Division 1 Semifinal Preview: Davison vs Rockford

The MHSAA Playoffs are winding down with only one game separating 32 teams from the State Finals at Ford Field. In Division 1, Rockford and Davison will square off to face the winner of West Bloomfield and Belleville. Both Rockford and Davison have had perfect seasons thus far and have made it to the semifinals with relative ease. Below I’ll get into each team’s top prospects, keys to the game, and my prediction. <em><strong>Playoff Road</strong></em> Rockford: (8-0 OK Red) Pre-District: Defeated West Ottawa 41-7, District Semi: Defeated Hudsonville 42-7, District Final: Defeated Grandville 34-28 3OT, Regional Final: Defeated Saline 40-17. Davison: (10-0 SVL Blue) Pre-District: Defeated Lapeer 47-6, District Semi: Defeated Rochester Adams via Forfeit, District Final: Defeated Grand Blanc 48-19, Regional Final: Defeated Detroit Catholic Central 20-7. <em><strong>Top Prospects</strong></em> <h6>[player_tooltip player_id="54861" first="Zak" last="Ahern"], QB, Rockford</h6> <h6>Jayden Kolekamp, OL, Rockford</h6> <h6>[player_tooltip player_id="54002" first="Alex" last="Karas"], DL, Rockford</h6> <h6>Ben Tadych, LB, Rockford</h6> <h6>Luke McClean, DB, Rockford</h6> <h6>Harry Unger, DL, Davison</h6> <h6>Will Watkins, DL, Davison</h6> <h6>[player_tooltip player_id="29836" first="Dion" last="Brown Jr."], QB, Davison</h6> <h6>[player_tooltip player_id="29629" first="Yousef" last="Dukuly"], OL, Davison</h6> <h6>[player_tooltip player_id="29609" first="Harrison" last="Unger"], LB, Davison</h6> <em><strong>Keys To The Game</strong></em> A feeling of uncertainty surrounded the Davison football program last week as Dion Brown made his debut at starting quarterback in place of [player_tooltip player_id="29553" first="Brendan" last="Sullivan"], who enrolled early at Northwestern and opted out of the MHSAA playoffs. Led by Dion and a stellar performance from its defense which surrendered only 113 total yards against Detroit Catholic Central, the Cardinals come into this semifinal matchup as the favorite to make it back to Ford Field. Rockford’s [player_tooltip player_id="54861" first="Zak" last="Ahern"] has been incredible all season, making defenses look silly trying to stop the senior quarterback’s rushing attack. However, this Davison defensive line is different than any unit the Rams offense has faced this season, led by seniors [player_tooltip player_id="29609" first="Harrison" last="Unger"] and [player_tooltip player_id="80933" first="William" last="Watkins"]. In a matchup of two undefeated teams that have found their success on the backs of its defense, the team who will advance to Ford Field will have to find ways to score in nontraditional ways. <em><strong>Prediction: Davison 19, Rockford 14</strong></em>