Muskegon will play DeWitt in one division three state semifinal game on Saturday at 1 p.m. with the winner advancing to Ford Field for the state championship game.
For the Big Reds seniors this journey is extra special after their high school careers got off to a slow start.
"It means a lot," Muskegon senior center Nickarri Lane said. "Our freshman year we were doubted. We went 1-6, came back the next year and went 6-1. That just meant a lot to us, we just kept grinding, kept working."
Even at the start of this season, the Big Reds were just 3-2 after a week five home loss to Zeeland West. Now, they have reeled off seven wins in a row.
"We were counted out because we were kind of young and we weren't doing a great job on defense when we first started," Muskegon senior outside linebacker Princeton Blackmon said. "We've just been locking in and reading our keys more, just paying attention to our assignments."
Last Saturday, the Big Reds avenged that loss to the Dux with a 27-20 win the regional championship game at Hackley Stadium.
"The kids wrote on the dry erase board before the game on Saturday, bring the coaches back to practice on Monday," 13th year Muskegon head coach Shane Farifield said with a smile. "I think they wanted us in the cold just as much, it feels great. It's been two years since we've been to this point, to get back out here and be one of the four left in our division feels really good."
The matchup with the Panthers will be the third in four seasons for Muskegon with the schools splitting the previous two semifinal meetings.
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