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Contact:  John Johnson or Andy Frushour 
517.332.5046 or [email protected]
 

EAST LANSING, Mich.  – Aug. 15 –  Schools participating in the inaugural Michigan High School Athletic Association 8-Player Football Finals will have a dome to call their own in November, as the Superior Dome in Marquette was confirmed as the host of this year’s championship game by the Association’s Executive Committee at its August 10 meeting.
 
The game will take place on November 18 at 7 p.m., and will be televised live on FOX Sports Detroit.
 
“The experiences of 11-player football teams making the trip to play in the Superior Dome have been positive, and to play our first 8-player championship in one of the finest facilities of its type anywhere is a great fit,” said John E. “Jack” Roberts, executive director of the MHSAA.  “The Superior Dome will showcase the 8-player game in ideal playing conditions.
 
“The Superior Dome and Northern Michigan University have been fabulous hosts to MHSAA Playoff Football over the years, and we know they’ll do a great job with this championship.”

“Northern Michigan University is excited to be hosting the MHSAA 8-Player Football Final,” said Carl Bammert, director of the Superior Dome.  “Teams have had outstanding experiences playing these games in the Superior Dome. I feel the teams that participate in the 8-player finals will truly have an enjoyable experience and gain lifetime memories from participating. Northern Michigan University looks forward to continuing working with the MHSAA and its outstanding events."

it is likely the 8-player championship game will be joined by Semifinal contests in the 11-player playoffs the following day.  The Superior Dome, which routinely hosts multiple contests at the Semifinal level of the 11-player tournament, last year was the site of three contests, and five such games were played there in 1993.
 
The Upper Peninsula has been the site of MHSAA statewide tournament finals in Skiing and Ice Hockey.  Michigan Technological University hosted one division of the Ice Hockey Finals in 1978 and 1988.  Marquette Mountain hosted the inaugural MHSAA Skiing Finals in 1975, when the facility was called Cliff’s Ridge, and has been the site for that event on nine other occasions.  Pine Mountain Ski Resort in Iron Mountain hosted the Skiing Finals in 1979.
 
The 8-Player Playoffs will involve 16 teams, with the qualifiers and pairings being announced on the Selection Sunday Show on FOX Sports Detroit on October 23.  A total of 21 Class D teams declared their intent to participate in the 8-player tournament last Spring.  Those schools are:  Akron-Fairgrove, Bellaire, Brimley, Buckley, Burr Oak, Carsonville-Port Sanilac, Cedarville, Eben Junction Superior Central, Engadine, Ewen-Trout Creek, Flint Michigan School for the Deaf, Jackson DaVinci Institute, Litchfield, Marine City Cardinal Mooney, Owendale-Gagetown, Posen, Rapid River, Rock-Mid Peninsula, Tekonsha, Traverse City Christian and Ypsilanti Eastern Washtenaw Multicultural Academy.  A 22nd team, Wyoming Tri-Unity Christian’s cooperative with two Wyoming Schools – The Potter’s House and West Michigan Lutheran – is not eligible for post-season play as the combined enrollment exceeds the ceiling for Class D schools.
 
The Superior Dome is the world’s largest wooden dome structure.  Completed in 1991, the Dome has a seating capacity of 8,000, and is the home to Northern Michigan University football.  A new synthetic playing surface was installed in the facility last year. 

The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by over 1,500 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition.  No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools.  Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract approximately 1.6 million spectators each year.

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