Daily Mining Gazette/Bryce Derouin Hancock celebrates with the Copper Bowl after defeating Houghton 21-0 in the 65th edition of the trophy game, Friday, at McAfee Field.

HANCOCK — All season long it’s been the offense in Hancock’s platoon system that has drawn the most praise. Compared to the power run game between the tackles that’s utilized by the majority of the U.P., Hancock’s no-huddle, uptempo attack is as unique as a Lamborghini compared to a bunch of Oldsmobiles.

Just eight weeks into the season, Hancock set a school record with 294 points scored. But in the most important game of the season, the best offense in school history was backed by a sterling defense.

Hancock shut out the Houghton Gremlins to earn a 21-0 victory in the 65th edition of the Copper Bowl, Friday at McAfee Field. The victory gives the Bulldogs an 87-51-9 advantage in the most-played matchup in the state of Michigan.

“This was by far the best defensive performance of the entire year,” said Hancock head coach Ted Holmstrom, who is now 4-0 as a coach in the Copper Bowl. “It was impressive because there were multiple times when they were driving in the plus area and we stopped them.”

Houghton had three drives into the red zone but was unable to convert each time. On the Gremlins’ second drive of the game, they had a prime chance to take the lead when they faced first-and-goal at the 6. But a 5-yard loss on third down forced a passing situation. An errant pass intended for senior Elliot Majlessi on a slant allowed Hancock senior Michael Stuber to come down with the interception in the end zone for a touchback.

In the third quarter, Houghton (1-8) had a third-and-3 from the Hancock 10 before the Bulldogs’ defense swarmed junior quarterback George Butvilas for a loss of 9. On fourth down Butvilas was tackled for a loss of 1 when no one was open, forcing a turnover on downs.

And on third-and-8 from the Hancock 19, Butvilas was tackled for a loss of 5 before an incomplete pass meant another missed opportunity for Houghton.

“That’s been a little bit of our Achilles,” Houghton head coach Frank Bonacorsi said. “In a bunch of our games we’re able to move down the field, but you can’t afford mistakes. It’s been hurting us.

“Hancock did a good job of blitzing their linebackers and we had some miscues on picking them up. That eventually got us.”

Due to injuries, Hancock senior Aaron Barnes was forced to go both ways and play linebacker. His athleticism and football instinct allowed him to assist in negating Houghton’s interior run game. The Gremlins were limited to just 145 yards rushing on 51 attempts (2.84).

“If we could have punched in that first score, it would have pumped up the kids,” Bonacorsi said. “Maybe it would have gave us more fight, but (Hancock) did a great job of stopping us.”

Hancock’s ability to shut down Houghton’s power running game was a stark contrast to the performances where the Bulldogs surrendered 274 yards rushing to West Iron County in a 30-13 loss, 249 to Lake Linden-Hubbell, 294 to L’Anse and 333 to Hurley.

“We got beat up in between the tackles in previous games so we shut it down there for the most part,” Hancock senior defensive tackle Tyler Brunet said. “This is big. The defense has sometimes struggled, but I feel like today we came together and really played well. Everybody played their best football today.”

Early on, Hancock’s offense sat and watched the majority of the first quarter like the large crowd that came out to witness what was likely the warmest Copper Bowl in history. But in spite of a temperature of 73 degrees at kickoff, the offense barely broke a sweat, running just four plays and turning it over on downs.

Hancock’s offense was rejuvenated following Stuber’s interception, and then it was the typical fast-break attack the Crimson and Gold (7-2) are known for. On fourth-and-goal from the 6, Hancock’s 14th play of the 80-yard drive was a 6-yard TD run from junior Alex Nordstrom.

On its next drive, Hancock appeared poised to make it 14-0 until Houghton senior Merlin Steffensen came down with an interception in the end zone for a touchback.

But again, Hancock’s defense would propel the offense when junior safety Brendan LeClaire deflected a pass down the seam and allowed senior Tyler Turcotte to come down with the interception for Hancock’s third takeaway of the night.

Following the interception, the Bulldogs had a 9-yard run from Nordstrom and a 31-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Colton Salani to senior Dawson Kero. Salani then found senior Grant Hokenson on an out route for a 9-yard TD and a 14-0 lead.

“The players were the ones who told me what was there and what would work,” Holmstrom said about the scoring drives. “The offense kind of sputtered, but I give credit to Houghton. They played hard and showed us looks we hadn’t seen before. But, slowly but surely, I think we wore them down.”

A 1-yard sneak from Salani made it 21-0 and ensured there would be no dramatic ending like last year’s Copper Bowl: a 20-18 Hancock win.

Hancock will now wait to see who they will play in the Division 5 playoffs. The MHSAA Selection Show will take place Sunday at 7 p.m. on FOX Sports Detroit-Plus.

Houghton 0 0 0 0 — 0

Hancock 0 14 0 7 — 21

Second quarter

HAN — Alex Nordstrom 6-yard run (LeClaire XP good), 7-0, 7:26

HAN — Colton Salani 9-yard pass to Grant Hokenson (LeClaire XP good), 14-0,0:39

Fourth quarter

HAN — Salani 1-yard run (LeClaire XP good), 21-0, 2:28

Total offense

Houghton 201 (145 rushing, 56 passing); Hancock 266 (189 rushing, 77 passing)

Rushing (carries-yards-touchdowns)

Houghton — Rajala 24-76-0, Butvilas 20-55-0; Halonen 6-18-0; Majlessi 1-4-0; Hancock — Nordstrom 16-77-1, Barnes 12-44-0, Salani 12-37-1, LeClaire 3-31-0, A. Salani 1-0-0.

Passing (completions-attempts-yards-touchdowns-interceptions)

Houghton — Butvilas 6-12-56-0-2; Hancock — Salani 8-14-77-1-1.