There is nothing and I mean NOTHING like playing Ionia in any sport. 3umm (let’s not get into specifics) years removed from it and I still get the same feeling in my stomach. It’s Friday Night, it’s St. Johns, it’s Senior Night and it’s Ionia. Who’s got it better than us? NOOOBODY!

Since it’s senior night I thought it would be fitting to hear from the seniors on what makes football so special. So throughout this recap, I’m going to randomly sprinkle in some of their thoughts.

Photo via St. Johns High School Cheer page

First though, let’s introduce the 2024 Senior Cheerleaders. We have Kayla Dedafoe, Sydney Feldpausch, Bree Fleischer, Marissa Masarik, Aly O’Connor, Chloe Roebke, Mallorie Snow and Natalie Stoy. They do a wonderful job of getting the crowd fired up on Friday Nights and their efforts don’t go unnoticed. Now for your Friday Night Heroes, the Senior Class, the Heart and Soul of the 2024 St. Johns Redwings Football Team, we have #4 RB/DB Anthony LaCross, #5 QB/DB Tyson Smith, #7 RB/LB Michael Oberlin, #8 RB/DB Gabe Puetz, #11 WR/DB Spencer Nobis, #12 WR/DB Gus Kaiser, #14 RB/DL Gabe Thelen, #15 RB/LB Brandon Schomisch , #20 TE/LB Cooper Schafer, #34 RB/DB Thomas Putmon, #52 OL/LB Isaiah Cobb, #55 OL/DL Luke Tracy, #58 OL/DL Kyle Lockwood, #64 OL/DL Bennett Ward, #67 OL/DL Robert Andretz, and #87 TE/DL David Frisbie.  More from them later, the Bulldogs are in town and it’s time to play Dog Catcher.

“Coaches always told us “You hit somebody in the face in the real world and you go to jail, you hit somebody in football and you get a pat on the back.”- Bennett Ward #64

St. Johns won the coin toss and elected to defer. Ionia takes the ball and returns it to the 40. Pretty good drive ends in a fumble recovered by St. Johns. An unsportsmanlike penalty pushes them way back in their own end. Ionia forces St. Johns to punt. Tyson Smith gets off a good high punt but it’s recovered on the Redwing’s side of the 50.

Ionia did a really good job of keeping the Redwing defense on their heels all night, with a good mix of run and pass. They were able to move the ball down the field. The 1st qtr ends with Ionia 4th and goal from the St. Johns 4 and the score right where we started 0-0.

Ionia goes for it on 4th down to start the 2nd and punches it in , tack on the extra point and it’s 0-7.

Tyson Smith takes the ensuing kickoff and returns it to the 45. Bryce Pratl connects with Brandon Schomisch for a huge gain but Bulldogs defense is tough, with 10 of 11 starters from last year’s team, and they hold. Three plays later St. Johns is going for it on 4th and 1. Some confusion on the play leads to an offsides penalty on the Redwings and it’s 4th and 6. Coach Schmitt’s squad goes for it and Pratl connects with Schomosh again for a 1st down, the officials dropped some laundry on the field and an unsportsmanlike penalty on the Redwings moves the ball back but it’s 1st and 10 Redwings. That’s where this drive ends though and the Redwings turn it over on downs.

“Football means a lot to me, it has built friendships that’ll last forever. It’s like a family the way we all have each other’s backs.” Brandon Schomisch #15

Ionia takes over on downs with a HUGE pass that moves the ball all the way to the St. Johns 19. The next play Ionia is offside and the ball is placed at the 24. Ionia is able to move the ball 1 yrd and St. Johns is able to get the defense off the field.

“It’s another family and playing only 3 years in high school the family seems like it’s lasted forever.” Gus Kaiser #12

St. Johns starts from their 23 and goes back to the Pratl-Schomisch connection. They then switch it up and go to Mike Oberlin for a huge gain to the Ionia 30.

“Football means more than a game to me. Football is a lifestyle. You can’t just wake up one day and play football. Football requires not just physical dedication but also mental. It can take a toll on both physical and mental health but the best teams can weather the storm and win.” Mike Oberlin #7

More laundry on the field but this time it’s Unsportsmanlike against the Bulldogs and it moves the ball to the Ionia 15. St. Johns is going to make this one sting and takes to the air again. This time it’s Pratl to Spencer Nobis for the TD! The extra point rings off the upright and is no good. It’s 6-7 Ionia over the Redwings.

“I have really enjoyed the feeling of having another family in the team. All the guys are really close and it’s a brotherhood that we all share.” Spencer Nobis #11

Redwings attempt to catch Ionia napping with a Kyle Lockwood squib kick. It trickles out of bounds and the Ionia elects to have Lockwood re-kick. They return the kick to the 38 and with :24 seconds left they are trying to put points on the board before the half.

