The Berkley Bears travel to Troy Athens for a 7 p.m. kickoff Friday, Oct. 23, in the regular-season finale for both teams, according to Berkley’s official athletics schedule.
Both squads enter the Week 9 crossover at 3-5. Berkley finished 3-2 in OAA Gold play, according to MaxPreps. Athens went 2-2 in the OAA White, per its MaxPreps schedule.
The Bears’ season has been a story of two stretches. Berkley opened with three consecutive blowout losses, falling to Livonia Franklin 42-0, Birmingham Groves 49-6 and Ferndale. The Bears then won three of four OAA Gold games, beating Pontiac 21-0, Waterford Kettering 28-7 and Avondale 25-18 in overtime. A 35-23 loss to Royal Oak on Oct. 2 was the lone defeat during that four-game stretch.
Sophomore quarterback Asher Dean has led the offense in his first year as the varsity starter. Senior captain Max Giles said in a Sept. 18 preview that his goal was to make the playoffs and prepare the team for a long year, according to the Berkley Spectator.
That momentum stalled in Week 8. Bloomfield Hills beat Berkley 42-7 on Oct. 16, dropping the Bears to 3-5 with 110 points scored on the season.
Athens presents a different test. The Red Hawks shut out Avondale 28-0 on Oct. 16 and have scored 176 points this season, well above Berkley’s 110. Athens has been stronger on the road at 2-2 than at home at 1-3. The Red Hawks’ biggest wins came against Troy (35-0) and Bloomfield Hills (53-14) in OAA White play.
The MHSAA playoff selection show is scheduled for 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25, on the NFHS Network.
A win would give Berkley a 4-5 finish and close the year on a high note for a program that clawed back from 0-3. Kickoff is 7 p.m. at Athens High School in Troy.
