Shelby football muscles past Harrison to win district title, will face Menominee in regionals

Shelby's football team loves to hit - and on special occasions, even its coaching staff might end up on the receiving end.

So fired up were the Tigers after pulling off a 30-16 victory Friday night at Harrison to secure their first district championship in 12 years that the players bowled Fortier over to get their hands on the mitten-shaped trophy.

"It doesn't matter who they hit," Fortier chuckled, noting he was fine after being knocked down. "To hoist the trophy, the energy that came at me was incredible. It was quite the celebration...It was a fantastic night for us and a great trip home to be able to celebrate with our fans. We had so many fans there, it felt like a home game."

Shelby knew coming into the game that they'd have to be disciplined on defense to slow down the Hornets' wing-T attack, and early on the Tigers were just that, keeping Harrison at bay on offense and riding star running back Brody Fessenden to a pair of touchdowns to grab a 14-0 lead.

"A fast start for us on offense, getting the lead, it calms everyone down and allows us to play our best for sure," Fortier said. "They put some good things on film. Any time you're dealing with the T, if you don't read your keys right, they can make you look silly. We tried to make the game plan simple and enable our athletes to do what they do."

It's rarely easy in playoff football, of course, and Harrison didn't make it easy, scoring a pair of touchdowns and converting both two-point attempts to go ahead 16-14. Late in the first half, though, the Tigers delivered a response when big-play threat DayDay Garcia got loose on the edge and scored a touchdown to give Shelby the lead back, a lead it would not relinquish again.

The backbreaking drive for Shelby came in the second half when the Hornets downed a punt inside the one-yard line and the Tiger offense put together a 99-yard scoring drive that Fessenden capped with his third touchdown run of the night.

"We made some key plays in key situations and didn't let adversity get to us," Fortier said. "Our mindset was exactly where you wanted it to be."

Fessenden provided most of the offense for Shelby, following great blocking by the offensive line and racking up 225 yards rushing on 21 carries with his three scores. He also ran in a pair of two-point tries. On top of that, Fessenden tied with teammate Jaylin Henderson for the lead in tackles, with 13.

"He had a tremendous game," Fortier said of Fessenden. "He's a kid that never has a bad day. He's a captain. He was fired up to play and played extremely well on both sides of the ball.

"I've got to give a lot of credit to our offensive and defensive lines. We put a huge responsibility on them. We felt like Harrison was a pretty physical team, and we put it on our lines to match that physicality. They really came through. Casey Lamblin, Ethan Viterna, Colin Fenton, Axel Moritz and Alonzo Garcia played extremely well, and therefore Brody was able to get loose."

Fortier also complimented the Tiger receivers for blocking on the edge, facilitating even more yardage for Fessenden. So effective was Shelby's run game that the Tigers barely had to turn to the pass. The Tigers attempted just six passes, completing two for 11 yards.

The Tiger defense was terrific in the second half, allowing no points. Isaac Garcia, again playing with a clubbed-up broken hand, still reeled in an interception, and Trevor Weiss had one too. Camden Smith chipped in 10 tackles.

With the win, Shelby moved on to face unbeaten and top-ranked Menominee. The Maroons are a proud, tradition-rich program and have won all nine times they've taken the field (two games were forfeited to them) by double digits, and all but one by 28 points or more. They were Division 7 runners-up in 2023 and routed McBain Saturday, 49-6, for their third straight district title. Star senior quarterback Tanner Theuerkauf accounted for four touchdowns in that win and running back Clayton Miller rushed for two.

"They have a great program," Fortier said. "They've got it rolling. They've got some fast kids. They've got a quarterback who can throw it a mile. They're good up front. It's going to be a heck of a challenge."

With Menominee the heavy favorites, the Tigers will certainly enter the matchup with nothing to lose. Fortier said his team is focusing on football rather than getting caught up in the Maroons' lofty reputation - and the Tigers are also soaking in the experience of winning football as they prepare for a bus trip of some seven hours to the southern Upper Peninsula.

"Our guys just want to play football," Fortier said. "We had a walk-through out in the snow (Monday) after we watched film, and they had a ball. They don't want it to end...We're getting ready for a big trip. It's been a minute since I had to plan a trip like this. We just have to make sure we're up there in time for kickoff."