By: Natalia Terleckyj
River Rouge and Detroit King have met five times since the 2018 season. King leads the series now 4-1. All the games, including this one, have come in the playoffs, with the winner of the four prior matchups making their way to Ford Field for the finals. Will that be the case again? Detroit King would go on to win this one in overtime by a final of 20-19.
River Rouge
Panthers vs Penalties
The story for the River Rouge Panthers in the Regional Finals was the amount of penalties they had. Multiple times during the game, the Panthers were set up inside the five-yard line, and by the time they were done getting enforced the penalty yardage, they were back near their own forty-yard line. In total, Rouge had close to 15 penalties that played a factor in them losing the game.
Detroit King
Defensive Grinders
The defense for the King Crusaders shined the brightest it had all season in the victory over Rouge. Senior Marquise White and Sophomore Richard Stewart came to life in this one. White had four sacks on the night, and Stewart had an additional two sacks, and they combined for ten tackles. The Crusaders defense had eight sacks and an interception on the night.
Changing of the Guard
The Crusaders of Detroit King took their lumps in the regular season, just sneaking into the playoffs with a Freshman Quarterback and a Sophomore Running Back. Following the week one loss to St. Xavier, Detroit King turned to Freshman Darryl Flemister. In the regional final, Flemister finished with 101 yards and three touchdowns on 8 of 14 passing. As for rushing it, Michael Dukes carried it 18 times for 78 yards, which is on the lighter end for him. Flemister and Dukes had to replace big names Dante Moore and Sterling Anderson. However, after a rough regular season, they have seemed to right the ship in the Playoffs.