Rockford again rallies in fourth to beat pesky East Kentwood
Dean Holzwarth | The Grand Rapids Press
ROCKFORD -- For the second time in three weeks,
the Rockford football team was given fits by O-K Red counterpart
East Kentwood.
And, as was the case previously, the Rams needed another fourth-quarter
rally.
Rockford scored two touchdowns in the final 11 minutes for a
30-20 come-from-behind victory Friday night at Ted Carlson Stadium
in a Division 1 district opener.
It was a rematch of a game played Oct. 16, when
Rockford rallied in the fourth quarter for a 14-13 win against
the Falcons. The No. 1-ranked and defending state champions improved
to 10-0 and will face another O-K Red team, Grand Haven, next
week in the district finals.
The Buccaneers defeated Grand Ledge 34-10 on Friday.
"Our second half seems to be good to us," Rockford
coach Ralph Munger said. "Some adjustments that we made
at halftime certainly helped, but overall, we have to play better
first halves, and we know that.
"Somehow, we have to get that going. But the bottom line
is, we get to play next week again, and we're grateful for that."
Trailing 20-16 entering the fourth quarter, the Rockford offense
put a pair of drives together, capped by touchdown runs (5 and
10 yards) from Nick Smythe. And the Rams' smothering defense
corralled the Falcons' speedy playmakers.
After recovering an onside kick to open the second half, East
Kentwood (5-5) needed only four plays to take a 20-16 lead as
DeShawn Nelson raced 20 yards for the score.
But the Falcons were silenced after that, failing to score on
their final four possessions of the game.
"Our defense made some big stops and our kids played a
little bit harder and a little more focused," Munger said. "That
paid off, obviously."
Senior running back Joe Johnson led the Rams with a game-high
135 yards on 23 carries. He scored a pair of touchdowns on runs
of 5 and 2 yards in the first half.
"Kentwood is a great team and they came out here strong," Johnson
said. "They fought all the way through, but my line opened
up tremendous holes for me tonight and we didn't want to be stopped."
East Kentwood needed only 22 seconds to take the early lead.
Deonte Hurst scored on a 20-yard touchdown run after a 65-yard
kickoff return by Jon Henry.
After Rockford answered, Hurst added a 1-yard run to make it
14-7, but the Falcons fumbled on consecutive drives in the second
quarter.
Rockford kicker Paul Mudgett gave the Rams a 16-14 lead after
booting a 36-yard field goal as time expired in the first half.
"We decided to go right at them a little bit and we came
out and executed well, but we had a few turnovers, and you can't
turn the ball over like that against Rockford," East Kentwood
coach Greg Hudkins said. "Rockford's kids, obviously, know
how to win, and our kids are learning that still. It's a process,
but we'll get there, and I'm proud of my seniors."
