense would preserve the win, led by Brian Stearns’ 15 tackles in a 28 – 14 win.  The second game of the season was a 115-mile trip to Onsted in a non-conference game.  Muth started out sluggish until Stearns scored on a 39-yard run midway through the 

second quarter to take a 7 -0 lead at the half.  The Eagles would score three times in the second half in a 28 – 7 win.  Blaine Malochleb and Stearns led a potent rushing attack with 155 yards and 144 yards respectively.  Game three would be an epic battle versus Millington.  The Eagles had lost four consecutive games to Millington, the most consecutive losses in the rivalry.   For the second year in a row, the game was played in inclement weather.  The home game was played under cloudy but dry conditions through the first 24 minutes of action.  At halftime, it began to pour and lightning in the area created an hour-long delay.  The score at the half was knotted at 6 – 6.  When play resumed, the turf was slick and muddy.  The third quarter was scoreless.  Late in the 4th quarter, the Eagles pinned deep in their territory, the Eagles punt attempt snap sailed over punter List’s head and wisely he kicked the ball out of the endzone for a safety, giving Millington the 8 - 6 advantage with 2:25 left in the game.  A perfectly executed on-side kick by Bryce Frahm and recovery by Joel Warneumuende gave the Eagles a shot to win.  A crucial List to Warneumuende 27-yard pass play on third down set up the winning score.  Malcohleb took a pitch in the driving rain and weaved back and forth 24 yards for a touchdown with 38 seconds to play.  The Eagle defense held a desperation attempt by Millington and a12 – 8 win.  The win would spark the team the rest of the conference season.  A 56 – 0 win over Caro limited the Tigers to 68 total yards.  A 55 – 0 rout of Bridgeport, as the defense again shined, limited the Bearcats to 16 total yards.  The Eagles saddled North Branch 51 – 6, scoring all the points in the first half behind Malochleb’s four TD’s.  A trip to Garber proved to be a challenge as the Eagles only led 7 – 0 at the half.  Two Malochleb 2nd half scores and 219-yards rushing, pushed the Eagles to a 21 – 7 win.  Muth claimed the outright TVC East title with a 49 - 14 win over Birch Run.  Zach Heyse led the defense with 14 tackles.  The Eagles finished the regular season with a 9 – 0 record with a 42 – 0 win over Vassar.  The win over Vassar was the 43rd time in 53 games over the Vulcans.  The defense limited Vassar to 33 yards of total offense.  The Eagles opened the MHSAA Division 5 playoff action with a 21 – 10 win over Carrollton.  Ball control and tenacious defense led the way.  Malcohleb and Stearns each surpassed the 100-yard rushing mark.  The district championship was a match with undefeated Flint Powers and the Eagle squad could not match their skills in a 34 – 0 loss.  The Eagles ended the season with a 10 – 1 record.  Malochleb earned All-State honors with 1214 rushing on the season and 24 touchdowns scored.  The stellar defense of the 2012 team was led by Heyse’s 97 tackles and Jesse Micho, who would earn 1st Team All-State honors.  Kicker Bryce Frahm would also receive All-State mention.

In the spring of 2013, Coach Tim VanWormer stepped down as the football head coach to return to his hometown of Houghton Lake to become their football head coach and athletic director.  In four seasons as the head coach at Frankenmuth, he compiled a 24 – 15 record including a 2012 Tri-Valley East Championship.

Taking the reins as the new head football coach for the Eagles for the 2013 season is Phil Martin.  Coach Martin had head coaching stints at Carrollton (1996 – 98) and Flint Kearsley (2004 – 09).   He was defensive coordinator at Heritage High School from 1999-2003.  He came to Frankenmuth as Assistant Principal and district financial manager in 2010, coaching Junior Varsity football from 2010 to 2012.