“[Football] means a lot and nothing less” Kyle Lockwood #58

Ionia is able to move the ball to the St. Johns 28 with a big pass. They pull out the old Hook and Ladder Play. NFL’s winningest all-time head coach who successfully ran the play, Don Shula, has stated that it’s a “hook-and-lateral play because the receiver laterals the ball; there is no ladder.” Just in case you were wondering. If you were wondering what happened to the clock, so was everybody else. It seemed like time had expired before the receiver had gotten out of bounds. Ionia successfully lobbies to get :02 seconds put back on the clock. They run the field goal unit out. The clock is to start on the Official’s ready to play and it seems like time expired again before Ionia got the play off. Ultimately it’s a lot of drama for nothing as Ionia misses the field goal attempt and the teams head into the locker room with the Boys in Black down by a score of 6-7.

“Football is a brotherhood of guys who go through the same struggle as you every workout, practice, and game to come out and be victorious in life.” Robbie Andretz # 67

The St. Johns Dance team performs an amazing Contemporary Pom routine to Pitbull’s Get Ready. The St. Johns Marching Band, fresh off of their 39th consecutive straight 1’s performance at the MSBOA, performed their Name Game Marching Routine. They also honored Rich Chapko for his years of work behind the scenes helping the band.

St. Johns is led back out of the locker room by Isaiah Cobb. It’s time to play this out.

“One of my favorite moments was celebrating in the locker room after the Hamilton game. It was a game I had circled all off-season, so it felt good to walk in their trap and take over their trap!”- Isaiah Cobb #52

St. Johns is receiving the opening kickoff. Tyson Smith returns the kick off to the 28. Oberlin moves it to the 50. Brady Heibeck is able to move the chains but Ionia’s stout defense steps up again and St. Johns turns the ball over on downs.

As you would expect in an Ionia vs St Johns game, emotions run hot. Ionia takes another Unsportsmanlike penalty that moves the ball back to their 13. But a huge pass play moves the ball to the St. Johns 18. Ionia eventually scores with 3:56 in the 3rd qtr. The 2 pt attempt is smothered and the score is 6-13.

“Football means to me that you’re not playing as a team but as a family with one goal in mind.” Cooper Schafer #20

Mike Oberlin takes the kickoff to the 38, but the drive falls flat and St. Johns is forced to punt. Ionia fumbles the fair catch attempt but is able to recover. Ionia commits a False Start penalty and is starting from their 20. Ionia gets a big run and moves the chains and that’s where we end the 3rd qtr. Ionia 13 St. Johns 6 with Ionia on their 42.

The 4th qtr starts and Ionia is able to move the ball steadily as seconds tick off the clock.  They get the ball to the St. Johns 15 and on 4th and 5 they are able to score on a Field Goal. Making the score 6-16.

“What I liked most about football is the bond and brotherhood the team has provided and how it’s taught me important morals I can use in my life.” Luke Tracy #55

St. Johns drive starts with a huge pass attempt from Pratl to Alex Oberlin that slips out of his fingers and falls incomplete. However St. Johns still has some magic in the tank and on 4th and 11 from their 34 Pratl connects with Tyson Smith and it’s off to the races. Tyson breaks a couple of tackles and to quote Chris Berman “He could…go…all…the…way!” TOUCHDOWN St. Johns. The extra point is good and with the score 13-16 we have a ball game again.

“Never thought it would go by this fast, glad i got to spend my last season with these guys.” Tyson Smith #5.

Ionia is going to be content with running up the middle and forcing St. Johns to use the rest of their timeouts. They snap the ball a final time and the QB runs around to drain as much time off the clock as possible before going down and that’s it. St. Johns drops a heartbreaker at home to the Bulldogs. Ionia climbs to 4-4 while St. Johns falls to 5-3.

There is one game of the regular season left. St. Johns vs Alpena with the JV game being contested before. It will be perfect Alpena weather with a high of 55 and a low of COLD. Alpena has had a tough go of it this year currently standing at 0-8 but they will be hungry to send their seniors out on a positive note. Meanwhile St. Johns is looking to make the playoffs for the first time in a few years. Should make for an exciting game. Thank-you to all the seniors for your years of hard work and dedication to the program.

Dan Ward- You probably know me.
(St. Johns Class of ‘90, HS Wrestling Coach, Youth Football Coach, and Parent of Bennett #64 and Liam #30 4th Grade)

Thank you to Glenn Armstrong for help with the photos: