As the United States turns 250 this summer (don’t worry, you’ve still got time to get a present), USA TODAY Sports will celebrate the 250 greatest American sports figures of all time. Along with that national recognition, the USA TODAY Network will spotlight the roots of the country’s sports culture: the high school athletes and sports figures who shaped communities and defined their states.
The staff of the Free Press — on guard for 194 years (195 on July 23, not even three weeks after the U.S. turns 250) — took a deep look at the trailblazers and trendsetters whose influence extends beyond championships and statistics, to find the athletes who made a lasting impact on Michigan. We’re also focusing on their impact as high schoolers; while most went on to compete in college, and then the pros, these players first stood out on the prep level.
First up, we’re honoring the heroes of the gridiron. Here are our selections for the football players who have made Michigan fertile ground for producing athetic greatness over the past 2½ centuries.
Michigan high school football’s all-time best players
Our top 10 (in alphabetical order):
Mill Coleman, QB, Farmington Hills Harrison
The buzz: “Mill the Thrill” brought all sorts of excitement to the gridiron as he set records and led Harrison to three straight state finals (including back-to-back Class B titles in his final two seasons). Coleman was the first quarterback in the state to top 7,000 career yards (along with 77 passing TDs), but he also rushed for 1,677 yards. Just 5 feet 8 when he transferred from Albion to Harrison before his sophomore season, Coleman grew just 1 inch over his final three years, but what he lacked in height, he made up for in speed. The ultimate “Mill the Thrill” play capped his high school career, as Coleman led a 67-yard drive to beat DeWitt in the 1989 Class B final: Passes of 24, 12 and 15 yards, followed a 7-yard run, and then, on a pass call, a 9-yard scramble in which he broke two tackles and zigzagged across the field for a TD to give the Hawks their 26th straight win.
Tony Dungy, QB/DB, Jackson Parkside
The buzz: A two-way player in high school, Dungy played only sparingly in the secondary because of his skills at quarterback. Then again, Dungy was talented at almost everything he tried; like many of the players on this list, Dungy also excelled at other sports, earning an all-state nod in basketball, acclaim as a high jumper and starring in baseball – the sport many in Jackson felt was his best. But he made a name for himself in football: In leading Parkside’s 1972 squad to a No. 5 finish in the state rankings (in the days before Michigan had high school playoffs), he threw a touchdown pass every 3.5 completions, finishing wth 1,467 yards passing and 26 TDs, plus 588 yards and eight TDs on the ground. He went on to start four seasons at QB for Minnesota, and then played safety for four seasons in the NFL (before becoming a Hall of Famer as the first Black coach to win a Super Bowl).
Antonio Gates, TE, Detroit Central
The buzz: A tight end and linebacker who started three seasons for the Trailblazers, Gates drew the ultimate praise from coach Woody Thomas: He catches everything around him. He has the quickness of a basketball player and the strength of a football player. And, indeed, as a senior in 1997, he had 30 catches for 581 yards and nine TDs (despite an ailing ankle in two games) in the fall, and then averaged 27 points and 15 rebounds in leading Central to a Class A hoops title (and finishing second in Mr. Basketball voting). After an aborted attempt at playing both sports at Michigan State, Gates wound up starring in hoops at Kent State, leading the Golden Flashes to the Elite Eight in 2002. That earned him a look from NFL teams, and he was eventually signed by the Chargers, who reaped the services of a Hall of Fame tight end for 16 seasons.
Courtney Hawkins, RB/DB, Flint Beecher
The buzz: What couldn’t Hawkins do at Beecher? He started at QB as a freshman, topped 1,000 yards as a running back as a sophomore and closed out his high school career with Free Press Dream Team nods as a defensive back as a junior and senior in 986-87. “Courtney had never been a defensive back before,” coach Tyrone Armstrong noted, “but he moved in and looked like he’d been there all his life.” (Oh, and he won two Class B hoops titles in three seasons as a point guard and four relay state titles in track and field.) Despite his performances at RB and in the secondary, Hawkins wound up as a wide receiver at Michigan State, earning All-Big Ten honors twice en route to a nine-year NFL career. After he was done in the pros, Hawkins returned to Beecher to coach football — making the playoffs in 11 of 14 seasons — and serve as athletic director, before returning to the college ranks as an assistant coach at MSU in 2020, where he remains entering the 2026 season.
