FOOTBALL: Ortonville Brandon clinches FML-Stars title with rout of Clio
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
ORTONVILLE — Nothing was going to keep Ortonville Brandon from clinching the Flint Metro League Stars Division title Friday night.
Absolutely nothing.
The unbeaten Blackhawks captured their second league title in three years with a resounding 56-6 victory over visiting Clio, dominating all phases of the game.
Brandon, which shared the FML title two years ago with Fenton and Linden, and finished second in the Stars Division last year when the FML split into two divisions of six schools each, have now outscored the opposition 245-76 and kept its third opponent this season under 20 points.
“We came out here and did what we had to do, no major injuries, and we won our second league title in three years which was one of our goals this season,” smiled Brandon coach Brad Zube, whose program will play in the postseason for a school-record sixth straight time. “Now we’ll get to work on playing Fenton next week. That should be a great test for us.”
The Blackhawks (5-0, 5-0) also forced six Clio turnovers — three fumble recoveries and three interceptions — and also had three sacks against the rebuilding Tigers.
It took Brandon only 12 seconds to score, as Clio failed to recover an onside kick attempt to start the game. On the first play of scrimmage junior Brayton MacQueen scored on a 53-yard sprint to set the tone.
By the end of the first quarter, the Blackhawks were in complete control with a 35-0 lead. Brandon outscored Clio 21-0 in the second quarter before emptying its bench in the second half.
Junior Micah Miller hit senior Javon Slater with a 9-yard scoring toss for a 14-0 advantage only 2:40 into the game, while the Miller-to-senior Nick Tarney combination teamed up for another 9-yard TD strike later in the quarter.
The Blackhawks’ fourth drive resulted in Miller finding MacQueen for a 10-yard touchdown pass and Slater added a 38-yard rushing touchdown with 14 seconds left in the opening frame for the five-touchdown lead.
The Blackhawks defense got into the scoring act in the second period when junior Brennan Wetzel recovered a botched Clio snap in the end zone and freshman Drew Hickmott returned an interception 37 yards for another score just 15 seconds later for a 49-0 advantage.
MacQueen capped the Brandon scoring with his third touchdown of the night, this time coming on a 15-yard run with 3:57 to go in the half. Senior kicker Ian Burke nailed all eight extra points for the Blackhawks.
“We came here to win (the division) and that was one of our goals since the beginning of the season. Last year we were second (to Goodrich),” offered senior Peyton Gulledge, who was an All-State linebacker a year ago and one of the leading tacklers all season.
Freshman Mike Bolan and senior Sam Heffner also recovered fumbles, while senior Austin Matusik and junior Gavin Greil contributed interceptions for Brandon. MacQueen added a pair of sacks for the Blackhawks, who ended up stopping Clio to minus-9 total yards on the ground and just 28 passing yards on the night.
Clio (0-5, 0-5) never gave up despite being overmatched in size and experience.
Junior Jordan Sherman had three passes of over 40 yards each dropped and was under immense pressure all night resulting in personal minus-41 yards on the ground.
Sherman did help spoil the shutout when he hit junior Daniel Hanson with a 7-yard touchdown pass with 30 seconds left in the third quarter.
Senior Gage Clayton recovered two fumbles, junior Jacob Terburgh had a fumble recovery and senior Drew Ford recorded an interception for Clio.
Brandon will visit Fenton next Friday in the FML crossover between the two FML divisional champions. Fenton won the FML Stripes Division title also at 5-0.
“We beat them two years ago up at Atwood stadium to share the league. This time we’re both undefeated having won our (respective) divisions,” said Zube. “It’s going to be a great game. They are a very-well coached team and for a long time have been a standard for this league.”
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