The Eagle gridders opened the 2013 season with a 19 – 13 loss to Hemlock in a non-conference opener.  The Eagles fell behind 19 – 0 before battling back but coming up short in the loss.  The team fixed their week one mistakes and defeated Birch Run 31 – 6.  Brian Stearns’ 134 yards rushing and 4 TDs sparked the offense.  Frankenmuth jumped out to a 42 – 14 lead against Garber and hung on as Garber scored 21 fourth quarter points for the 42 – 35 win.  The Eagles netted 500 yards of offense behind QB Nick Volk’s two TD passes to Stearns.  The Eagles ran their win streak to four games by clipping Otisville-Lakeville 49 – 7.  A trip to North Branch would bring a close hard-fought win over the Bronco’s 27 – 21.  Midway through the 4

th quarter, North Branch scored on an 88-yard kickoff return to knot the score at 21 – 21.  The Eagles running back Jake Reinbold scored on a 42-yard run for the winning score in the final quarter.  With the familiar scenario of the Millington vs. Frankenmuth clash determining the Tri-Valley East championship, Frankenmuth traveled to Millington.  With the halftime score being a 7 – 0 Muth lead, the Eagle defense recovered three Cardinal fumbles.  Frankenmuth scored two 4th quarter scores before Millington scored late, in an Eagle 21 – 6 victory.  The Eagle defense stymied a potent Cardinal offense led by Tony Schurr’s 12 tackles and Alex Mawer’s 11 tackles.  Frankenmuth would continue its quest for a league championship with a dominant win over Caro 51 – 0 in which they tallied 556 yards of offense and limited Caro to 71 yards.  The Eagle gridders won their 15th straight TVC East game in a league championship clinching win over Bridgeport 50 -14.  The rushing combination of Stearns 129 yards and Cam West 112 yards led the way.  The Eagles would end the regular season with a non-conference win over Vassar 35 – 8 for an eight straight win after the opening season loss.  In the opening game of District action, the Eagles defeated Freeland 31 – 13.  The highlight was a 1st quarter 86-yard punt return by Jack Veitengruber.  This would set up a District Championship game against Millington, a team the Eagles had beaten earlier in the season.  Muth would control the first half action jumping out to a 29 – 14 lead.  Millington narrowed the score to 29 – 20 entering the final quarter.  A pair of costly fumbles would doom the Eagles as the Cardinals would score with a little over a minute remaining to stun the Eagles 33 – 29.  The Eagles season ended with a 9 – 2 record.  Stearns ended his senior season with 1168 yards rushing and 24 touchdowns scored.  QB Volk threw for 1007 yards passing.  Stearns would receive 1st Team All-State honors.

Frankenmuth wasted little time getting the 2014 season off to a flying start with a 34 – 14 triumph over Hemlock.  Two field goals of 37 and 40 yards by Aaron Krafft was a key factor in the win.   An early TVC East game against North Branch turned into a weekend affair.  There were several lightning delays throughout the game with the game being suspended at 9:45 pm with the game scoreless in the 1st quarter.  The game resumed on Saturday at 11:00 am.  The Eagles endured the delays with a 21 – 13 win.  Next up was Caro and the Tigers opened up the game with a long kickoff return for an early lead, but the Eagles tallied 42 unanswered points on the way to a 49 – 12 victory.  The Eagles 18 game TVC East winning streak would end in a 27 – 13 loss to Millington despite Nick Szczepanski’s 14 tackles.  Ball control and a stingy defense led Frankenmuth to a 14 – 0 shutout win over Garber.  An undefeated Birch Run would come to town and the Eagles grinded their way to a 21 – 14 win keeping them in the TVC East championship race.  A 56 – 21 win over Bridgeport was led by five defensive interceptions, including two by Jack Veitengruber.  A 62 – 6 demolition win over Otisville-Lakeville gave the Eagles a share of the TVC East title thanks to a Birch Run upset win over Millington.  A 46 – 34 high scoring affair win over Vassar would clinch a first-round home playoff game against Ovid Elsie.  In what would be the 400th win in Frankenmuth history, with blustery, blizzard conditions, the Eagles defeated Ovid Elsie 36 – 0.  The defense limited Ovid Elsie to 4 first downs and under 100 yards of offense.  For the third time in four years, the Eagles faced the Flint Powers Chargers in MHSAA action.  The Eagles would hang tough, leading 15 – 12 at the half.  Powers threatened twice in the 3rd quarter, but the Eagle defense made key stops to maintain the lead entering the final quarter.  On a fourth down and ten play late in the 4th quarter, Powers completed a 50-yard pass play and with 54 seconds remaining they scored for the 19 – 15 final score loss for the Eagles.  The final season record was a 9 – 2 for the second consecutive season.  Nick Szczepanski would earn honorable mention All-State recognition.  

