OK-Red 2021 Recap

The regular season is done and league champions have been crowned. Here we’re diving deep into one of the best, most talented, and competitive conferences in the state, the Ottawa-Kent Red. Here we have 3 great playoff teams that are still alive after round 1, including the #1 ranked team in Michigan’s division 1. Let’s check out the final standings, and quickly recap each team’s season. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Standings</strong></span> <strong>(9-0) Rockford </strong> <strong>(8-1) Caledonia </strong> <strong>(6-3) Grandville</strong> <strong>(4-5) Hudsonville</strong> <strong>(3-6) Jenison</strong> <strong>(3-6) Grand Haven</strong> <strong>(2-7) East Kentwood</strong> <strong>(0-9) West Ottawa </strong> <strong>Rockford </strong> The Rams had a sensational season, earning the #1 rank in Michigan’s division 1. Being undefeated, Rockford barely bled all year with their closest loss being in 2OT to Grandville. Last season, Rockford advanced all the way to the state semifinals where they were torn apart by Davison, who ended up losing to West Bloomfield in the state championship. Rockford faces Grandville this Friday, and will likely face Grand Blanc the following week if they win. It’s a very exciting time for Rockford as they’ve got lots of elite talent with even more talent coming up the pipeline. Offensive MVP - [player_tooltip player_id="54861" first="Zak" last="Ahern"] Defensive MVP - [player_tooltip player_id="80476" first="Kade" last="Kostus"] <strong>Caledonia </strong> Here’s a team that deserves more recognition for what they’ve accomplished this season. The Fighting Scot’s only loss came to Rockford (17-14), and they’ve been even more dominant than the Rams against common opponents. Caledonia finishes 2nd in the OK-Red while producing the 3rd best offense and #1 defense in the league. Caledonia plays at home this Friday against Mona Shores in what should be an incredible matchup. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11230858">[player_tooltip player_id="30184" first="Andrew" last="DeVries"]</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/12235692">Caleb Paarlberg</a> <strong>Grandville</strong> The Bulldogs have had a very interesting season with lots of new faces taking the field. Starting out 1-3, it seemed like Grandville was in for a rebuilding year, but they’ve come storming back winning 6 straight scoring a whopping 46PPG during that span. Grandville soured to the #1 offense in the league while having a great defense at #3. They face Rockford this Friday in what I expect will be a game for the ages. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11450559">[player_tooltip player_id="99367" first="Jackson" last="Buckler"]</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11450566">Carlos Alvarado</a> <strong>Hudsonville</strong> "So close yet so far" is how I’d describe Hudsonville’s season. The Eagles have lots of talent, but when it came down to close games, they just couldn’t get it done. All 5 of Hudsonville’s losses were by 1 possession, and I couldn’t think of a worse way to miss the playoffs. Hudsonville had the #4 league offense and #4 defense, incredibly fitting for their 4th place finish. Offensive MVP - [player_tooltip player_id="103481" first="Dylan" last="Ham"] Defensive MVP - [player_tooltip player_id="103481" first="Dylan" last="Ham"] <strong>Jenison</strong> It was a disappointing season for Jenison after doing very well last season. The Wildcats simply couldn’t get it together this season finishing 3-6 without any back-to-back wins. Jenison finished with the #5 offense and defense, and they look to greatly improve this offseason. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/8538123">Ethan Mate</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/8385136">Jaden Swift</a> <strong>Grand Haven</strong> After starting the season 3-1, Grand Haven has lost 5 straight to end their season. Not how they wanted it to go especially with the amount of talent on this team, but for whatever reason, Grand Haven was unable to get any late-season wins together. We can only hope that Grand Haven is able to retool their squad for the 2022 season. Grand Haven had the #7 offense and defense. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13313606">[player_tooltip player_id="80486" first="Ashton" last="Lepo"]</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11658060">[player_tooltip player_id="80494" first="Dayne" last="Arnett"]</a> <strong>East Kentwood</strong> This team faced perhaps the most brutal opening stretch in the state having faced Muskegon, Brother Rice, Rockford, then Caledonia. The vast majority of teams would go 0-4 in this stretch, and 0-4 East Kentwood went. I would imagine being outscored 163-16 during the first 4 games would be a massive hit on the confidence, and East Kentwood only ended up victorious in 2 matchups this season. Having the #6 offense and defense, this is a season to forget for East Kentwood, though they have a huge upward trajectory with great talent coming up. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15160243">Casey Joppie</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15159580">Corey Mitchell</a> <strong>West Ottawa</strong> It was a horrible year for West Ottawa as they lost every one of their games by double digits. Not much else to say about the Panthers as the program seems to be in a strange spot with a small senior class but massive underclassman talent. This is a team that I really hope to see improve significantly come 2022. Offensive MVP - ’25 <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/16528814">Kayden Forbes </a> Defensive MVP - N/A