Menominee junior Blake Paasch (22) breaks free while carrying the ball during a MHSAA Division 7 district championship game against Traverse City St Francis on Nov. 9, 2024 at Walton Blesch Stadium in Menominee. Paasch scored a touchdown on this play. (“The Big Dog” Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

MENOMINEE — As the dust settled on last Saturday’s wild district championship game at Walton Blesch Stadium, Menominee players, coaches and fans were left with an incredibly high rush of adrenaline and emotion.

The Maroons defeated Traverse City St Francis 35-32 in an exhilarating overtime finish. A six-yard pass from junior Tanner Theuerkauf to junior Dawson Bardowski gave Menominee its second straight district title and kept it dreams of returning to Ford Field alive.

But as Saturday turned into Sunday Brandt and the rest of the coaching staff got to work on game planning for the regional title game at 1 p.m. this Saturday at Walton Blesch Stadium. The staff, still catching its breath, quickly notices that this is a different team than St Francis. Yet, at the same time there was a somewhat sense of familiarity as to what appeared on film.

Menominee’s 2023 run to the MHSAA Division 7 state title game meant getting through North Muskegon in the state semifinal round. In that meeting, the Maroons won 32-21 at Gaylord’s home turf.

Now in 2024 the Maroons and Norsemen’s paths to Ford Field once again collide. This time for a regional championship.

“The guys have their eyes and ears open and want to do it right. That’s the great thing about it,” Menominee coach Chad Brandt said. “You see some things that are the same, and the (you see) some different personnel in some positions and the quarterback position that we see a little bit different than the exact same thing we saw them do last year.”

The Norsemen possess a completely different challenge than the Gladiators did a week ago.

St Francis was a smashmouth, old school offensive attack. When the district title game reached its pivotal moments the Gladiators relied on their patented Power-T formation to run the ball down the Maroons’ throats. The battle was in the trenches and inside the tackles.

And while winning the line of scrimmage against North Muskegon is still a must, the point of attack is in a different area. The Norsemen spread opposing defenses out of shotgun formation, forcing the battle not to be won inside the trenches, but on the perimeter of the field.

It’s a near 180 degree change from the offense Menominee faced a week ago. And with the Norsemen’s lone blemish of the season coming in the form of an 8-7 loss to Pewamo-Westphalia, who is also playing in a Division 7 regional title game on Saturday, it’s fair to say that their offensive attack gets results.

“We definitely have to tackle in space a little more,” Brandt said. “There’s not going to be as many muddles between the tackles. We have to be (aware) of who is where (on the field) and what athletes are in space.”

While containing the Norsemen on offense may be a challenge, containing Menominee’s offense has been a struggle for most teams in 2024. In fact, the Maroons have scored 40 or more points in eight games this season. They’re averaging 48.5 points a game in the playoffs. Through 11 contests in 2024 Menominee has outscored its foes 201-108, or around 45-10 per game.

We have so many skill players all around. It’s a blessing,” Bardowski said. “We’re all so close. It’s like a brotherhood. We all grew up together, and we’ve all been so close to each other.”

The Maroons and Norsemen kickoff at 1 p.m. Saturday in Menominee.

“I’m super excited,” Bardowski said. “They look good. We’re just going to have to battle it out and play all four quarters.”