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Since Coach Leipold has announced that he'll honor all existing verbals, we decided to look into the season successes of the existing guys we know about. Several advanced into the state tournaments, and one is still playing.
Matt Seybert - St. Francis, Traverse City, MI
St. Francis finished second in the Northern Michigan Football Conference at 9-3. They had had defeted Ishpeming in their last three matchups, but lost in the Michigan D7 Regional Final to the two-time reigning state champs.
Tyree Jackson - Mona Shores, Muskegon, MI
Jackson's Mona Shores Sailors made it to the Michigan D2 State Final, but lost to De La Salle, in part because Jackson suffered a sprained knee in the semifinal. Jackson lead the team to a school-record 12 wins and Mona Shores' first-ever playoff win in 52 years of history. The Sailors were one of only two teams this year to beat Michigan D1 State Runner-Up Saline.
Their state championship loss was also the game that spawned this:
Jacob Herbers - Lakeview, Battle Creek, MI
Battle Creek lost to Mona Shores in the Regional final, which was also the state quarterfinal. The Spartans finished the season 9-2.
Cameron Lewis - Detroit Consortium, Detroit, MI
The Cougars finished the season 3-5 and didn't make the playoffs, though they won their final game in a rout. Lewis was named to the Division 5-6 All State team as a "Specialist"
Alec Curts - Mount Vernon, Mount Vernon, OH
The Yellow Jackets were 5-5 on the season, but featured some pretty significant splits: 4-1 at home and in their first five games, and 1-4 on the road and finishing the season on a four-game losing streak. Mount Vernon did not advance to the playoffs.
Brandon Stanback - Bishop McDevitt, Harrisburg, PA
The Crusaders aren't done yet, because Pennsylvania is nuts. Bishop McDevitt will play in the PIAA Class AAA semifinal this weekend. They're 14-0, so they're presumably ranked top-two or three in the state, but I can't find the exact number. Stanback was named to the All-State Defense by PennLive.com
Brandon Smiley - Sweet Home, Amherst, NY
Sweet Home yet again won the Class A Section VI title in New York, but fell to Section V Champ Irondequoit in the Far West Regional which is effectively the state quarterfinal.
Cameron Skipworth - Baker Baldwinsvile, Baldwinsville, NY
The Bees enjoyed a 5-1 league slate, but fell to Liverpool in the Section III (Syracuse) Class AA Semifinal and finished the season at 7-2.
Duke Hwang - Williamsville North, Williamsville, NY
Right around the corner from UB, the Spartans won their first playoff game but lost in the second round of the Section VI Class AA Tournament to Jamestown, who eventually won the State Championship in New York's largest classification.
Dev Lamour - Vanier College, Montreal, QC
The Cheetahs were 9-1 in the regular season, but fell in their first playoff game - the league semifinal - to Champlain-Lennoxville. Vanier had won the regular season game 23-16, but lost the second matchup by a lopsided 64-18 score.
Congrats to all UB commits on their successes this year, and we look forward to seeing you in the Blue and White!