Rockford wins second consecutive state
title
By Jane Bos / The Grand Rapids Press
DETROIT -- With time nearly
expired in the Division 1 state championship game and the
late afternoon sun shining through the Ford Field
atrium and onto the green field below, bleachers-full of
frenzied orange-clad folks began clapping and chanting "back-to-back." By
the time Rockford posted its 31-21 victory against Canton
-- and just before the state championship trophy presentation
-- the Rams cheerleaders began the "three-peat" mantra. "
Oh, I don't know about that yet," said a smiling Callan
Sherd, a junior wide receiver and defensive back who also played
a critical role in last year's 31-6 victory against Sterling
Heights Stevenson at the Silverdome.
" First we have to enjoy this
one, then start our off-season practice, then take (coach Ralph)
Munger's class,
everything. Then it has
to come together just right." That's exactly what
happened for Rockford (12-2) this season and on Saturday.
The Rams got the big plays they
needed against Canton (11-3). They got the big stops they needed.
And when junior Mark
Schlaudt booted a 23-yard field goal with 7:54 left in
the game, giving
the Rams a 24-14 lead, they had all the points they needed. "
It helps to have done it before, especially if you are going
back-to-back, that sort of thing," Munger said. "You
are not going to be caught by surprise in the bigness
of the building, and Ford Field is a great facility,
a very special
place."
With the score knotted 14-14 at
halftime and the Chiefs driving downfield, Canton went for
it
on fourth-and-1
at the Rockford
34-yard line. But a wave of Rams led by Spencer Remtema
stopped all-everything Deshon McClendon. Seven plays
later, the Rams had their own fourth-and-8 situation from the
Canton 41-yard line. They went for
it, too -- and got
it after senior quarterback Jon VonEschen tossed a
20-yard pass to Sherd.
Rockford capped off the drive with VonEschen's 17-yard
touchdown run, giving the Rams a 21-14 lead with 2:33
left in the third
quarter.
"
We only ran 17 plays in the first half, and that is not good
for us," Munger said. "We knew we had to
go for it on fourth down. We came here to win, we
did not come here to
lose. We had to put it on the line and go for it."
Canton
coach Tim Baechler said he never considered not
going for it.
"
We just do that," he said. "It was fourth-and-1, the
field position was good. It was not a risky thing to do. We just
didn't get it done. We were not as competitive in the third quarter
as I thought we needed to be."
McClendon, who led the team with 89-yards rushing,
43 receiving and 67 in returns and seven tackles,
gave it
his best shot. There
was just too much Rockford. The defense limited
the Chiefs' rushing offense -- which averaged about
320
yards per
game -- to 160
yards on the ground.
"
I thought we would be faster than heck, and they were fast, too," Baechler
said. "I didn't think they would be that fast
on both sides of the ball. I was surprised on the
matchup."
The speed of Sherd and junior running
back Zach Breen, who also was instrumental in
last year's
state title,
must have surprised
the Chiefs.
In the first quarter, Breen raced 52 yards for
the first score of the game chased by McClendon.
Then
late in the
second quarter
-- after McClendon scored twice on runs of 1
and 29 yards to give his team a 14-7 lead --
VonEschen
connected
with
Sherd,
chased again by McClendon, for a 53-yard touchdown
pass.
Breen, who amassed 119 yards on
the ground, also scored on a 12-yard with 1:14 left in the
game
to post the
final score. They could not be caught. "
It is always on your mind just to step it up," said Sherd,
who caught three passes for 78 yards and had
four tackles. "It's
always on everybody's mind."
Charlie Haglund,
a senior linebacker who led the Rams with
15 tackles, including eight solos,
had
it on his
mind. "
Their line was just huge," he said. "It was a big,
physical battle. It was the most physical game I played in my
high school career. It just wanted to play well."
VonEschen, who completed 7 of 14 passes for
129 yards, had that same feeling. "
When it was halftime, I was thinking to myself, 'I have two quarters
left of football, then I am done,'" he
said. "I wanted
to make the best of them. Everyone here did
a great job. Everyone made plays. I am so
proud of this team." Added Breen: "It
was unbelievable to win it last time, this
time, I can hardly believe it more. Nobody
thought we could do it. We did."
(all photos by Chris Rozema)
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