Earl Morrall, QB, Muskegon
The buzz: Another ahead-of-his-time passer, Morrall starred in basketball and baseball before leading the Big Reds to an undefeated record in football in 1951, racking up a then-record 851 yards passing and 11 touchdowns. One of the nation’s top recruits opted to stay close to home, choosing Michigan State and kicking off an eventual All-American career. He was the No. 2 overall pick in the 1956 NFL Draft and spent 21 seasons in the league (with an MVP award in 1968 and a Super Bowl title with the undefeated Miami Dolphins in 1972; he was the man acquired by the Detroit Lions from Pittsburgh in the infamous 1958 Bobby Layne trade.)
Charles Rogers, WR, Saginaw
The buzz: Rogers capped his senior season in 1999 with a 60-yard touchdown reception in which he broke a pair of tackles to score the winning TD in Saginaw’s Division 2 championship win over Birmingham Brother Rice. As a senior, Rogers earned the captain’s spot on the Free Press Dream Team with 40 catches for 760 yards and 14 TDs (after a junior year with 802 yards and 12 TDs on 35 catches). “He should be in the NFL,” Brother Rice coach Al Fracassa said after the teams’ Silverdome title matchup. “He reminds me of Randy Moss.” After two starring seasons at Michigan State (after missing his freshman year due to academic ineligibility), he was drafted No. 2 overall by the Lions. But Rogers couldn’t live up to the Moss comparisons, as his NFL career was derailed by injuries and drug suspensions.
Bryce Underwood, QB, Belleville
The buzz: Underwood is still writing his football tale, as he enters his second season at Michigan. But the high school chapter was highlighted by big plays with the Tigers, as he went 48-4 and made three state final appearances (with championships as a freshman and sophomore in 2021-22). That was all while setting state marks for career passing yards (10,911 yards in 52 games) and touchdowns (138 — 14 more than the No. 2 QB).
Brad Van Pelt, QB/LB, Owosso
The buzz: Built to star at any sport, Van Pelt stood 6-5 and 230 pounds by the time he reached Michigan State, in a day when few players topped 6 feet. “He was a man playing with little boys,” said Spartan teammate and former NFL player Joe DeLamielleure. As a high schooler, Van Pelt excelled in basketball, baseball and football, becoming the first player in Big Nine Conference history to make all-league in all three sports (including on offense and defense in football), and earned All-State honors at QB in 1969. At MSU, Van Pelt earned seven varsity letters before playing 14 seasons in the NFL as a linebacker, most of which were spent with the New York Giants, as he was named that franchise’s player of the decade for the 1970s.
Tyrone Wheatley, RB, Dearborn Heights Robichaud
The buzz: Like so many players on this list, Wheatley was a prodigy at multiple sports, starring in track and basketball as well as football. But even within the sport of football, Wheatley was a prodigy at multiple positions: During his senior season for Robichaud, he played eight positions and still rushed for 2,010 yards and 33 touchdowns as the Bulldogs won the Class B title in 1990. The title game was a microcosm of his skills: He ran 22 times for 168 yards and a TD, caught a pass, threw two (both incomplete), kicked off, punted and kicked three extra points. Oh, and he made 13 tackles as a defensive back. Wheatley went on to star at running back for Michigan, averaging 6.1 yards per carry before spending 10 seasons in the NFL.
LaMarr Woodley, LB, Saginaw
The buzz: Woodley first came to prominence as a freshman offensive tackle, blocking three defenders on the Trojans’ Division 2-winning touchdown run. By his senior season, however, Woodley had matured into a star linebacker, with 80 tackles, 10 sacks and a blocked kick (which he returned 30 yards for a TD). “Pursuit is his greatest asset,” coach Donald Durrett said. “He’s so strong. He’s one of those cats who doesn’t give up us area, because he knows how to read the play very well.” After three average years at Michigan, Woodley broke out as a senior, winning the Lombardi Award as the nation’s best lineman. He went on to spend nine seasons in the NFL, with a Pro Bowl nod in 2009.
Honorable mention: Pepper Johnson, Detroit Mackenzie; Rick Leach, Flint Southwestern; Kevin Hart, Birmingham Brother Rice.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Who’s Michigan’s all-time high school football player? Vote!
Reporting by Free Press staff reports, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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