Mike Kollath photo North Central’s Wyatt Raab (28) looks for running room in the last year’s MHSAA Division 2 8-player state championship game versus Portland St. Patrick at the Legacy Center in Brighton on Jan. 16.

POWERS — For the second season in a row, the MHSAA 8-player Football Division 2 Semifinals feature a showdown between the undefeated North Central Jets (11-0) and the Marion Eagles (10-1) on Saturday at 1 p.m.

The teams last faced each other in last season’s semifinal Jan. 9 at the Superior Dome, after a lengthy delay from COVID-19.

In that game, the Jets trounced the Eagles, taking the win 50-2.

Going into this weekend’s matchup, Jets coach Leo Gorzinski feels the experience the North Central boys have under their belts will be an advantage.

“One of the best things is we have an experienced group. So, they’ve been here before,” Gorzinski said. “They understand what it takes to keep it going. We’ve had a couple of really good days of practice. … So, we’re just going to prepare like every other week.”

However, just as the Jets have grown and gained experience since January, the Eagles have too, noted Gorzinski.

“They have an outstanding quarterback and a couple of other good athletes mixed in there,” he said. “They’re in the state semifinal for a reason. They’re a good team. They’re a little more mature, it seems like, this year, and they’re going to try some different sets and formations we haven’t seen. So, we expect them to come out and give us a battle.”

One of the ongoing stories for the 2021 Jets has been injuries. Key players — notably Luke Gorzinski and Alex Naser — have been plagued by injuries throughout the year.

That story looks to change somewhat Saturday as Naser returns to action for the first time in several weeks while Luke Gorzinski — who has seen limited playing time — told coaches he was at 100% and ready to play.

While the Jets gain two major parts of their team, they lose others.

“It’s a mixed bag,” said coach Gorzinski. “We gained Alex back, and we gained Luke back, which are two huge parts of what makes us go. But, we’ve got Sebastian Deneau, Dylan Plunger and Mason Krumin; I know Dylan’s done but Sea-bass and Mason are game-time decisions right now, which is sad because they are both seniors.”

As far as the North Central game plan, fans should expect to see more of what has become trademark Jets football on Saturday.

“We’re going to keep doing what we do,” said coach Gorzinski. “We want to control the line of scrimmage as always like every football team does. Get that, then just get our athletes out in space and play fast.”

The Jets are coming off of a 65-8 win over the Forest Park Trojans last week which scored them the opportunity to host Marion this weekend.

On the season, the Jets have shut out six teams to date and have only allowed a total of 35 points from opponents. In total, they have outscored their opponents 637-35.

Marion, on the other hand, punched their ticket to the semifinals with a 54-0 win over Hillman.

Unlike North Central, the Eagles do have one loss to their name this season, a 45-0 loss against Division 1 Suttons Bay.

Aside from that, they have marched through their opponents, with their closest contest being a 44-29 win over Mesick. They have, in total, outscored opponents 438-168.

Fittingly, the Suttons Bay Norsemen also face a U.P. team in the Rudyard Bulldogs this weekend in a Division 1 semifinal.

Gorzinski is hopeful the U.P. teams can stand strong in their games this weekend.

“I want to shout out and wish the rest of the U.P. teams all the luck in the world,” he said. “Hopefully, we can all represent this weekend.”