MUSKEGON, Mich. — “We’re definitely going to be gritty, we’re going to be downhill and we’re just going to do our jobs,” said Noah McFadden.
Oakridge football has big shoes to fill from 2022. The Eagles finished second to Whitehall in the West Michigan Conference Lakes Division and made it to the regional final where they fell to Gladwin. They might have a smaller team this season but the tradition remains the same.
“A lot of unity for sure, even though this is a smaller group than we’ve had before. There’s definitely a lot of unity with the kids and camaraderie between them. They want to continue that blue collar tradition of playing tough Oakridge football. They want to add to that identity and add their numbers to that,” said Cary Harger.
While the Eagles senior class is relatively small, they return three, three-year starters this season. Those seniors hopefully will lead them back to the regional finals and beyond.
“You know, it’s a lot of responsibility. Senior year, you have to step up. It’s a small senior group, but hey,” said Trevor Jones.
“I think just sticking together, supporting each other. Some people are new to it but we have a lot of guys that have been around it and just the more work we have and put together, the better we’ll be,” said McFadden.
“It’s always challenging to replace those seniors that we were relying on for the previous year or two. So it’s a matter of making sure that the guy who’s coming up in next is well-repped, is confident and athletic and knows that he can handle the job mentally as well as physically on the field,” said Harger.
Oakridge will have to face off against Whitehall again this year for the West Michigan Lakes Division championship. Last season, they lost 42-8. Coach Harger says that it’ll be a tough game again this year but they’ll be ready for it.
“I know they’re going to be tough. They were talented last year, as well, so we just have to make sure that we can do what we can do, try to take care of our end of the bargain and then see how it plays out. So, we’re confident in what we’re able to do and what we’re doing right now so we’ll see how that one plays out,” said Harger.
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