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Both young and experienced: With just 2 seniors gone, Hematites football ready to contend again for playoffs

With just 2 seniors gone, Hematites football ready to contend again for playoffs

By Steve Brownlee 5 min read

ISHPEMING -- Even though the Ishpeming High School varsity football team is rather young, the Hematites have quite a bit of experience throughout their 16-player lineup.

Playing the eight-man version of the game, head coach Mike Lyman has only lost two seniors from last year's squad.

While that might have hurt Ishpeming's chances then, especially considering they went 2-7, it bodes well for this year and likely a couple of years beyond.

"We're still young in some areas, but experienced in areas, too," Lyman said by telephone on Friday. "We bring back a lot of our line, both on offense and defense, for example."

Lost to graduation were Josh Wojie and Grady Gauthier, who were key cogs as running back and quarterback for the '25 Hematites.

Ishpeming is also playing in a revamped Great Lakes Eight Conference. It was mainly because the eastern Upper Peninsula teams of Newberry, Pickford, Rudyard and St. Ignace peeled off to create most of the new Straits Division of the Bridge Alliance league -- with Brimley from the U.P. and Indian River Inland Lakes from below the bridge joining them.

That left 13 teams to re-form the Great Lakes Eight, and the West Division mostly includes the larger schools of that group.

Joining the Hematites in that nine-team division are Munising, Norway, North Central, Forest Park, Lake Linden-Hubbell, Ontonagon, Ironwood and Gogebic (the Bessemer-Wakefield-Marenisco co-op).

The East Division now is made up of generally smaller schools, enrollment-wise -- Superior Central, Mid Peninsula, Rapid River, Stephenson and North Dickinson.

The entire East Division is Division 2 teams for the MHSAA tournament in eight-player football, while seven of the nine in the West are Division 1, the exceptions NC and LL-H in D-2.

Most importantly for Ishpeming, eight of its nine games come against its West Division brethren, the exception being in Week 3, a home game against Stephenson on Saturday afternoon, Sept. 12.

"I feel pretty good with the 16 players we have on our roster," Lyman said as he starts his fourth year at the Hematites' helm. "This is the first year we have these particular pieces.

"We bring back a lot of starters, even though we're also pretty young in spots. There's a couple freshman and four sophomores.

"A lot of guys can play multiple positions, so I see subbing a lot of guys in and out, which might include giving some of the two-way guys a rest when they need it."

His three captains are senior running back and outside linebacker Dax Kakkuri, senior offensive and defensive lineman Xavier Bannister and junior running back and outside linebacker Derek Meyer.

"We generally run a wildcat offense, something they've been doing here since Jeff (Olson) was coach," Lyman said. "We call them all 'running backs.'"

That because there will be a lot of run plays involved. He doesn't have a "pure" quarterback in a way people are used to seeing on television, though sophomore Kian Gauthier will probably throw the most passes among his back group.

"Kian started last year on defense," Lyman said.

He added that Kakkuri and Meyer are starters joining Gauthier in the backfield.

"We have some other younger kids who are also getting a look," the coach said.

Among those, but for now listed as wings and/or tight ends are sophomores Cullen Gaboury and Zak Hyry and freshman Ben Meyer. Sophomore Donovan Snyder will be looked at, too, as a "hybrid" flanker and slot.

His main four linemen -- and the number he needs on the field almost all the time -- are senior twin brothers Nick and Xavier Bannister, senior Ethan DeMarois and junior Davis Hyatt.

Lyman has one player he feels will be key on defense, junior Marcus Annala on the line, as a returning starter who will put almost all his emphasis on "D."

"He's certainly a full-time defender," the coach said.

He'll be joined on the line by Gaboury, Hyatt and Xavier Bannister.

The Hematites have a full slate of linebackers. On the inside are Ben Meyer, senior Darius Weber and junior Brayden Longstaff, while on the outside will be Kakkuri, Derek Meyer and also Darius Weber.

"Darius can easily move back and forth between the inside and outside positions," Lyman said.

In the secondary are Gauthier and his brother, freshman Madden Gauthier.

"In the eight-man game, I've learned you have to have a couple guys who can play multiple positions," Lyman said.

The coach hasn't settled on his special teams players, namely kicker, punter and returner, but will take care of that this week with opening night -- really afternoon -- set for 5 p.m. Thursday at Lake Linden-Hubbell.

Lyman didn't feel confident or expert enough to try to predict the conference, but does feel confident his Hematites can improve on a year ago, when they only got wins over Munising and Rudyard, losing by seven points or less to Ontonagon, Forest Park and St. Ignace.

Two years ago, Ishpeming went 7-3, which included a Division 1 playoff victory over Norway.

Story contents based on a telephone interview with Ishpeming football coach Mike Lyman. Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee's email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.

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