Rockford
Rams 28. Grandville 00
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vs. Grandville
Rockford gets it done with shutout of Grandville
By Jane Bos / The Grand Rapids Press
ROCKFORD -- Zach Breen talked
about the two openings he saw. How he just went for it. Those
two big Rockford rushing plays in the second quarter -- the only
two Grandville gave up in the first half -- resulted
in a
pair of touchdowns. They proved to be the difference.
Behind Breen,
Rockford powered its way through a lightning delay and through
the Bulldogs, posting a 28-0 O-K Red Conference victory
at Rockford. The two-time defending Division 1 state champion
Rams, ranked No. 1 in the state, stayed unbeaten at 3-0 in the
Red and 5-0
overall after the rain-soaked
contest.
Grandville, which had its chances but came up short, is 2-1, 3-2.
"
There really wasn't much going on in that first half, we just could not
get much going there for awhile," said Breen, who totaled 181
yards, including scores of 38 and 81 yards. " It's such a big
win. Grandville is always tough, and that rivalry between us
is so strong. Whenever we come out on top, it's the best feeling." Ram
tough It must have felt good. Even Rams coach Ralph Munger smiled afterward. "
Zach's runs? Unbelievable. I mean, wow," Munger said. "Zach is
a difference-maker. Those plays are just the power of believing. I think
we are finally really moving
forward. I think we are becoming more tough. We are not nearly as good
as I think we are going to get."
Leading 14-0 at halftime after making
just 19 plays in the first half, Rockford used nine plays to
march the third-quarter
kickoff into the end zone. Quarterback Tom Fusee connected
with Curtis Mobley on the 10-yard score. Then the defense stepped
up.
It stopped Grandville three inches short of the goal line on
fourth down, thanks to the tackling of Callan Sherd and Kyle
Beyer, with
31 seconds left in the third quarter.
Before the fourth quarter
started, though, lightning was sighted and the officials halted
the game and cleared the stands. About 45 minutes later,
the game resumed,
but it was too late for the Bulldogs. Rockford scored once more, on a 5-yard
run by Frank Herringa, and Grandville came up short again.
Error
prone "
We kept shooting ourselves in the foot," said Grandville coach Scot
Shaw, whose team had a big punt return called back due to a penalty,
lost a fumble
and came up two inches short on a fourth-down conversion. " We can't
kill ourselves with ticky-tack things and then carry it over into the
next play. We drag it into the next play, and we need to fix that."
Grandville,
which time and again stuffed the Rams in the first half, had a strong
game from senior Matt Steffes, whose second efforts led
to 95
rushing yard.
The lightning delay aided the Rams. "
We decided we were going to get it done," Munger said. "Once
we saw we had the game in hand, we just needed to make first downs
and to get otu
there, burn the clock. We did not want to give up any quick strikes,
any quick touchdowns.
We felt we took care of it."
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