The Calvin Christian football team has had the deck stacked against it.
The Squires haven't started 3-0 since 2011. They didn't even field a varsity team two years ago due to low numbers, and had two coaching changes in the offseason.
With all that, Calvin has beat St. Louis, Muskegon Heights, and Parkway Christian in the first three weeks to start this season.
"It's surprising, it's great," Squires senior running back, slot receiver, and linebacker James Daniels said. "I know the seniors, since we were freshman, we went through a lot of losses so it was about time we got ours, so, we worked hard for it. We feel good, but we also want to make sure that we keep working and we stay focused, and we keep practicing hard."
"I like to say that we have a lot of confidence," Calvin Christian senior wide receiver and linebacker Lukas Sisco said. "But we don't like to show it because we have to go into every game like this team is good, this other team that we are going to face and so far it has worked for us. We've worked hard in the film room and it has really paid off for us."
Bob Nichols was hired as the team's head coach last December, but five months later he resigned because of a health issue.
That's when Calvin Christian alum Steve Van Dam was promoted from defensive coordinator to head coach.
"Day one it became very clear how hungry these kids were to learn and get better and they were very desperate for some success," Van Dam said. "They haven't had the blessing of a lot of success during their high school careers. We've had a good core of a lot of kids that have put the work in since June which isn't easy to do, it's obviously paid dividends, we've had some success early on this year and it's been great."
Calvin Christian opens OK Silver play at Davies Field on Friday night against Belding (3-0).
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