DETROIT — Alex Figueroa and Collin McCoy gutted it out.
The pair of Kingsley linemen played injured, keeping the Stags within striking distance in Friday’s Division 6 football state championship at Ford Field in Detroit.
No. 2-ranked Jackson Lumen Christi (11-3) ultimately won 28-14 as No. 6 Kingsley (11-3) fought back from an early 14-0 deficit to tie the game by halftime.
Figueroa — a senior captain — suffered a partially torn MCL and ACL and torn meniscus two weeks ago against Reed City and McCoy sustained a high ankle sprain in the first quarter of last week’s semifinal win over Kent City.
“Each group is special, but this was a group that they’re going to be able to put their head down on their pillow at night and know that they gave their best there,” Stags co-head coach Tim Wooer said. “We could not have got one minuscule more ounce of effort out of not only these kids here, but the entire varsity group.”
Lumen Christi won its 15th state title, fourth in a row across two different divisions and the 14th in 46 years under Herb Brogan.
“We obviously didn’t play very well in the first 6 minutes of the game,” Kingsley co-head coach Jason Morrow said. “You can’t take a team as talented and as well coached as they are and spot them 14 points. But (I’m) incredibly proud of our kids. We go in the fourth quarter and it’s 14-14, and we had an opportunity, because we have fighters, and not just the four kids that are sitting here, but the young men in the locker room, the coaches in the locker room.”
Lumen Christi played Wing-T teams in every one of its postseason games.
“Great respect for Kingsley, their players and the coaching staff,” Brogan said. “I thought they were really well-prepared and played really hard.”
The Stags gave up only 62 points in five playoff contests, almost scoring that many in just the win over St. Francis. Kingsley’s playoff run included wins over Calumet, No. 4-ranked TC St. Francis, No. 5 Kent City and No. 11 Reed City.
“This can’t be overstated, how proud we are of these four individuals,” Morrow said at the postgame press conference, along with players Colton Goethals, Figueroa, Isaiah Cosgrove and Gavin Lewis. “It’s not easy to be put in the situation they’re in at this very moment, but we are incredibly proud of their efforts, who they are as people, who they are as individuals. We love these guys, so thank you for everything you’ve done for our program, for each other, for your teammates, and there is nothing that could ever happen that would make it so we weren’t proud of you and we love you.”
Figueroa started at tight end, playing only offense instead of both ways like he normally would. McCoy played both ways, making two tackles and logging a tackle for loss.
“If you gave this kid an opportunity to compete, he’s going to compete,” Morrow said, gesturing to Figueroa. “I’m still amazed what he was able to accomplish today.”
It was Kingsley’s second state championship game appearance in the last three seasons, having beaten Almont in the 2023 D6 title game. The Stags also won the 2005 D6 title over Monroe St. Mary.
The Stags gave up about 20 pounds on average across the lines.
“I’m really proud of everybody on our team, so grateful for being able to play with those guys,” Figueroa said. “I know we fell short, but I was always proud of our team for never giving up. One thing that just really catches me is (Traverse City) St. Francis game week five. We’re down six to 21 and Ryan Roelofs is just screaming, ‘We’re not losing!’ We did lose, but always fought to the end.”
The Stags would avenge that loss with a 57-6 playoff win over the Gladiators.
“I love this team and I’m really thankful to play with them,” said Goethals, a Grand Valley State commit.
Benny Gaston completed a screen to Johnny Walters, who dove into the end zone after 23 yards for a 21-14 lead with 6:17 remaining.
Walters intercepted a deep pass intended for Goethals with 4:24 remaining. The Titans eventually went the other way to score on a 34-yard Sean Walicki touchdown run for a 28-14 lead with 2:04 remaining.
The Titans led 14-0 in the first quarter, going 72 yards in seven plays on the strength of four double-digit gains in their first drive, with Ayden Gatewood finishing it off with a 25-yard TD run. Anthony Wetzel kicked the extra point for a 7-0 lead.
Jackson scored on its second drive on a Walicki 60-yard run up the middle.
Kingsley answered with a 10-play scoring drive, with Nolan Hodges plowing in from 2 out and Joe Vorobyov adding the extra point to pull within 14-7.
Walicki stopped Lewis at the 1 as the Stags went for it on 4th-and-goal from the 2, keeping the Titans in the lead.
“We could easily have lost that game today, the way things were going at the end of the first half,” Brogan said. “If you have a team with a little bit less character than what these kids showed, that could have gone the other way.”
Eric Stark downed a Vorobyov punt at the 1-yard line with under a minute to go before halftime. The Titans appeared to fumble on a quarterback sneak, with Hodges coming out of the pile with the ball, but the ruling on the field was down by contact.
Kingsley called timeout with 11 seconds left before halftime, then challenged the call. The play was overturned following an instant replay review, and the Stags scored on the next play, a 2-yard pass from Tucker Dreves to Lewis in the corner of the end zone. Borovyov’s extra point tied the game at 14 with 10 seconds remaining in the half.
“Obviously, you want to get the job done, but I wouldn’t want to do with any other team,” Figueroa said. “I’m so proud and so grateful for all the opportunities these coaches gave me, believing in me. I’m really grateful for everybody that helped me on this journey.”
Lewis, Goethals and Hodges led Kingsley’s defense with six tackles each, with Brody Ferris adding five and Scott Stremlow and Andrew George four each. McCoy, Stremlow and Hodges were each credited with a tackle for loss and George broke up two passes.
Walicki led the Titans with 142 rush yards on 11 carries, while Gaston completed eight of 11 passes for 111 yards. Lewis gained 117 yards on 21 carries for Kingsley.
Kingsley volleyball and basketball player Emilee Robinson won a contest during a commercial break by successfully kicking an extra point after her Lumen Christi counterpart did not make it.
“We are pumped,” said Kingsley resident Angie Kopriva, who attended the game with Dale and Sandra Roelofs and Wendy Roelofs, relatives of Stags senior center Ryan Roelofs. “The dedication and commitment to hard work is impressive. They have so much heart and deserve to be here. They never give up.”
They attended every home game and postseason contest this season.
Kingsley resident Brad Jester attended the game with his son Kameron, a sixth-grader who plays Pop Warner football. Brad drove all the way to Detroit on Friday after working a 14-hour shift Thursday at Munson Medical Center. The pair went to every Stags contest this season, home or away.
“I love the fact that the Kingsley community supports their sports 100%,” Brad Jester said. “They’ll drive through 100s of miles of snowstorms.”