The Cranes will face the Divine Child Falcons in a CHSL crossover match up on Friday. (Photo Credit- S. Fairman)
The Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Cranes will take on the Dearborn Divine Child Falcons in a CHSL crossover match up in Week 4 prep football action. This game is the 2nd meeting of the two schools.
The Falcons come into this game undefeated, getting a 42-12 victory over Benton Harbor and a 20-17 win over East Lansing, with both games on the road. Divine Child returned home to defeat Detroit Edison Academy 42-14 last week.
A member of the AA division of the CHSL, this is crossover game is serves as Divine Child’s Catholic League opener.
“Divine Child has had one of the storied football programs in the Catholic League,” says Cranbrook Head Coach Joe D’Angelo. “They have produced many NFL players and scores of fine college athletes.”
Notable football alumni include Gary Danielson and Jeff Chadwick, QB and WR for the Detroit Lions, respectively; as well as Tom Dohring, a lineman for the Kansas City Chiefs, and Pat Shurmur, former Head Coach of the Cleveland Browns.
Falcons Head Coach John Filiatraut is a Divine Child alum. He went on to play Big Ten football at Wisconsin.
“We expect to be a strong team in 2017,” Filiatraut told the Dearborn Press and Guide last month. “We will be a senior-laden lineup. Many of our kids played 13 games last year.”
Senior Falcon QB Theo Day will play for the Michigan State Spartans and senior Falcon DE/TE Aiden Hutchinson will for the Michigan Wolverines next fall. Additionally, senior WR Quinn Blair is a Division 1 recruit, and junior DL Aeron Latham has Big Ten promise-his brother Evan plays football for Michigan.
“They have great players, “said Coach D’Angelo. “We will be tested by their talented group of well-coached players.”
The Cranes enter this game also undefeated.
Having achieved shutout victories over Redford Union (35-0) and Detroit University Prep (37-0), the Cranes defeated Royal Oak Shrine 42-7 on the road last week.
A member of the CHSL Intersectional I division, Cranbrook will begin its divisional schedule next week. The Divine Child game is its second crossover game this season.
“We have gotten off to a good start, “said D’Angelo. “Our senior leadership has made a big difference this year.”
Senior QB Trevor McConnell is off to a good start, going 30 for 48 with 485 yards and passing 8 TD’s. McConnell has a quarterback rating of 194.0 through three games.
Senior RB Aaron Wiggins has an average of 13.4 yards per carry and 2 TD’s on the season. Junior WR Kobi Russell has 180 yards in receptions with 3 TD’s.
Defensively, the Cranes have been led by senior LB Andrew Mertz and senior DE Chris Smith. Together with sophomore LB Jack Fairman, this trio accounts for the bulk of defensive stops for the Cranes. Senior Marqis Stokes leads the secondary with 2 interceptions.
Senior K/P Pierson Cooke has been nearly perfect, going 15 for 16 in PAT’s, having a 44-yard punting average, with his longest being 61 yards.
“Our defense has been good, with great effort from our younger players”, said D’Angelo.
After obtaining offers from Lehigh, Columbia, and Yale, DE Chris Smith has committed to play football at Harvard next fall. McConnell has interest from Purdue and University of Chicago.
Stokes, Cooke, and Russell have interests from Columbia, Michigan, and Pitt, respectively.
Junior DT Danny Files is a rising player for the Cranes, having 11 tackles on the season. He also has Big Ten promise-his brother Joey plays for the Wolverines.
“We have good solid players that have developed nicely,” said D’Angelo “We look forward to a good contest.”
The game will be played at Divine Child. The location is 1001 N. Silvery Lane, Dearborn, MI 48128. Kickoff is at 7:00 p.m.