In January of 2015, the father of Frankenmuth football, Harry Kaczynski passed away at the age of 93. Coach Kaczynski was the Head Coach from 1956 – 1965. 

To open the 2015 season, the Eagles beat a pesky Hemlock team 35 – 20.  The game was a one score game until 49 seconds remaining in the game, a Jack Veitengruber 11-yard run sealed the game.  Next week despite an hour delay to start the game due to weather, the Eagles used an onside kick to open the contest 

against Birch Run, recovered the wet pigskin and six plays later scored on a Jack Tagget to Brady Woods 34-yard TD pass play enroute to a 37 – 8.  Next was a 35 – 0 win over Otisville Lakeville and a 42 – 6 victory over Bridgeport.  Next up was again a key TVC East game against the unbeaten Millington Cardinals. On the opening possession for Millington, the Eagle defense made a key 4th and 1 stop near midfield and three plays later, Tagget would hookup with Jared Davis on a 43-yard TD pass play and a quick 7 – 0 lead.  As the defense continued to play well, limiting Millington to only two first half first downs, Tagget completed a TD strike to Grant Bronner for 7 yards late in the 2nd quarter giving Muth a 14 – 0 halftime lead.  On the opening drive of the second half, a 12-play, 75-yard drive was completed with a Tagget to Wood 47-yard TD.  On the third play of the 4th quarter, Tagget would throw his 4th TD of the game on a 55-yard strike to tight end Aaron Haubenstricker.  Millington scored their lone TD late in the final quarter to make the final score 28 – 7.  A 28 point Eagle second half broke open a 14 – 14 game at the half in a 42 – 14 win over Garber.  Josh Szczepanski led the offense with 163 yards rushing.  A 35 – 7 win over North Branch and a TVC East championship clinching win 48 – 6 win over Caro, gave Frankenmuth its fourth consecutive league title.  The final regular season game would be a battle of unbeaten teams as the Eagles faced a strong Freeland team.  The flow of the game got away from the Eagles in this one, getting soundly beat 42 – 7.  Muth would open MHSAA District action against a familiar playoff opponent in the Birch Run Panthers.  The two teams would trade TDs in the first half, clinging on to a 22 – 20 lead until six seconds remaining in the first half when Tagget found Bronner for a 28-yard TD score and the Eagles took a 28 – 20 lead into halftime.  The two teams would exchange 3rd quarter scores and the game was put out of reach on the first play of the 4th quarter on a Tagget 77-yard TD toss to Wood for the 42 – 27 final score.  This would set up a District Championship match with Freeland.  The Freeland rushing attack was too much for the Eagles, dropping the contest 35 – 13.  The Eagles ended the season with a 9 – 2 overall record.  Grant Leach surpassed the hundred tackles mark for the Eagles with 101.  

Entering the 2016 season, Coach Martin quoted, “Game experience is one of our strengths.  Our starters have gotten varsity snaps.  We hope this will lead to good execution.”  That execution was on display in game one with a 36 – 0 win over Hemlock.  Kris Roche’s four touchdowns runs, and a defense held Hemlock to under a 100 yards offense.  In the TVC East opener, the defense again shined, holding Birch Run to a total of 50 total yards in a 35 – 14 win.  The third win of the season was another shutout in a 36 – 0 win over Otisville Lakeville and once again, the defense only allowed 70 yards of offense.  In a 43 – 6 win over Bridgeport, Quarterback Jared Davis threw three touchdown passes and intercepted three Bridgeport passes.  FHS played hard-hitting, field control defense in enroute to a 24 – 7 win over previously unbeaten Millington.  Davis hit paydirt three times.  The Eagles remained undefeated with a 34 – 8 win over Garber.  On the third play of the game, Ryan Khan intercepted a Garber pass and returned it 44 yards for a quick Eagle 7 – 0 lead.  Muth would register its third shutout of the season in a 50 – 0 win over Bridgeport.  The defensive pressure of the Eagle defense held the Bearcats to minus 50 yards rushing and a mere 8 yards total offense.  Frankenmuth would clinch its 5

