PITTSFORD — Pittsford and Jonesville are both headed to the postseason after strong regular-season finishes, and now their playoff paths are set.
Pittsford (7-2) earned its third straight trip to the 8-player Division 2 bracket after sweeping the SCAA-B division to claim a league title, while Jonesville (6-3) punched its ticket to the 11-player Division 7 field with a 22-0 shutout of Manchester in the Cascades crossover finale — its first playoff appearance under coach Frank Keller since 2021.
“It’s great for this team,” coach Frank Keller said. “We’re very young — just a handful of seniors and a lot of underclassmen, freshmen, sophomores, juniors. Making it to the playoffs and giving them that playoff experience, I mean, playoff football is some of the best football ever. Just them making it and getting there, I’m so proud of them.”
The Michigan High School Athletic Association revealed first-round matchups during its Selection Sunday show, setting the stage for two area teams looking to make noise in November. Pittsford enters as one of the top 10 ranked teams in its division, riding a dominant league run, while Jonesville carries momentum from a statement win that secured its spot.
Here’s a look at where each team landed in the bracket and who they will face in Round 1.
Pittsford lands rematch with Patriots
As if the stars were aligned, the Pittsford Wildcats ended up in 8-player, D2, Region 4 alongside the Britton Deerfield Patriots.
The No. 5 ranked Patriots take on the No. 8 Wildcats in a rematch of this season’s Week 1 opening matchup.
Pittsford and Deerfield also had two matchups in 2024 with a season opener and a playoff game. Deerfield won both of those games, including a 60-29 regional title win.
Coach Erik Johnson and the Patriots finished 3-0 in the SCAA-White division. They lost only one game this year to No. 1 ranked Mendon in a 28-24 final.
Since that loss, the Patriots have scored less than 50 points in just one of their seven double-digit victories.
The Patriots were successful in their opening season visit to Pittsford, winning 60-22.
The matchup is currently scheduled for this Friday, Oct. 31 at 7 p.m. at Deerfield. Tickets can be bought online at GoFan. Game time is subject to changes.
On the otherside of the Region 4 braket is Deckerville versus Morrice.
Deckerville and coach Bill Brown traveled up to the Superior Dome and defeated Pickofrd in the 8-player, D1 state championship last year. The regining champs jump down a division and are ranked No. 5. Their 8-1 record includes just one loss, a 28-20 loss to Capac, a D1 playoff contender.
Morreice is also 8-1; their only loss this season coming to Portland St. Patrick, the No. 3 ranked team.
It will likely be the most competitive region in the opening rounds of the postseason.
Jonesville faces former Big 8 rival Bronson
Jonesville ended up in the Division 7, Region 3 bracket. Their district semifinal matchup will be with the 7-2 Bronson Vikings.
The two teams last played in 2022 as two members of the Big 8 conference. A couple seasons later, and now both teams are in new conferences.
Bronson finished second in the Soutwhest 10 this year, finishing 5-1. Their lone loss was to 7-2 Decature in a 26-20 double overtime final.
Coach Anthony Myers’ Vikings look to be improving on their Division 7 playoff appearance last season. The Vikings lost in the Big 8/Southwest 10 crossover championship game to Springport in a 7-0 final.
On the other side of the District 54 championship bracket are two teams that are also familliar to the Comets. Union City (5-4) sneaked their way into the postseason and travels to Hanover-Horton (7-2). The Comets to the North beat Michigan Center 20-14 in the Cascades crossover title game, becoming the outright Cascades champion. It was the lone loss on the Cardinals’ season.
Hanover-Horton finished 5-0 overall in the West. All roads will lead back to Hanover-Horton should Jonesville make it past Bronson.
But that prediction will have to wait for our breakdown of each of our two Hillsdale County footabll playoff matchups. Stay tuned to see who our favorite team to make it to Week 11 is, and also check out some of the other games from Round 1 of the playoffs that we are keepign an eye on, both locally and state-wide.
Interested fans can check out the full interactive playoff brackets at mhsaa.com.
For more sports, follow The Daily News Sports Account on X (formerly Twitter) and reporter Joe Flaherty on X
This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: Pittsford faces Deerfield, Jonesville visits Bronson for Round 1 of the football playoffs
Reporting by Joseph Flaherty, Hillsdale Daily News / Hillsdale Daily News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
