Four Midseason Bounceback Programs

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We're about halfway through the 2023 regular season, and we're starting to see which teams are rising the highest. This season has produced more than a few surprising performances by teams that aren't usually in the limelight. This article will feature four teams that have shown obvious and significant improvement from last season to this season! </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Lake Orion</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Last Season: 4-6</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Point Differential: -26</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>This Season: 4-0</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Point Differential: +71</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Dragons have something really special brewing! Last season, they were a solid OAA Red team. In one of the toughest leagues in Michigan, they were middle of the pack. In other words, LO won the games they were supposed to, and lost the games they were supposed to. This season, Lake Orion looks phenomenal with a dominant win against Harper Woods and an extremely prominent upset against West Bloomfield. The biggest star for this team is [player_tooltip player_id='253269' first='Billy' last='Roberson II'], who is the best running back in Michigan's class of 2024. Last season, Billy averaged 7.6 YPC in the OAA Red, which houses some of the best defenses in the state. This team has a difficult schedule ahead with Stoney Creek, Adams, Clarkston, and Saline coming up. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Difference Makers: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='253269' first='Billy' last='Roberson II'], [player_tooltip player_id='665544' first='Raymond' last='Payne'], [player_tooltip player_id='466402' first='Kaydon' last='Degraffenreid']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Northville</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Last Season: 8-3</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Point Differential: +125</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>This Season: 4-0</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Point Differential: +95</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Just looking at the records above may not show the vast improvement that Northville has had. Last season, Northville was a good team, though they fell to the better teams in their league. This season, they defeated Brighton who they fell to last season. In addition, they pulled off a major upset during week 1 as they defeated Clarkston at The Big House. Even more impressively, Northville has outscored Brighton and Clarkston 48-20. Great leadership and team culture seems to be propelling Northville to a phenomenal season. I would not be surprised if Northville ends up finishing the regular season undefeated!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Difference Makers:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='265646' first='Drew' last='Rankin'], [player_tooltip player_id='128898' first='Graham' last='Gilmartin'], [player_tooltip player_id='601934' first='Adam' last='Travers'], [player_tooltip player_id='601928' first='Colin' last='Charles'], Christian Fredl, Sonny Rentz</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Spring Lake</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Last Season: 3-6</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Point Differential: -81</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>This Season: 4-0</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Point Differential: +19</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After a down year, Spring Lake is roaring back with new head coach Cody Mallory. My first season covering High School Football for Prep Redzone in 2021, Spring Lake had a respectable 6-4 record with a disappointing 1st-round playoff exit. Last season, the team fell apart a bit with a 3-6 record. Now, they're back. Sitting at 4-0, The Lakers have pulled off multiple close wins and have demonstrated a ton of grit and determination. In 2022, the Lakers fell to Coopersville 31-23. Last week, Spring Lake pulled off the upset as they defeated Coopersville 20-19, placing themselves atop the OK-Blue standings. The progression is incredibly obvious, and it looks like Spring Lake has a few more wins on paper, and they'll almost certainly going to be a playoff team. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Difference Makers: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='602221' first='Reid' last='Grimmer'], [player_tooltip player_id='899644' first='Carson' last='Hein'], Jackson Lemmen, Bryce Collins</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Petoskey</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Last Season: 4-5</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Point Differential: -12</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>This Season: 2-2</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Point Differential: +39</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Northmen have shown obvious improvement from last season to this season. Better yet, I don't think this team has reached their ceiling quite yet. Last season, they fell to Ludgington 37-31 in overtime, defeated Escanaba 33-30, and lost to Gaylord 27-12. This season, Petoskey defeated Ludington 32-14, defeated Escanaba 50-0, and fell to Gaylord 9-0. That shows immense improvement, and much of that is thanks to a strong senior class along with a few great underclassmen. I hope Petoskey can keep this hot streak and make the postseason! </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Difference Makers:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='249497' first='CJ' last='Hibbler'], [player_tooltip player_id='586188' first='Seth' last='Marek'], [player_tooltip player_id='586189' first='Haden' last='Janes'], Joeseph McCarthy, [player_tooltip player_id='899583' first='Korbin' last='Sulitis']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->