th consecutive TVC East Championship with a 43 – 8 win over Caro.  Roche would lead the offense with 152 yards rushing.  The final game of the season would feature a pair of 8 – 0 teams as the Eagles traveled to Freeland.  The game was a defensive slugfest.  Freeland would score the only TD of the game late in the 1st quarter.  With the offense struggling, the 7 – 0 Freeland lead would hold at the half.  Midway through the 4th quarter, Eagle Kicker Jack Lee kicked a 32-yard field goal to narrow the Freeland lead to 7 – 3.  Freeland would go on a time-consuming drive, turning the ball over to the Eagles with only thirty-nine seconds remaining, The offense would get down to the Freeland 18 yard line, but ran out of time for the 7 – 3 loss.  Despite the loss, the Eagles opened District action at home against Garber and controlled the game in a 38 – 6 win.  This would set up a rematch with Freeland for the District Championship at Freeland for the second year in a row.  A complete turnaround from the 7 – 3 loss two weeks earlier, the Eagle offense was rolling in the first half.  There were first quarter rushing touchdowns by Zach Jacobs and Davis.  There were second quarter rushing scores by Davis and Roche, and to top it off, with less than a minute left in the half, Davis connected with Khan on a 43-yard touchdown to give the Eagles a 35 – 0 lead at the half and a running clock to start the second half.  The Eagles would cruise to a 49 – 14 District Championship win, the first District Championship since 2005.  Coach Martin commented, “Our kids came out with a lot of energy and played physical all night.”  Next up was a match with perennial state power Ithaca at their home field.  Ithaca jumped out to a 14 – 0 lead because of two costly Eagle turnovers in the 1st quarter.  The resilient Muth team battled back.  Roche scored early in the 2nd quarter on a 26-yard run.  The defense started to take over, sacking Ithaca’s QB three times in the quarter.  Khan tied the score at 14 -14 on a 7-yard run midway through the 2nd quarter and the score remained tied at the half.  To start the 2nd half, the defense continued to pressure the Ithaca offense forcing a punt, pinning the Eagles deep in their territory.  On a 3rd down and 6 play, Jacobs rambled 92 yards for the Eagles giving them their first lead 21 – 14.  Ithaca would settle for a field goal as the 3rd quarter ended 21 – 17 in favor of the Eagles.  Early in the 4rh quarter, Kahn scored a 5-yard run and Ithaca would settle again for a for a field goal, making the score 28 – 20 with 7:54 remaining.   The Eagle offense would go on a 13-play drive, consuming over six minutes before turning the ball over on downs with 1:28 remaining. With six seconds remaining, Bronner sealed the Regional Championship with an interception. With the win, Frankenmuth would earn the right to face Menominee with a 369 mile trip to Marquette to play at the Superior Dome in a Division 5 semi-final contest.  Muth trailed at the half 16 – 14.  The Eagles would take the lead 20 -16 late in the 3rd quarter to end a 9-play, 95-yard drive on a Roche 11-yard run.  Menominee would regain the lead in the 4th quarter and hold on for a 23 – 20 loss for the Eagles.  Frankenmuth would end the season with an 11 – 2 record.  Roche would end the season with 1131 yards rushing and Davis rushed for 966 yards and passed for 1225 yards.  The stellar defense would allow only an average of 8.7 points per game.  Jared Davis, Kris Roche, and linemen Joe Germain all received  All-State recognition.  

