OK Conference Players of The Week: District Championships

Following Friday and Saturday’s district championship games, we’re now halfway through the MHSAA playoffs with only three weeks remaining in what’s been a truly unusual season. Seven teams in the OK Conference claimed district championships and will now look forward to their regional championship opponents. Below I’ll break down the top performers throughout the OK Conference from the MHSAA District Championships. <h6>[player_tooltip player_id="54861" first="Zak" last="Ahern"], QB, Rockford</h6> Zak threw three touchdown passes and ran for another in the wildest game of the weekend as Rockford defeated Grandville 34-28 in three overtimes. It wasn’t the cleanest game for Zak, who threw a pair of interceptions, but he more than made up for it making play after play to help secure the win for the Rams. Zak sealed the win in the third overtime with a beautiful fade route to the corner of the endzone to teammate Caden Currie. The Rams will host Saline next week in a Division 1 Regional Championship. <h6>Ben Tadych and Sam Watts LB, Rockford</h6> Rockford needed huge games from its linebacker group if they were going to stop Grandville’s vaunted running attack and did Ben Tadych and Sam Watts ever deliver. Tadych and Watts each had 15 tackles, rarely letting Grandville’s winged-t attack get through for a big gain. <h6>[player_tooltip player_id="29824" first="Brady" last="Rose"], QB/DB, Mona Shores</h6> Brady made his impact felt on both sides of the ball in Mona Shores’ 43-35 district final win over Caledonia. Rose rushed the ball 13 times for 115 yards and two touchdowns and completed 7 of 10 passes for 138 yards. Rose also led the Sailors with 16 tackles on defense. <h6>[player_tooltip player_id="29634" first="Carson" last="VanderHoff"], RB, Caledonia</h6> Carson capped off an incredible career at Caledonia, rushing for 240 yards and two touchdowns. During Caledonia’s three-game playoff run, Carson rushed for 996 yards and eight touchdowns. Whoever has the luxury of getting Carson at the next level will have undoubtedly one of the hardest-working running backs to come out of West Michigan in a long time. <h6>[player_tooltip player_id="29814" first="Nate" last="Milanowski"], RB, East Grand Rapids</h6> Nate had a monster of a game in East Grand Rapids’ 41-17 district final win over Middleville Thornapple-Kellogg. The senior ran for four touchdowns and threw for another. He also made his presence felt on special teams, returning a kickoff for a 98-yard touchdown. <h6>Jacarri Kitchen, RB, Muskegon</h6> Jacarri ran the ball 25 times for 217 yards in Mueskgon’s 47-21district final win over Marquette. Muskegon will host Grand Haven in a Division 3 Regional Championship next week. <h6>[player_tooltip player_id="29610" first="Amari" last="Crowley"], QB, Muskegon</h6> Amari ran the ball 18 times for 135 yards and completed 8 of 15 passes for 127 yards and two touchdowns in the Big Red’s win. <h6>Jake DeHaan, QB, South Christian</h6> Jake made his first start in place of injured South Christian quarterback Ty Rynbrandt and did not disappoint. The sophomore threw for seven touchdowns in the Sailor’s 56-14 district championship win over Hamilton. <h6>Elliot Grashius, WR, South Christian</h6> Elliot helped ease the underclassman signal-caller into action, catching eight balls for 124 yards and three touchdowns. South Christian will play Edwardsburg in a Division 4 Regional Championship next week. <h6>Nate Sypien, Forest Hills Eastern</h6> Nate had a big game on defense for the Hawks, recording 11.5 tackles in Forest Hills Eastern’s 41-13 district championship win over Whitehall. Forest Hills Eastern will face Cadillac in a Division 4 Regional Championship next week. &nbsp;