Team of the Week: Unbeaten DeWitt’s dominant season reaches Ford Field

LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – DeWitt football is the 6 Sports Team of the Week as the Panthers have advanced to Ford Field for the first time since 2021.

There are plenty of statistics to tell the story of the dominant season DeWitt has put together to reach the Div. 3 State Championship game. The Panthers have won 11 games by three scores or more. They’ve scored 50+ points eight times, and they’ve also held opponents to seven points or fewer eight times.

In Saturday’s 41-20 state semifinal win over Warren De La Salle, the Panthers actually trailed 13-7 at halftime. It was somewhat unfamiliar territory, but the deficit didn’t last long. DeWitt put together a trademark dominant half in the second, outscoring De La Salle 34-7 to advance.

Given the heartbreak of last season’s state semifinal loss to Zeeland West, head coach Rob Zimmerman wasn’t surprised to see his team’s resilience on that stage.

“These kids that are seniors with such a tough loss last year in the semifinals, and I’m just so proud of them because they looked at all the things that we could have done a better job with last year to win that game and they put them into play,” he said. “Really we played about as well as we could play in the semifinals and their composure and how they responded in the second half was unbelievable.”

The undefeated Panthers will battle against another undefeated opponent, Mt. Pleasant, in the championship game Sunday at 12:30 p.m. at Ford Field.

“This is what we’ve dreamed about since fourth grade,” said senior defensive back Miller Wing. “We talk about that state championship and this has always been the ultimate goal. But what it comes down to is just one more week. It’s another game and obviously it’s a way higher level but nothing can change for us. You know, that level of preparation, watching film, practicing tough, it can’t change.”

DeWitt has won one football state championship in its history, and it wasn’t too long ago. The Panthers defeated River Rouge 40-30 to win the 2020 Div. 3 State Championship.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there weren’t many people allowed to be at Ford Field to witness the Panthers’ title. When DeWitt made it back to the state championship in 2021 and lost, the crowd was also limited due to a snowstorm.

With this in mind, the program eager to experience the championship environment with the full weight of their community’s support this year.

“We haven’t had that, you know?” said Zimmerman. “In 2020, obviously, it was a limited number and then in ’21 we had terrible weather. So, the number of people that were there was very limited for that game in comparison to some of the other years. So I think it’s great. I mean, people are super excited for this game and we’ve had a tremendous season and I think we’ll have just a great following. Mt. Pleasant will as well. It should be a great atmosphere and obviously one we’re super looking forward to.”

“I remember… watching those teams at Ford Field in 2020 and ’21,” added Wing. “Finally being able to play there, it’s surreal and I’m super excited.”

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