JV: d. Milan 14-7; 5-4 (3-4 SEC)
Freshmen: d. Milan 33-20; 5-3-1 (3-3-1 SEC)

Taylor Hopkins breaks on through to the other side.

Long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away — in other words, after the 1999 season — Milan traded the SEC for the Huron League. However, life without Chelsea on the schedule was a bit too strange for Milan, so the schools continued to play each other; with two exceptions, Chelsea and Milan have concluded each regular season schedule since 2000 with what amounts to a non-conference SEC game.

For a number of those years, I helped run the press box video camera for the coaches, and that meant I had to endure the joy of the old Milan press box on stilts. You may think I’m joking, but no, I’m serious: it was a big two-story box on stilts, and it would sway in the breeze. We video crews were directed to the roof of the box most years, which meant we were four stories above the field, looking down and seeing the earth rotating beneath us; for someone who has a somewhat contentious relationship with heights, this was not always the most enjoyable experience. But the box on stilts did have two benefits: it was tall, and it was practically on top of the field, providing an excellent view of the game. The old box on stilts is now gone, having been replaced by new home stands that don’t face the setting sun, but the memories of standing on the roof wondering if this would be the year the stilts finally gave out … well, I’ll always have those.

Of course, there is one other aspect of Milan sports that should not go unmentioned: the mascot. We’ve enjoyed a wide variety of mascots this year, but none of them is like the Milan Big Reds. Some may protest the mascot for obvious controversial reasons (none of which include the preponderance of black and the minimum of red in Milan’s current uniforms, which I think is an outrage), but I believe these complaints miss the true intent of the mascot, an intent profoundly illustrated by the following 100% true, completely unaltered photograph.

Your quarterback has long-lasting flavor.

This year’s game between the Bulldogs and the Cinnamon Sticks had every indication of being one of the best of the year. Both teams were conference champions; Chelsea came into the game looking to close out a 9-0 season in its own stadium, while Milan came into the game looking to end its five-game losing streak to Chelsea with its eighth win of the year; Chelsea brought an offense featuring an outstanding running back in Nick Hill, while Milan brought an offense featuring an outstanding running back in Ron Spears.

“How did you get so tall?”

Good luck finding that contact lens.

Chelsea endured a disheartening start to the game when a member of the kick coverage unit took a 15-yard personal foul, giving Milan not just better field position, but a healthy dose of early momentum as well; they made good use of that momentum, marching down the field and scoring a touchdown to take an early 7-0 lead. On its first drive, the offense failed to be the cure for what ailed the Bulldogs as it walked off the field pointless, and the mood on the Chelsea sideline did not improve.

Playing from behind? That’s unpossible!

Fortunately, the defense realized that the state government did not introduce a new tax on tackling, so the next Milan possession was fruitless. Also, the possession after that was fruitless. And the next one, too. In fact, Milan didn’t have another successful drive in the first half, and the Chelsea offense showed its deep appreciation by scoring a touchdown of its own — a three-yard pass to Donny Riedel — in the second quarter. The extra point was not so extra, so Milan still held a slim 7-6 lead at halftime, but it seemed that the 63-headed Chelsea monster had awakened.

Nowhere to run to, baby; nowhere to hide.

Is Ron Spears eating Scott Rhodes’ hand? That’s a new one.

The second half was a crazy combination of great and terrible. The great occurred when Chelsea drove down the field in the third quarter and scored a touchdown — a one-yard Jeff Adams run — to take the lead for the first time in the game; a successful two-point conversion — also an Adams run — gave Chelsea a 14-7 lead and a new confidence in its ability to win the game. People were smiling, flowers were blooming, the economy was improving … and then The Block happened.

On a Milan running play, Tyler Ball was on the bad end of a thunderous (and legal) block that sent him flying through the air with the greatest of surprise; when he hit the ground, it wasn’t with his feet. That he didn’t immediately stand up after an impact of that magnitude was not surprising; what hushed the entire crowd was that the medical staff stabilized his head and neck and strapped him to a backboard. The sight of a player leaving the field on a stretcher is among the most frightening sights in football.

This is always frightening; fortunately, he wasn’t seriously injured.

Though the sight was frightening at the time, it was not as bad as it first appeared; Ball landed awkwardly and was complaining of neck pain, and the medical staff rightly took every precaution to be sure he was not seriously injured. As it turns okay, Ball is fine; in fact, he will be playing this Friday. As a result, people may resume smiling, flowers may resume blooming, and the economy may resume improving. (Please?)

The Block may have cost Chelsea a linebacker, but it didn’t faze the Bulldog defense; the Milan offense gained only one first down on that drive. In fact, there wasn’t much that fazed the Bulldog defense the entire evening; after allowing the opening touchdown, the defense rendered Milan completely, utterly, unwaveringly pointless the rest of the the game. And with time winding down in the fourth quarter, the Chelsea offense thanked the defense by putting together a crucial drive — including clutch third-down catches by Riedel and Hill — that ended with a four-yard touchdown run by Adams with just over one minute left in the game. This extra point was not so extra, either, but the touchdown took any remaining wind out of Milan’s sails and sealed the victory for the Bulldogs.

Seven defenders; one running back. This can’t end well.

Leftovers:

• In the matter of Hill v. Spears, the court rules in favor of Hill. Spears ran for 113 yards and a touchdown, giving him over 2,000 rushing yards on the season. However, Hill ran for 153 yards, and while he may not have scored any points, he made major contributions to two of Chelsea’s three touchdowns; prior to the second and third touchdowns, he made key third-down plays to set up first and goal situations. Simply put, Hill had more of an impact on the game’s outcome than did Spears. And that’s partly because in Chelsea, the defense doesn’t rest.

• On the strength of a 60-yard advantage in rushing, the Chelsea offense had the edge in total yardage this week, 321 to 286.

• In addition to Ball’s ambulance ride, there was another notable loss: center Kyle Raymond injured his knee and did not return. Unlike Ball, he is not expected to play this week.

• This 9-0 season is Chelsea’s fourth undefeated regular season in the last eight years; this playoff appearance is Chelsea’s ninth consecutive (99-07).

Next week:
Chelsea faces the Indians of Tecumse–wait, didn’t we do this already? Oh well. The first-round playoff game is in Chelsea at 7:00 on Friday.