By DAVID COOK
High school football coaching legend Ralph Munger reached a significant milestone when the Rockford Rams defeated OK Red Conference rival Grandville, 21-0, in week four of the football season.
Munger, who has been coaching for 35 years, earned his 300th career victory with the win. He began coaching at Frankenmuth High School in 1980 and improved his career record to 300-92. He has coached the Rams to three state championships during his time at Rockford.
“The game was special because of the milestone,” said Munger, “but this milestone thing is shared by so many. The players, the coaches, the support staff, the administrators, that represents a whole lot. Winning tonight’s game is what I care about.”
Munger is now tied for 10th place in career wins.
The Lowell Red Arrows celebrated another successful Pink Out Night with a 55-21 win over Jenison.
Pink Out Night is a Lowell football tradition each September when everyone on the team wears a pink jersey with the name on the back of someone in their life who has been affected by cancer.
The game not only raises cancer awareness, but it also raises funds for Gilda’s House in Lowell.
“I can’t tell you the lessons these kids learn from being in this event,” said coach Noel Dean. “A lot of them are playing for their own family members, parents, loved ones, and we’re very grateful to bring families together tonight and have this shared experience.”
The Cedar Springs football team lost standout junior quarterback Collin Alvesteffer to an injury in the opening game of the season, the inaugural Gridiron Classic against Comstock Park. In spite of that, it has begun the season with two wins in its first four games.
The Red Hawks have had a number of players pick up the slack, including senior tight end/defensive end Taylor VanDyke, senior fullback/linebacker Anthony Topolski, and Jacob Hooker, who has stepped in at quarterback.
The Rockford boys cross country team is off to a strong start behind senior Isaac Harding. Harding won the individual race at the Michigan State University Spartan Invitational Spartan Elite Division with a time of 15:32. That performance helped the Rams finish third as a team in the Spartan Elite Division.