The opening game would be a unique opportunity for the 2017 Eagles.  A trip to legendary Elmer Engel Stadium to play Bay City Central would be a first for the Frankenmuth program.  Trailing 14 – 0 early in the 2

nd quarter, the Eagles scored twice in the last two minutes of the first half to trim Central’s lead to 14 – 13 at the half.  Bay City scored midway through the 3rd quarter to take a 21 – 13 lead.  Pinned deep in their territory, the Eagles went on a 12 play, 90-yard drive, scoring with a little over two minutes remaining in the game on a Zach Jacobs 15-yard run and a 2-point conversion to even the score at 21 – 21.  With a mere 35 seconds remaining, Central was forced to punt, but muffed the punt attempt at the Central 35-yard line.  With 23 seconds remaining, Jacobs connected with Nick Hartman on a 34-yard touchdown pass and the Eagles pulled off the comeback victory 28 – 21.  A 27 – 6 win over North Branch led by Alec Yagiela’s 151 yards rushing and Garrett Rezmer’s 15 tackles, 42 – 24 win over Garber, started off the TVC East with two wins.  The non–conference game at Tawas was a 61 – 6 rout behind 546 yards of offense with 251 yards in the QB arm of Jacobs.  Back to league play, one of the wildest games in Frankenmuth history was to occur.  A talented Bridgeport team would invade Frankenmuth.  Bridgeport would score with one second remaining in the half to take a 28 – 14 lead.  Bridgeport elected to kickoff and Mario Whitley sprinted 71 yards for the kickoff return TD, narrowing the Bridgeport lead to 28 – 21.  Both teams scored twice in a high scoring affair in the 3rd quarter with the Bearcats leading 42 – 35.  The Eagles scored twice in the 4th quarter to battle back for a 47 – 42 exciting win.  A 41 – 3 rout of Birch Run would set up another TVC East Championship determining game against Millington. The Eagles dominated the 1st half, taking a 28 – 8 halftime lead.  After a scoreless 3rd quarter, Millington would score two 4th quarter scores, the last with under a minute remaining to narrow the Eagle lead to 28 – 22. An onside kick by Millington was recovered by the Eagles to preserve the win.  A 55 – 0 win over Caro, gave the Eagles a sixth consecutive TVC East Championship.  The regular season would close with a 20 – 7 win over Freeland, led by linebacker Nate Stone’s 16 tackles.  The opening round of the MHSAA playoffs would bring the Almont Raiders to Frankenmuth.  The Eagles seemed in total control of the game, leading 24 – 6 entering the 4th quarter.  Almont rattled off three consecutive scores, with the last coming with 16 seconds remaining on a controversial non-offensive pass interference call to take a 28 – 24 lead.  Almont elected to kickoff to Hunter Schluckebier, who earlier in the game ran back an 83-yard kickoff return for a score.  Schluckebier fielded the ball at the Eagle 16-yard line.  A couple of key blocks and Schluckebier outraced the Almont defender for an improbable 84-yard touchdown return, giving the Eagles the lead with two seconds remaining.  It was one of the single most exciting finishes in Eagle history in the 31 – 28 victory.  A 42 – 23 win over Marine City, would be a second consecutive District Championship.  A hard fought 17 – 7 win over Algonac brought a Regional Championship to Frankenmuth.  The semi-final game opponent would be Division 5 powerhouse Grand Rapids West Catholic.  Behind three Jacobs rushing TD’s, The Eagles led 21 – 0 midway through the 2nd quarter.  West Catholic was held without a first down until a long TD pass play was a score and their first first down.  GRWC scored with 2 seconds remaining in the half to narrow the Eagle lead to 21 – 12.  Two 4th quarter scores by West Catholic completed their comeback in a 25 – 21 heartbreaking loss for the Eagles.  The 12 – 1 record was the most season wins at that time in Muth football history.  Jacobs rushed for 1081 yards and passed for 1047 yards.  Stone would tally 130 tackles.  Jacobs, Stone, Ben Schuler, Evan Geyer, Drew Martin and Whitley all received some sort of All-State mention.

The 2018 season opened with a non–conference win over Bay City Central 35 – 12.  Week two was a trip to Swan Valley, and a powerful Vikings team would dominate the Eagles 56 – 20.  The Muth gridders would bounce back with 42 – 20 win over Bridgeport behind Alec Yagiela’s 162 yards rushing.  A shutout 28 – 0 wn over Birch Run was followed by a 41 – 7 victory over Carrollton where QB Conner Campbell rushed for 174 yards.  A 56 – 18 win over Garber was again led by Campbell’s 184 yards rushing.  This brought a match against a one loss Millington squad.  Three TD passes by Campbell and 205 yards passing, including two to Nick Hartman would help the Eagles cruise to a 35 – 12 win.  The defense was led by 18 Nate Stone tackles.  This game versus Millington would bring the end to a storied rivalry between the two football powers.  In the 46-game rivalry, Frankenmuth holds a 26 – 20 edge.  Numerous times the game between two small town football powers would determine a league championship.  The rivalry was chronicled in a book, 

