CROWD PLEASERS: Novi earns ‘W’ in homecoming battle of Wildcats
Plymouth’s Max Hornbacher sacks Novi QB Christian Vitale during Friday night’s 38-14 Novi victory.
Of all the impressive halftime pageantry presented during Novi’s Friday night homecoming show (performances from the band and the cheerleaders; and the unveiling of the homecoming court), the most eye-popping highlight may have been the numbers on the scoreboard: Novi 31, Plymouth 0.
After dropping its first three games of the 2025 season by a combined scored of 111-3, the host Wildcats earned their second consecutive victory Friday night, 38-14, over Plymouth.
The moral of the first five games of Novi’s campaign: Never give up on a season, regardless of how gloomy things appear to be.
With both teams facing arguably must-win scenarios in order to keep their post-season hopes alive, the green-clad Wildcats never trailed after Anthony Madafferi hauled in a 58-yard first-quarter touchdown pass from QB Christian Vitale.
Game-changing pick-six
Minutes later, Plymouth threatened to deadlock the game when it took over deep in Novi territory on a Jordan Green fumble recovery; but on the next play John Endreszl stepped in front of a flat pass by Plymouth QB Cullen Dixon and raced 77 yards to the house to double the hosts’ lead (after Aidan Cook’s second of five successful extra points) to 14-0.
Madafferi tacked on a dazzling 28-yard TD run, and Cook added a 5-yard scoring run and a 46-yard field goal (that would have been good from 60-plus yards) to seize a commanding 31-point halftime advantage.
Novi’s ball-hawking defense forced five game-changing Plymouth turnovers, including fumble recoveries by Ben Mitchell and Dante Darling and interceptions by Will Lindsey and Endreszl.
Novi’s stars
Vitale entertained the huge homecoming crowd by completing 11 of 21 passes for 176 yards and two TDs (Johnny Woytowich secured a 9-yard score in the second half).
Madafferi finished with 120 all-purpose yards and two TDs.
A positive Plymouth can carry into its next game Friday night at home against first-place Brighton is it outscored Novi 14-7 over the final 24 minutes.
The visiting Wildcats’ first score was spectacular: a diving 8-yard TD by Jayden Johnson from third-string QB Gabe Christiansen, who replaced Dixon (who was filling in for injured first-stringer Drew Jansen).
Plymouth’s Andrae Mcsween capped the night’s scoring with a 20-yard TD reception.
Plymouth’s ‘D’ racks up five sacks
Defensively, Plymouth registered five sacks: two by Max Hornbacher, and one each by Brady Scheffer, Hayden Schultz and Gabe Watson.
Running back Ethan Sober was a warrior for Plymouth, churning out 154 yards rushing.
Christensen also shined in a reserve role for Plymouth, completing 6 of 9 passes for 94 yards and two TDs.
Novi will try to complete a rare three-games-in-three-games sweep of the P-CEP teams when it travels to Salem on Friday.
Ed Wright can be reached at 734-664-4657 or edwright@socialhousenews.com.
