Ottawa-Kent White 2021 Review

Everything has just gone final in the Ottawa-Kent white, and we had many teams that stood out, overachievers, underachievers, and everything in between. This league is full of teams very close to the Grand Rapids metro area and this year the league was competitive until the very end. Here I’ll review the standings, then go over how each team performed this season. <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Standings</span></strong> <ol> <li><strong>8-2 Forest Hills Central</strong></li> <li><strong>7-4 Grand Rapids Christian</strong></li> <li><strong>7-3 Byron Center</strong></li> <li><strong>4-6 Lowell</strong></li> <li><strong>4-5 Northview</strong></li> <li><strong>3-6 East Grand Rapids</strong></li> <li><strong>3-6 Forest Hills Northern</strong></li> <li><strong>0-8 Greenville</strong></li> </ol> <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Forest Hills Central</span></strong> The Rangers were uniquely talented this year and had an incredibly successful regular season, and were quickly halted by an upset loss to Mona Shores in round 1 of the playoffs. Their game against Grand Blanc was the most thrilling matchup I’ve watched all season, and I’m incredibly surprised by the blowout playoff loss. This team has a great mix of seniors and underclass standouts, so I don’t expect them to take too much of a step back next season. FHC ranked #1 in league offense and #1 in league defense. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/7788779">Hunter Robinson</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11166142">[player_tooltip player_id="30202" first="Tyler" last="Weaver"]</a> <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Grand Rapids Christian</span></strong> Here’s a team that performed up to their standard with their 2nd-year head coach. The story of this season was finding a way to win, as they had 2 very close games won by 2 or fewer points, with a tough overtime loss, and many games where they pulled away late. Graduating lots of seniors this year, it will be interesting to see this team’s performance in 2022. The Eagles placed #2 in league offense and #2 in defense. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11404691">[player_tooltip player_id="30271" first="Ahmon" last="Parks"]</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11505780">CJ Jones</a> <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Byron Center</span></strong> The Bulldogs exceeded my expectations, as they had what was likely the youngest, most inexperienced team in the OK-White. I give a ton of credit to Head Coach Marc Cisco for the successful development of many young athletes. Ultimately this program has been great, and I believe they’re on a verge of a deep playoff run in the coming years. This team could be very dangerous next season. Byron Center ranked #5 in league offense and #5 in league defense. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13412868">Noah VanNest</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11792175">Brett Jacobi</a> <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Lowell</span></strong> The Red Arrows faced a more difficult schedule than most OK-White teams, having faced Mona Shores and Caledonia as non-league opponents. This was an ok season for them, as expectations tend to be a bit higher with this program. Lowell has been around .500 for years now, with their last deep playoff run being in 2016, where they finished 12-1. Lowell ended with the #3 offense and #3 defense. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13319496">Ian George</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13136712">Connor Lixie</a> <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Northview</span></strong> This Northview program is hard to predict most seasons as sometimes they go 1-8, though sometimes they go 7-2. It’s a streaky program, and this year, they were very much a middle-of-the-road team. They won the games they were supposed to, lost the games they weren’t favored in and were competitive in the close matchups. Northview seems to have a good amount of up-and-coming talent, and it’s going to be interesting to see how they progress. This program ranked #4 in league offense and #7 in defense. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11558119">[player_tooltip player_id="30303" first="Da’Torian" last="Roberts"]</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15057804">Calvin Cuba</a> <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">East Grand Rapids</span></strong> The Pioneers surely had a down year, as they’ve been a regular .500 or above team over the years. Although the record doesn’t show it, this team was actually quite competitive as they suffered three 1-possession losses against good teams. This program has a very talented ’23 class, and I’m very excited to see what they can accomplish this season. East Grand Rapids ranked #6 in league offense and #4 in league defense. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11131415">Damien Fortson Jr</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/12570876">Mason Margherio</a> <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Forest Hills Northern</span></strong> It was not a good year for Forest Hills Northern as they go 3-6 with wins against Wyoming, Greenville, and East GR. This, unfortunately, seems to be the norm for the past few years as they’ve been floating around this mark since their last good season in 2015. I see little reason to believe this program will make a major leap in 2022, though they do have a decent amount of underclass talent. The Huskies ranked #7 in league offense and #6 in defense Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11146818">Luke Conway</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/12817897">Curtis Andrews</a> <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Greenville</span></strong> This is one of those programs that desperately needs some sort of spark as they haven’t won a game since their 1-8 2019 season. Its rough sledding as their most competitive loss was by 16. It’s no surprise that Greenville ranks #8 in league offense and defense. Hopefully, this program can be built into something much more competitive. Offensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11797223">AJ Fox</a> Defensive MVP - <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13365780">Kameron Cooper</a>