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Mount Pleasant hosts Petoskey Friday to open the Division 3 playoffs, two years after the Northmen ended the Oilers’ season

The Mitten Daily · October 27, 2026, 9:49 a.m. ET · Mount Pleasant

A lit high school football field at night, with players lined up for a kickoff and fans and a marching band on the sideline below the stands.
A high school football kickoff under the lights, in a 2017 file photo from Texas. It does not show Mount Pleasant or Petoskey. Photo: Michael Barera / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), cropped and color-adjusted; derivative under the same ShareAlike license.

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. — The road to a state title starts at home for Mount Pleasant. The Oilers (8-1) host Petoskey (6-3) at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30, in a Division 3 District Semifinal at Mt. Pleasant Community Stadium, according to the MHSAA pairings released Sunday.

It is the first meeting between the programs since the 2024 district final, when Petoskey beat Mount Pleasant 38-10, The Morning Sun reported. The winner plays the winner of Marquette (6-3) at Cadillac (7-2) in the district final the weekend of Nov. 6–7.

Why the Oilers are home. The MHSAA seeds the first three rounds by playoff-point average, with the higher-ranked team hosting no matter the distance. Mount Pleasant’s 69.556 average was the best in Region 1, District 1; Petoskey’s was 49.556, according to the MHSAA.

Mount Pleasant’s season. The Oilers are in the playoffs for the ninth straight year after earning a share of the Saginaw Valley League North title, The Morning Sun reported, and they finished as the Division 3 state runner-up last season. Their only loss this fall was 31-29 at Traverse City West. They clinched their share of the SVL North by beating Midland 34-10.

Petoskey’s path. The Northmen were in the Big North title race until a 19-10 loss to Marquette gave the Redmen the outright championship. Petoskey finished the regular season 6-3, and Marquette lands in the same four-team district.

Tickets. MHSAA playoff tickets are sold digitally through GoFan, which lists this game at $8 for Friday’s 7 p.m. kickoff. The stadium is at 1155 S. Elizabeth St. in Mount Pleasant.

Plan for the cold. Late-October night games in mid-Michigan can turn raw fast. Bring layers and a blanket, and check the forecast before you leave.

What comes next. District Finals are the weekend of Nov. 6–7 and Regional Finals the weekend of Nov. 13–14, the MHSAA says. All times are Eastern.

Sources:
Michigan High School Athletic Association, “2026 MHSAA Football Playoff Pairings,” Oct. 25, 2026 (matchup, records, playoff-point averages, seeding rule, round dates), https://www.mhsaa.com/media/press-releases/2026-mhsaa-football-playoff-pairings
The Morning Sun, “2026 MHSAA football playoffs: Opening-round matchups for Mt. Pleasant, Beal City, Ithaca and other area teams,” Oct. 25, 2026 (ninth straight playoff trip, SVL-North share, 2025 runner-up, 2024 district final 38-10), https://www.themorningsun.com/2026/10/25/2026-mhsaa-football-playoffs-opening-round-matchups-for-mt-pleasant-beal-city-ithaca-and-other-area-teams/
The Oakland Press, “Statewide first-round pairings for 2026 MHSAA football playoffs,” Oct. 25, 2026, updated Oct. 27 (7 p.m. Friday kickoff), https://www.theoaklandpress.com/2026/10/25/statewide-first-round-pairings-for-2026-mhsaa-football-playoffs/
GoFan, “MHSAA Football District Semifinal 33 Petoskey vs. Mount Pleasant” ticket listing ($8, 7 p.m., stadium address), https://gofan.co/event/6997020
Photo: Michael Barera, “Highland Park vs. Royse City football 2017 04 (opening kickoff).jpg,” Nov. 3, 2017, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), cropped and color-adjusted, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Highland_Park_vs._Royse_City_football_2017_04_(opening_kickoff).jpg

Mount Pleasant

Tags: Mount Pleasant · Petoskey · High School Football · MHSAA Playoffs · Division 3 · Mt. Pleasant Oilers

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