“The Rivalry”, which is still available for Eagle and Cardinal fans as well as any interested high school football fan.  The win clinched another TVC East Championship for the Eagles.  Muth would close the season with a 45 – 7 win over Bullock Creek but would drop the regular season final game 15 – 8 to Freeland.  With QB Campbell out of action with a concussion, Muth entered the playoffs minus their starting quarterback.  Yagiela picked up the offense in the opening round game to Richmond with 223 yards rushing in a 20 – 7 win.  A memorable trip to Almont, in many ways, would be for a District Championship.  With QB Campbell still out, Junior Varsity QB Davin Reif would come into the game midway through the 1st quarter for his first varsity action.  Almont took a 14 – 8 lead into halftime.  The score would remain the same entering the final quarter.  The Eagles tied the score at 14 all on the first play of the final quarter on a Reif 1-yard run.  A Yagiela 71- yard run midway through the quarter would give the Eagles a 21 -14 lead.  With less than two minutes remaining, Almont would score and add the 2-point conversion to take a 22 – 21 lead.  Reif led Muth down the field with some clutch plays and with 30 seconds remaining, scored on a 6-yard run, the difference in a 28 – 22 District Championship thriller.  The season came to a crashing end in the Regional Championship game, losing to Portland 40 – 6.  A 9 – 3 record would be the final mark for the team.  Two 1000-yard rushers with Campbell and Yagiela with 1159 and 1026 yards respectively.  Nate Stone would have his second consecutive 100 tackles season with 113 stops.  Conner Campbell, Nate Stone and linemen Jon Stone all received All-State mention.

The 2019 season opened with a dominating 46 – 13 win over Bay City Central, as the Eagle offense had 32 first downs and 550 yards of offense.  Next was a 42 – 13 win over Standish-Sterling as QB Davin Reif threw three touchdown passes.  Chris Mills’ 162 yards rushing led the Eagles to a 37 – 6 win over Bridgeport.  A win over Freeland kept the Eagles perfect for the season with a 21 – 7 win.  The game was a one score game until 1:47 remaining in the game when Reif connected with Seth Messing for a 48-yard touchdown.  Against Swan Valley, the Eagles clung to a 14 – 7 lead with about 10 minutes left in the 3rd quarter when a lightning delay suspended the game to be resumed Saturday at noon.  In the 4th quarter, the Eagles upped the lead to 23 -13 on a Reif 1-yard run, but the Vikings scored with less than a minute to narrow the score to 23 – 20.  Muth  ran out the clock to secure the win.  A 30 – 18 win over Garber was followed by treacherous field conditions due to heavy rains at Alma in a 14 – 0 win.  A 46 – 0 win over Birch Run gave the Eagles eight consecutive TVC East Championships.  The Eagles closed the season with a 42 – 22 loss to undefeated New Lothrop.  Frankenmuth would open the playoffs with a 57 – 26 win over Carrollton.  501 yards of offense, including 456 yards rushing keyed the Eagle attack. The win over Carrollton was the 450th in Frankenmuth Football history.   In the District Championship, the Eagle offense sputtered all game long with a 21 – 7 loss to Swan Valley, to end the season with a 9 – 2 record.  Linemen Jon Stone and Jonathan Kelley received All-State mention.

The era of the decade of 2010’s was a huge success in Frankenmuth Football history with a ten-year total of 89 – 23.  This includes eight consecutive Tri-Valley East Championships, including a 36-game league winning streak to close out the decade.  Three District Championships and two Regional Championships.  The overall Frankenmuth Football record after sixty-four years is 450 – 160 – 4, a .738 winning percentage.  Would the success continue into the 2020’s?   Would this be the time for a Ford Field appearance?  Next week we will bring the eighth article in the history of Frankenmuth Football in the quest for 500 wins.