GRANDVILLE, Mich. — “There’s an expectation of they know what it takes to be a really good football team and compete for championships,” said Head Coach Eric Stiegel.
In the 9 years that Eric Stiegel has been leading the Bulldogs, they’ve won the OK Red a handful of times and have always been a serious contender for the conference title.
“Every week you’re going to go up against a team that has a lot of good players. That is well coached, that’s prepared. It’s a very physical conference. It’s what makes football fun that you’re going to have to coach well, the kids are going to have to perform and they know that and I think that’s what makes It fun to coach and play in the OK Red,” said Stiegel.
Last season, Grandville lost to Rockford not once, but twice. The team still thinks about it often, especially the overtime regular season loss to the Rams.
“That’s always one we want back. That one still stings. Just losing to them in overtime again for the second year. We obviously don’t like losing to them and we love playing each other. We like competing with them. They’ve always been at the top so we’re coming. We want to beat them,” said senior quarterback Carson Smith.
The starters that return have some big game experience. But one thing coach Stiegel says is that this is the fastest team he’s seen in a while. His players agree.
“Really I would say all around the ball, both offense and defense we’re really fast. We have a lot of athletes and we’re going to be very fast, very athletic and we’re going to be very go, go, go this year,” said senior running back Tyson Mann.
“This is one of the fastest, most athletic offenses we’ve ever had. There’s a lot of speed at tight end and running back at quarterback so they may be able to do some different things,” said Stiegel.
Grandville had a rich tradition of competitive football both in the OK Red and in the post season. The senior class hopes to keep that legacy alive.
“Our expectation always is to compete for the OK Red. We want to compete with every team. Obviously we want to win every game that’s always the goal,” said Smith.
