PORTAGE – Portage Central football's star of the night did not celebrate the play that kept the Mustangs' season alive for one more week in the MHSAA playoffs.

Junior quarterback and outside linebacker Brady Putnam slowly walked back to the line of scrimmage on Friday, Oct. 30, after standing up Hudsonville quarterback Trey Snip for a tackle for loss along the sidelines (video at top of page). Despite the celebrations around him, Putnam didn't realize he'd made the winning tackle on fourth down.

"My mentality was just to do my job and I feel like that's what I did and what I succeeded on," said Putnam, who is being recruited by both in-state Big Ten programs (Michigan and Michigan State) and Mid-American Conference programs. "It turned out to be a great play at the end of the day. I looked at the scoreboard, everyone's cheering and I was like it was just a stop and then realized we got the ball back and won."

Putnam returned to defense after spending most of the regular season exclusively at quarterback. He stepped into the position after an injury to their starter Week 1, but now that the Michigan high school football playoffs have arrived, it means all hands on deck on both sides of the ball.

"I've been begging coaches every week [to play linebacker]," Putnam said. "It has been beg after beg. But with these close games, they have no choice but to put the player in."

Portage Central's defense, which made plays in crucial moments all night, was the difference late in the Mustangs' (9-1) 21-14 win over Hudsonville (6-4) in the Division 1 district semifinal round.

Hudsonville defensive lineman Sam Radosa charged the comeback attempt with his fumble return for a touchdown with 6:20 left in the game. On the ensuing possession, Portage Central fumbled a toss, giving the Eagles the ball at the Mustangs' 20 with just under five minutes left.

But Portage Central's JR Haywood intercepted a fourth-down shot to the end zone, preserving the lead. After a quick Portage Central punt, Putnam produced another stop in the final minute.

"Our guys, we just take advantage of our opportunities," said Portage Central coach Mick Enders, who earned his 125th career victory Friday. "When we needed it, they really stepped up."

Portage Central's defense continued its dominant ways. The Mustangs entered the playoffs by holding seven straight opponents to fewer than 20 points, and extended that streak to eight.

Hudsonville marched down on the field on the opening possession, but seemingly hit a wall at the Portage Central 20-yard line. Two tackles for loss, including one on fourth-and-inches, gave the Mustangs a fourth-down stop.

It proved to be an omen for the rest of the game. Portage Central's defense had five stops on fourth down, with four coming in its own red zone area.

"It was our preparation all year long, said middle linebacker/fullback Cam Noe, one of Michigan's top-rated junior recruits with dozens of Division 1 offers. "We knew we had to make big plays in the fourth quarter. That's how we are going to win football games, especially come playoffs."

After Luke Ludwig came up with a crucial tackle for loss to force a Hudsonville turnover on downs with the score tied at 7 with two minutes left in the second quarter, Portage Central's offense created separation with big plays.

The Mustangs typically move the ball methodically with a triple-option offense, and did so out of the shadow of their own end zone.

From the PC 38, Putnam dialed up a deep shot to running back Aiden Huber on a wheel route. Huber climbed high to make a catch between two Hudsonville defenders for a 62-yard touchdown in the final 30 seconds of the half.

Portage Central received the second-half kickoff and marched down the field in five minutes, ending with a Noe 12-yard touchdown run to make it 21-7.

"That really shortened the game and changed some of the things they wanted to do," Enders said of his team's execution. "They are really good, really talented, and presented some problems for us early on. We just hung around and found a way."

The Mustangs hope this is the start of another long playoff run. They reached the Division 2 state semifinals in 2025 with largely the same group, and have the experience to know what it takes when the calendar flips to November.

Despite jumping up to D-1 in 2026, the Mustangs believe the team can be effective against any competition.

"Moving to Division 1, we have to prove ourselves," Putnam said. "That was it last year too. A lot of people think that Portage Central football isn't as good as we are. The talk of the week is to show everyone wrong, play your best game and do what you can do week after week."

The Mustangs advance and will host Grandville (5-5), which upset top-seeded and previously Howell, 38-30, in district finals next week.

Jared Ramsey covers high school sports for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at jramsey@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Portage Central's Brady Putnam – recruited by MSU and Michigan – makes winning tackle

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