OK BLUE
School: Allendale
Nickname: Falcons
Coach: Ben Burk
Last Year’s Record: 3-3, 3-6
Players Lost: Nick McDonald, Ryan Senna, Russell Wierenga
Players Returning: Glen Geurink, Kyle Landis, Haiden Majewski, Ian TeGrootenhuis, Mitch VanFarowe, Aaron Wickstrom
Coach’s Comment: “I think everyone understands their roles from the starters on down. It’s all about senior leadership and the kids performing and doing their jobs.”
School: Belding
Nickname: Redskins
Coach: Joe Schwander
Last Year’s Record: 1-5, 3-6
Players Lost: Cody Douglas, Dylan Hunt, Nate Mason, Jalen Sella
Players Returning: Brady Badder, Levi Eldred, Brice Wilker, JP Willmore, Cody Zham, Brendon Zuver
Coach’s Comment: “Consistancy as always is the key. We have to be consistently good at what we do. We have 37 kids who are competing very hard.”
School: Comstock Park
Nickname: Panthers
Coach: Mark Chapman
Last Year’s Record: 4-2, 10-3
Players Lost: Tyler Gruska, Jake Guy, John Hoffman
Players Returning: Drake Baar, Jake Brown, Jake Bush, Jake Gooden, Blake Mazur, Travis Richards
Coach’s Comment: “It’s nice to have Jake Brown and his receiving corps back. We did lose three all-conference linemen, so we have to replace those guys.”
School: Coopersville
Nickname: Broncos
Coach: Todd VanHouten
Last Year’s Record: 2-4, 4-5
Players Lost: Dakota Degroot, Blake Kolberg, Evan VanderKolk, Scott Zokoe
Players Returning: Jimmy Borgman, Justin Howe, Cody Klienjans, Matt Lieffers, Tommy McCarthy, Dan Sherman, Alex Mervenne
Coach’s Comment: “We will be strong offensively. Defensivley, we have to replace a lot of starters. The key for us is getting off to a fast start.”
School: Grand Rapids Creston
Nickname: Polar Bears
Coach: Charles Anderson
Last Year’s Record: 0-5, 0-9
Players Lost: Brandon Garcia, Voshon Hill, Nicholas Smith, Sam Vales
Players Returning: Alonta Brown, Jovone Cohen-Reed, Curtis Davison, Sam Freeman, Jamarri Key, Michael Meyers
Coach’s Comment: “We have five great running backs who will see time. We also have a good line. We should be able to run the ball.”
School: Sparta
Nickname: Spartans
Coach: Steve Zurek
Last Year’s Record: 4-2, 8-3
Players Lost: Kory Brown, Tony Hill, Kyle Rauser, Nate VanPatten
Players Returning: Ethan Babkiewicz, Thomas Cheslek, Darrin DeBoer, Riley Kutzlie, Nick Priest, Luke Snider, Evan Stubbs
Coach’s Comment: “I think we will be able to run the ball. That will be a key for us. We have to be able to control the game.”
School: Wyoming
Nickname: Wolves
Coach: Tom White
Last Year’s Record: First year
Players Lost:
Players Returning: Chad Barber, Jamal Berry, Dominique Hampton, DeMacio Lopez, Vinnie Martinez, Jack Rozema
Coach’s Comment: “We are going to run the ball out of multiple sets on offense. Nothing fancy. Defensively we are going to be real aggressive and put a lot of pressure on the quarterback.”