HUDSON — Hudson made Friday nights famous way before there was a Friday Night Lights.
On Friday, Oct. 17, Hudson will host Hillsdale in a battle of two Lenawee County Athletic Association football teams. But what is significant about this game is that the community will gather to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its record-setting 72-game winning streak and honor those attached to the Michigan high school record for most consecutive wins in state history.
“A streak of this magnitude becomes more than just a record on paper,” alumni association director Lindsey Rogers said. “It is molded into the very identity of the community.”
A reception is scheduled for former players, coaches, cheerleaders, and band members at the Hannan-Colvin Post 180 Hudson American Legion from 4:30 to 6:30 on Friday afternoon. Rogers and local Hudson sports historian Bill Mullaly expect more than 200 individuals who were part of the winning streak to attend the festivities.
After a season-opening loss to Blissfield in 1968, the start of the streak began with a dominating 33-0 win over Clinton. The shutout was the first of 35 shutouts recorded by the Tigers under the direction of Hall of Fame head coach Tom Saylor.
“The winning streak was a special time in my life and for the entire community of Hudson,” Saylor said in a 2022 interview with Mullaly, who also writes for the Hudson Post Gazette. “There were a lot of great players during those years, and I still value greatly the years I spent at Hudson.
“We will never forget the memories the winning streak gave us all as a team and as a community,” added Saylor, who posted a 94-5-1 career mark during an 11-year career at Hudson from 1966 to 1976.
Throughout the eight-year streak, Saylor-coached Hudson teams controlled their opponents with a punishing ground game and its tough-minded defense. Their efforts received not only statewide recognition but national recognition from CBS’s NFL Today program and Sports Illustrated.
“He knew how to win,” said Chris Luma, who starred under Saylor in 1975-1976. “I don’t know how else to say it. He knew how to win. He just knew how to get the most out of kids. He knew how to get you to work harder. You just always had it in your mind that you were working harder than the other team.”
A couple of times, though, Hudson rallied to keep the streak alive in 1974. The Tigers dug deep and managed to overcome a first-half deficit against its U.S. 127 rival Addison for a 26-21 win, and two weeks later, a come-from-behind 14-8 last-second win over Grass Lake.
Luma also recalled a time when Hudson had a lackluster first-half game against Hillsdale in 1976. Saylor had a team manager deliver a handwritten note at halftime that said the one opponent that could keep Hudson out of the Class C playoffs was losing.
“He was a psychological master,” added Luma, who coached Hudson from 1997 until 2019 and captured a Division 7 state championship in 2010. “He goes, ‘Well, just what I thought. Flat Rock’s getting beat. You win tonight; you’re in the playoffs.’ ”
The Tigers rallied in the second half and earned the win. Despite the second-half comeback, Flat Rock still edged out Hudson for a spot in the playoffs. Although they missed out on the playoffs, Luma said Saylor inspired players with creative means of motivation.
“He made sure that we understood the big picture of what was going on,” Luma said of Saylor, who instilled a sense of pride during the streak. “But he also would remind you how embarrassing it could be if we don’t play well.”
The Tigers received statewide recognition with three consecutive Associated Press-voted state championships in 1972, 1973, and 1974. The Hudson football teams from 1968 to 1975 received an induction into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in May 1976.
High school football represents the small-town community, bringing people together and celebrating the game itself. The much-publicized winning streak provided more than recognition for the community.
“Everyone worked together, and the Hudson community was behind the team 100 percent,” Mullaly said. “Back then, when you said you were going to the game, everyone knew what game you were talking about.”
The sentiment resonates throughout the town to this day, Rogers said.
“For Hudson, the 72-game winning streak wasn’t only about football victories,” Rogers said. “It was also about pride and unity. It gave families, businesses, and neighbors a common rallying point, creating traditions that still carry on today.”
The tradition is a part of the Rogers family as Lindsey’s husband, Dan, is the current head coach, who won a Division 8 state championship in 2021 with their son Payton, a key member of the team.
“Wearing the Hudson uniform connects them to a tradition of greatness and determination that was built long before their time,” Rogers said. “It sets a standard to inspire them to chase greatness in their own way, whether on the field, in the classroom, or in life.”
(Note: After this story went to press, Tom Saylor passed away on the morning of Sept. 25. He was 83 years old.)
