Harbor Beach 31, Hudson 20
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Pirates Sail to a Hot Start, Bring Home School’s Second State Championship
November 28, 2025 — MHSAA Division 08 State Championship — Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan
It was a dream start for the Harbor Beach Pirates and they never looked back, securing a 31-20 victory over the Hudson Tigers for their second state title in 13 years. Before anyone was even able to come up for air, the Pirates were out to a 21-0 lead in the MHSAA Division 08 State Championship on Friday, November 28, 2025. Harbor Beach recovered a fumble and forced a turnover-on-downs, while scoring on their first three drives to set the tone early against the Hudson Tigers.
For a majority of the 2025 season, Harbor Beach opted to take the ball to start the game, instead of deferring the coin toss to the second half. As a result, the Pirates milked nearly half of the first quarter on their first drive of the day, covering 80 yards on 12 plays. Caden Bucholtz connected with Skiler Kruse on a 15-yard catch to open the scoring. Kruse kicked through the first of his four extra points on the day to make it 7-0 over Hudson. Just six plays later, a bad exchange in the Hudson backfield gave Kruse all the daylight he needed to snag the loose ball and bring the offense back onto the field for Harbor Beach at the Tiger 27-yard line.
The Pirates needed only three plays for the second score in the state championship when Bucholtz found his other tight end, Matt Geiger for the 19-yard catch. With 2:39 remaining in the first quarter, it was Harbor Beach leading 14-0 with all of the momentum on their side, but the Pirates weren’t done yet. Hudson’s next drive stalled at the Harbor Beach 37-yard line after ten plays when the Pirates came up with a huge stop on fourth down. Hudson quarterback Colt Perry was hurried on his pass by Geiger’s pressure, forcing the incomplete pass. Again, as they have done all season, the Pirates took advantage and quickly turned it into points 88 seconds later when Bucholtz scrambled into the end zone from 25 yards out. Kruse’s third extra point pushed the lead to 21-0 with 9:51 remaining in the first half.
The remainder of the game would be far closer, with Hudson scoring on their next drive to make it 21-6 and then forcing Harbor Beach to punt on their ensuing drive. The Tigers’ final drive in the second quarter ended inside the red zone, but an incomplete pass as time expired kept Harbor Beach’s 15-point lead intact at halftime. Andrew Kabban forced a tackle for a loss on second down, followed by an HB gang tackle for little gain on third and then a Kabban pass break-up in the end zone on fourth down, the final play of the half.
Hudson received the kickoff to start the second half, marching 80 yards down the field on seven plays when Perry broke loose on a 53-yard run to bring the Tigers within one possession, 21-14 with over 21 minutes left in the game. But that’s when Harbor Beach put together another six-minute drive on 10 plays that ended in a score when Kruse received the end-around run, breaking a tackle and running in the touchdown from the 11-yard line. Another Kruse point-after pushed the lead back to 14 points, 28-14, with 3:07 left in the third quarter. The second Tiger drive of the second half chewed up seven minutes off the clock as Harbor Beach’s defense wouldn’t allow any fast scores or big plays, requiring Hudson to use 17 plays to piece together their third score of the day, a Grayson Bills five-yard run. The two-point conversion was stopped short to bring Hudson within eight points with eight minutes left in regulation, 28-20.
Looking to keep the game out of reach, Harbor Beach kept the ball on the ground while covering 56 yards but bleeding off six minutes of game clock. The drive stalled at the Hudson three-yard line with two minutes left in the game and the Pirates leading by just one possession. That’s when head coach Troy Schelke sent out the field goal unit to once again keep Hudson at arm’s reach. Kruse split the uprights with ease on the 20-yard field goal to make it 31-20 with 2:02 remaining.
Hudson’s last shot downfield was cut short when Benson Harper brought in his season’s fourth interception with 26 seconds remaining. Bucholtz had to kneel just once to bring the game to a close, 31-20 in favor of the Harbor Beach Pirates.
Bucholtz exuded his will upon the Hudson defense all day, running the ball 15 times for 145 yards and a score. Harper finished with 53 yards on 10 totes, while Kruse’s only carry resulted in an 11-yard touchdown. The Pirates continued their aerial attack efficiency with five completions for 83 yards and two scores on just eight attempts from Bucholtz. Kruse brought in all three targets for 60 yards and a touchdown. Geiger did the same, bringing in his 19-yard catch for a score while Harper brought in one pass for four yards. Kruse was perfect on four extra points, as well as a 20-yard field goal. He scored 19 of Harbor Beach’s 31 points in the state championship — one rushing touchdown (6), one receiving touchdown (6), four extra points (4) and a field goal (3). Kruse also finished with three tackles and a fumble recovery. Bucholtz and Kruse were named the Ameriprise Financial Players of the Game. (Their shirts will be delivered at the team banquet.)
Ameriprise Financial Players of the Game: Caden Bucholtz & Skiler Kruse
Caden Bucholtz led the rushing attack with 145 yards on 15 carries for a touchdown, while throwing for another 83 yards and two scores from five completions on just eight attempts.
Skiler Kruse brought in three passes, totaling 60 yards, including a 15-yard touchdown. He also ran in a score from 11 yards out, was perfect on four extra point kicks and booted through a 20-yard field goal to put the Pirates up by two possessions with two minutes remaining.
Hudson was led by sophomore Beckett Campbell’s 144 yards on 27 carries. Grayson Bills found the endzone twice for the Tigers, while finishing with 108 yards on 25 carries. Quarterback Perry had eight carries for 75 yards, with most coming on his 53-yard touchdown run. Perry completed just one pass to Bills on six attempts for 23 yards and one interception.
Harbor Beach finishes the 2025 season with a perfect 14-0 record, their first undefeated season in the playoff era (since the start of the MHSAA postseason in 1975). This year’s state title is the second championship in school history, the first coming against Beal City in 2012. The Pirates are now one of just 64 schools in Michigan to have multiple state championships in 11-player football.
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