No. 16 Harrison

The best way to make up for losing Michigan's Mr. Football is to bring back a pair of Detroit Free Press All-State Team players.

Harrison, coming off a dominant 14-0 campaign and a Division 2 state title with a 524-163 scoring margin, will look to give legendary coach John Herrington his 14th state title. The pieces are certainly there to make Harrison one of the best teams from Michigan in recent memory, as both Mario Ojemudia and Devin Funchess are committed to the University of Michigan.

Jake Vento is going to move to quarterback to replace his brother Tommy Vento, Mr. Football from last season. Jake Vento has starred at receiver and defensive back, so there's not a question about talent. The question is if he can commandeer the Harrison offense well enough to keep the team on top.

Passing targets abound for Jake Vento, and he'll have some help with an offensive line that carries some experience to make up for a lack in size. On defense, a youthful group of linebackers could be a weakness, but teams will have to fight through a talent-laden defensive line to exploit that — a daunting task.



Harrison has a big batch of talent returning, a coach who is 14th all-time on the national coaching victories list and a division that will have a hard time keeping up. Romping through the schedule is a very real possibility, and if Harrison wants to climb high in the Xcellent 25 during the season, it'll have to post a flawless mark.

Local look: "Coach Herrington doesn't give off the aura that he's smarter than everybody else, but he is. He doesn't rely on one certain offense, like living and dying with the spread option or power running attack. He can genuinely adapt his offense to his personnel. They're always so well-prepared. They may not win it all but they are unquestionably the No. 1 team now. The defensive line is going to be awfully good and I love their receivers. Maybe the strength is that there isn't one area that dominates. It'll be a well-balanced team."
- Mick McCabe, Detroit Free Press

Continue to School Profile
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School size: Division 2


Enrollment: 1,261


2010 finish: 14-0 (Division 2 state champions)


Head coach: John Herrington




Career record: 376-87-1


Years at school: 42


Notable players coached:
Drew Stanton (Michigan State, Detroit Lions quarterback)
Tommy Vento (2010 Michigan Mr. Football)

Continue to Key Returners
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No. of starters returning: 7 (offense), 7 (defense)

Key losses:
QB Tommy Vento
FB/LB Derek Head
G/DT Kristian Malaj
C/NG Lido Zefi

Key returners:
QB/S Jake Vento
RB Austin Hunter
WR/CB Aaron Burbridge
WR Gairus Coleman
LT Aaron Johnson
RG Jake Slobin
RT/DT Mario Ojemudia
TE Devin Funchess
CB Ken Russ
SS Lamarr Marshall
DE Ed Huckleby
NG Jordan Head

Key newcomers:
LB Gary Hosey
LB Lorenzo Collins



Continue to Season Outlook
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Toughest game: Cass Tech (Detroit). Harrison opens at the Big Game Prep Showdown at Eastern Michigan University against a Cass Tech team that made the semifinals in Michigan's biggest classification last year with a 13-1 record. The Technicians feature DB Terry Richardson, a MaxPreps Top 100 Player in the Class of 2012, and Michigan linebacker recruit Royce Jenkins-Stone. Aside from that, Harrison will likely face Division 1 champion Lake Orion in a crossover with the Oakland Activities Association in the penultimate week of the season.

Local outlook: De La Salle (Warren) and Brother Rice (Bloomfield Hills) are mentioned often as being teams that can play with Harrison, though both lost to Harrison in the playoffs by 10 points. League opponents Southfield and Adams (Rochester) are expected to be better.

Overall outlook:  If Jake Vento can get the ball to his experienced and talented receivers on a consistent basis — and not throw it to the other team — Harrison's offense will excel at a level that few in Michigan can deal with. The defensive line will make life tough on all opposing offenses as well. The Cass Tech matchup is a tough one, but other than that, Harrison has a distinct advantage over its other opponents and should wind up as one of the state's top teams when the season ends. A top ranking to start the season is a certainty, and finishing on top is very likely.

Coach quote: "Our expectation is to defend the state title, no sense in hiding it. We don't emphasize it right away but we have a good opportunity. Everything went right last year, so if it all went right last year it might not this year. When a game was tight we always seemed to win it. (This year's team) could be right up there with our best but it depends on quarterback and linebacker. It’s hard to say it could be our best team. Last year's team played the hardest schedule we ever played. I would be satisfied if we are as good as last year but we have a great chance to be better."
- John Herrington