The debate started immediately after the game was over: Which one of DeAndre Mitchell's third quarter plays switched the momentum in Milan's favor during Friday night's 25-24 comeback victory over Ypsilanti?

Was it the bizarre, one-shoe, 80-yard kickoff return that brought the Big Reds within three points early in the third quarter?

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Or was it three plays later, when he sacked Phoenix quarterback Kevin Clark for a 16-yard loss?

Maybe it was the next play, when teammate Joe Dunn tipped a screen pass and Mitchell plucked it out of the air and returned it to the 10-yard line, setting up a go-ahead touchdown for the Big Reds?

Whichever side of the debate you fall on, one thing is certain: the three-play sequence gave Milan the lift it needed and got in the heads of the highly-skilled, but youthful, Phoenix.

"I felt the interception turned the whole game around because we were down, then we got the ball and then we scored and then we were up," said Mitchell, a senior outside linebacker.

Milan coach Steve Robb, however, said he felt it was the kickoff return that gave his team the wherewithal to win its season opener.

"I did think that (someone needed to make a big play) and I didn't know who it would be and then DeAndre came up with that kickoff return, which I think clearly was the momentum-changer," Robb said. "After that it was 18-15 and we were back in the ball game. We got some momentum out of that and our defense played better after that."

Mitchell's kickoff return was far from ordinary. Ypsilanti squibbed the kick in order to prevent a big return. Mitchell gathered the ball around the 20-yard line, where he was quickly met by a gaggle of Phoenix defenders.

Mitchell carried the defenders for 10 yards or so -- having one of his shoes ripped off in the process -- and then somehow broke out of the group and raced untouched the rest of the way to the end zone. Joe Dunn's two-point run cut Ypsilanti's lead to three.

"I was running and they tried to gang-tackle me and they took my shoe off," Mitchell said. "That just gave me more momentum and I broke free and I just got it. I was running with no shoe for like 50 yards."

"You think someone's got him and then all of a sudden he's gone," Ypsilanti coach Jason Malloy said.

The kick return also might have deflated Ypsilanti's offense, which had been difficult to stop up to that point, behind the marvelous running of junior Austin Sanders. After the kickoff return, the Phoenix went three-and-out, including Mitchell's third-down sack (a Milan facemask penalty was marked off after the play and gave Ypsilanti another chance at third down).

Kevin Clark attempted a screen, but Dunn and Mitchell read the play. Dunn tipped it in the air and Mitchell grabbed it, taking it to the 10-yard line. Two Dunn runs resulted in a touchdown and Milan taking a 22-18 lead.

Ypsilanti's Brandon Jordan scored on an 11-yard run in the final seconds of the third quarter, giving the Phoenix a 24-22 lead.

Mark McCrae's 25-yard field goal with 5:15 left in the game proved to be the game-winner for the Big Reds.

The Big Reds defense stepped up in the second half. Sanders, who gained 121 yards on nine first-half carries, picked up just 52 second-half yards.

Moreso, the Big Reds came up with a huge defensive stand late in the third quarter. Deep in its own zone, Milan fumbled and Marquez Gollman returned it to the 3-yard line. But a two-yard loss on first down and two incomplete passes was followed by Tory Martinesen's fourth-down interception, one of two picks for him on the night.

"I think we found some football players on defense," Robb said. "We were a little scared defensively in the first half. It could have been worse than 12-7 at halftime. ... It took them awhile but they figured it out."

While Robb found some players on defense, Ypsilanti found a special player on offense. Sanders made several electric moves, looking a bit like Barry Sanders as he shook off defenders in the backfield and turned potential losses into big gains. He had several other big runs called back on penalties.

"He'll probably be a Division 1 (college) recruit," Malloy said of Sanders, who finished with 173 yards and three touchdowns.

Sanders and his Phoenix teammates will have to build from this game. Coming off a 1-8 record last season, Ypsilanti clearly displayed loads of talent. But Malloy said his team also showed its inexperience as it committed 13 penalties (negating several big plays) and couldn't mentally get past Mitchell's third-quarter onslaught.

"I think the inexperience of our guys really showed up in the third quarter," Malloy said. "We talked about our kids staying focused. That's one of the things we talk about: keeping your eyes, keeping your mind right and sell out. They gave 100 percent. They sold out. Our inexperience showed up at times. But we're still working on it."

Dave Holzman can be reached at daveholz@comcast.net.