Iron Mountain's Ethan Davis (22) makes a spectacular catch over Houghton defender Jack Cooke (1) for a first down Thursday at Mountaineer Stadium. (Terry Raiche photos)

IRON MOUNTAIN — After suffering heavy graduation losses from last season’s 11-1 district championship squad, Iron Mountain came into Thursday’s 2025 opener against Houghton with just 12 seniors and juniors combined on its 27-player team.

Add in a new varsity head coach in Kyle Johnson and the Mountaineers could be forgiven for feeling trepidation before kickoff.

But the uncertainty dissipated quickly when Iron Mountain junior quarterback Brayden Kassin connected with sophomore running back Ethan Davis for a 58-yard touchdown pass down the middle of the field on just the fourth play.

Then after the Gremlins fumbled the e

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