Season Recap: Grand Blanc

<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Quick Rundown</strong></span> After being on the up-and-up for a few years, Grand Blanc finally broke through advancing all the way to the State Semifinals where they fell to Rochester Adams. The Bobcats finished with the most single-season wins in program history with 13, and they earned their first district and regional titles ever. I would say this season was historic, but that may be an understatement. <strong>Here’s how Grand Blanc’s season played out </strong> 40-34 W vs East Lansing 38-34 W vs Forest Hills Central 27-23 W vs Dow 43-7 W vs Davison 48-7 W vs Powers Catholic 35-6 W vs Carman-Ainsworth 41-7 W vs Heritage 30-6 W vs Lapeer 56-18 W vs Arthur Hill 25-6 W vs Holt (Pre-Districts) 21-8 W vs Howell (District Finals) 28-27 W vs Rockford (Regional Finals) 20-40 L vs Rochester Adams (Semifinals) <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>A Leap in the Right Direction </strong></span> Grand Blanc was just a few plays away from starting the season 0-3. The first 3 games were insanely competitive as they faced off against 3 playoff teams, but that opening stretch proved to be a foundation for a triumphant season. Everything seemed to be in order. The coaching staff was connected and bought in, and this team had great leadership coming from its large senior class. As a matter of fact, Grand Blanc East Middle School teacher and successful YouTuber <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/DanCBearded/videos">Dan Command</a> had a feeling this class was going to be special. In a conversation we had about the Bobcats, Command stated "I have said it for years, this group of seniors is SPECIAL! The best moral kids happen to be the most athletic, which is so rare." This just goes to show how unique this class of seniors is in terms of talent, leadership, and good-heartedness. Let’s take a look at 5 of the dozens of difference-making seniors Grand Blanc had this season. <strong>RB [player_tooltip player_id="30201" first="Elijah" last="Jackson-Anderson"]</strong> In total, I watched 3 Grand Blanc games, more than any team I watched this season. In every one of those games, Jackson-Anderson was electric. The soon-to-be Eastern Michigan Eagle showed a very unique set of skills as an elusive back that I did not see all season. Over the course of those 3 games, I saw Jackson-Anderson make incredible runs, break tackles, great catches, great runs after the catch, blocking, athleticism, and more. https://twitter.com/alex_pallone/status/1462161182668824583 <strong>T [player_tooltip player_id="99366" first="Andy" last="Hartman"]</strong> Hartman is a certified beast standing at 6’6, 260. Most championship-contending teams have themselves a dominant lineman, and that’s [player_tooltip player_id="99366" first="Andy" last="Hartman"]. In terms of his play, the footwork, hand placement, and aggressiveness were stellar, with his size obviously not doing him any disservices. Hartman was also a vocal leader oftentimes encouraging his teammates in clutch situations. All in all, Hartman is deservingly getting some attention from teams in the MAC and GLIAC, and I can’t wait to see what’s next for him. <strong>MLB <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/10753498">[player_tooltip player_id="30305" first="Cross" last="Dobbs"]</a></strong> Man am I happy this guy is going to be a Grand Valley State Laker! Dobbs has been one of the best linebackers in the state throughout the season, and he was really impressive during the Rockford outing. The 6’2 205lb senior has elite awareness, reaction time, as well as aggressiveness, all vital qualities for a linebacker. Dobbs showed the ability to stop the run, rush the passer, defend the pass, all on top of showing excellent communication and leadership. <strong>QB [player_tooltip player_id="93695" first="Hunter" last="Ames"]</strong> I watched Ames win 2 shootouts, one against Forest Hills Central, and the other against Rockford. Ames was Mr. Clutch all season as he threw the game-winning 70+ yard touchdown against Central, then led a few amazing late drives against Rockford before the defense sealed the win. No moment seemed too big for Ames, and he was surely one of the top-8 quarterbacks I watched all season, including the state championships. https://twitter.com/HunterAmes4/status/1466546674919088129 <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11256540/Dylan-Hertzberg"><strong>K Dylan Hertzberg</strong></a> Hertzberg is a rare kicking talent that has shown out in the Kohl’s camps and has consistently kicked and punted extraordinarily well all season. Typically you wouldn’t think of a kicker as being one of the biggest difference makers and culture builders on the team, but Hertzberg made all the difference in the world. For one, every time I walked past him on the sidelines, he had a look in his eyes that just told me he was locked in. Nothing seemed to distract him whatsoever. Secondly, imagine the confidence that brings a coaching staff, and the entire team. When you know that you can consistently flip the field, or make a big 40+ yard kick if, given the situation, it makes a big difference in situational football. Hertzberg’s recruitment is 100% open as of December 5, and I think he’s a steal for whichever team picks him up. <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Looking Ahead </span></strong> Although there was an exceptionally large and talented senior class, there’s a ton of athletes coming up that have already made names for themselves. Guys like <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/12984788">Dillon Thomas</a>, <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13070959">[player_tooltip player_id="30333" first="Jaylen" last="Johnson"]</a>, <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/14480809">Carson Hoewe</a>, and <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/14480877">JT Webber</a> are going to take the reigns of leadership heading into next where where it’s looking like another insanely difficult schedule for the Bobcats.