AOTW: Clarkston’s Baenziger deals with countless acts of adversity to shine on the field

BY DAN STICKRADT

SENIOR EDITOR

dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com

CLARKSTON — Some athletes have to face all types of adversity.

Mitch Baenziger has had to face plenty of it as an athlete at Clarkston High School — and that list is long.

Yet the two-sport athlete, who is a quarterback in football and plays guard in basketball, has dealt with each punch and knockdown by just getting up time and time again and has pushed forward instead of living in the past.

And he is a standout athlete for good measure, one of the very best at Clarkston High school

“I know that things (in life) aren’t always easy,” said Baenziger, who stands 6-foot-2 and weighs 190 pounds. “You have to just deal with it.”

Baenziger dealt with an injury last season that kept him from the grid-iron for all but 2.5 games. He watched as his entire team was ransacked with injuries to key players game-after-game and was on the sidelines as Clarkston was knocked out of the Division 1 postseason with a lopsided loss to Grand Blanc in a pre-district contest.

During his sophomore year, Beanziger’s received a shoulder injury in the preseason and could not play quarterback at all. He was used as a slot receiver on the junior varsity before being promoted to varsity late in the year.

That is just for starters.

BACK ON TRACK: After an injur-plagued career, Clarkston senior Mitch Baenziger is healthy this season and has become one of Oakland County's top quarterbacks. Staff Photo | Larry McKee, www.lmckeephotography.com

Clarkston football coach Kurt Richardson feels that the many hurdles that Baenziger and his teammates have head to clear has only helped them focus on having a great season and has made them stronger.

“He’s faced a lot,” said Richardson.

“I think Mitch has had a great year,” continued Kurt Richardson. “He’s very composed out there and he has led us all season. The thing that is noticeable about him is he can’t tell if he just threw a touchdown pass or an interception. He’s very calm.”

Beanziger will need to be calm on the big stage Friday at home against defending state champion Lake Orion. Not only are the state-ranked Wolves playing another state-ranked team, but Clarkston has so much riding on the contest. A win will bring in bragging rights, a share of the OAA Red Division title and even a postseason berth.

A win will be the Wolves’ sixth of the year and automatically qualify them for the postseason for a 15^th time in school history. A loss will leave the Wolves with a 5-4 record, which would leave them to test fate and hope for one of the very few at-large playoffs spots in the 256-school postseason field.

Clarkston is actually 7-1 on the field, but had to forfeit its first two wins of the season over Rochester Adams and West Bloomfield, leaving them 5-3 overall and 5-1 in the OAA Red Division. Lake Orion is 6-2 overall and 6-0 in the league, having already clinched at least a tie for the league and a playoff spot.

“We try not to talk about all of that,” admitted Baenziger. “We just want to beat Lake Orion more than anything. We feel that if we can come together, then we have the talent to do it.”

When Beanziger was a sophomore, he watched as Clarkston advanced to the Division 1 Final Four in football before losing to Sterling Heights Stevenson 37-35 on the game’s last play. Having a dream that close whisked away was just another chapter in the book of adversity.

“We still talk about that. I know that we do not want to go through that again,” said Beanziger.

Even in basketball, Clarkston has had its fair share of bad luck. His freshman season, Baenziger was on the junior varsity but watched his brother’s varsity team at Clarkston advance to the Final Four only to stall out with an ice-cold performance and loss to Kalamazoo Central in the semifinals. Both his sophomore and junior seasons, Baenziger was on varsity and the Wolves lost in the regional finals to Southfield and Bay City Western, respectively.

Last season, he wolves held a late lead before falling to Bay City Western.

That is all in the past. Just being able to suit up for Clarkston means so much to Beanziger.

“You sit back and think about all of the guys that have played here over the years, and those are the guys you used to look up to and watch and now it’s your turn,” said Baeziger. “You have all of the alumni in the stands cheering you on all of the time. There’s such a great tradition at Clarkston. There’s nowhere I would rather play for than Clarkston.”

Looking ahead, if Clarkston gets in the playoffs, Baenziger said there will be nothing better than leading his team to some glorious moments. He entertains the same thoughts about the upcoming basketball season.

“I would love to lead our school to something that it has never done before,” smiled Baenziger, hoping for a state championship run in football or basketball. “We have the talent to do it.”

Mitch Beanziger and Clarkston have overcome a few landmines to get to this point. A win Friday night will be another step over adversity.

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Tags: Athlete of the Week, Clarkston Football, featured, high school football, Mitch Baenziger, OAA Red Division Football, prep football

Category: BWW Athlete of the Week, Clarkston, High School, High School (M-Z), Lake Orion, Prep Wraps