ROCKFORD ATHLETICS I HOME OF THE RAMS

By Randy Gregory, Michigan Sports Radio. Photo courtesy: Miles Postema If there was ever a score of a football game that failed to tell the story of what actually transpired during the game, it was the game Rockford played at Grand Haven on Friday, September 12. A quick glance at the 42-24 final score would lead one to believe that both teams had a pretty fair share of success moving the ball and putting points on the board. But in actuality Rockford scored at will on their first six possessions in building a 42-10 lead and showed no signs of being stopped before Head Coach Brent Cummings called off the dogs and started substituting liberally while Grand Haven kept their starters in and scored two late TDs to make the final seem much closer than it actually was. The win moved Rockford’s record to 2-1 on the season and 1-0 in OK Red play. Senior quarterback Braylen Daniels was the unquestioned star of the game as he finished a perfect 11 for 11 passing for 247 yards and four touchdowns. And he definitively did not play favorites as four different Rams led the way with only two catches apiece. The first half saw Rockford have five possessions, score five TDs and amass 323 yards in only 21 plays. The opening Ram possession of the second half covered 81 yards in 9 plays and resulted in another Rockford touchdown. That was when Cummings got valuable playing time for multiple reserves who had seen no action in the first two games of the year. “We had excellent protection and it was great to see Brayden (Daniels) and the receivers step up and make the plays,” said Cummings. “They make plays like that on a regular basis in practice and we know how explosive they can be. Those are the kind of things you get excited about as a coach and it was great to hear the excitement in the voices of our offensive coaches on the headphones. That was the way we draw it up and it takes all 11 players to do their job and it is special when everything is clicking. It was just a solid effort offensively tonight.” Rockford received the opening kick and took only three plays to find the end zone. The scoring play was a deep pass up the right side from Daniels to Jax Eichbauer that covered 43 yards. Dawson Hoekert added the first of his five extra points and it was a quick 7-0 Rockford lead. The Rams got the ball back on their own 26 to begin the next drive. Using only seven plays, they again scored a TD on a pass from Daniels to Ryan Kerry on a wheel route up the left side. With 3:53 left in the opening quarter it was a 14-0 Ram advantage. The Rams then took advantage of great starting field position on their next possession as they began at the Buccaneer 46. This time it took only a single play as Daniels hit a streaking Owen Holt on a deep pass across the middle. That made it a 21-0 game still in the opening quarter. The Bucs finally got on the scoreboard on a 37-yard field goal to briefly make it a 21-3 contest. But the Ram onslaught continued as they began their next drive at their own 34. Using only three plays, Daniels again went deep and hit Dylan Gross for a 48-yard TD to make it 28-3. Grand Haven then took advantage of the Rams having only ten players on the field and burst up the gut on an 88-yard TD run to make it a 28-10 game ever so briefly. Rockford took back possession at their own 48 and used only seven plays to expand the lead. This time it was Daniels doing the honors on a 12-yard scamper to make it a 35-10 Ram lead at the break. The first Ram foray with the ball in quarter number three ended the same way the first five possessions did. This time it took a touch longer possession as Rockford used nine plays to go 81 yards. Hayden Peoples scored this Ram TD as he swept right for the score. This time it was Connor Vanos who did the honors on the PAT to make it a 42-10 game. That set the stage for the two late Buccaneer TDs and the game ended at 42-24 Rockford. Peoples led Rockford on ground with 78 yards on nine carries and Daniels chipped in with 63 yards on only six attempts. Kobe Belcher also added 33 yards on seven carries. Gross had two catches for 56 yards and a TD, Eichbauer added 53 yards on a pair of grabs and also caught a TD, Peoples had a pair of grabs for 31 yards and Drew Ferwerda added 26 yards on a pair of catches. Wyatt Colson had 10 tackles to lead the defense and Chase Pitsch and Otto Packard both made seven. In addition, Jack Manta had six tackles while Ben McIntosh and PJ LeBlanc contributed five apiece. The Rams return home next week for a key matchup with a resurgent East Kentwood team. The Falcons trounced Jenison 54-7 last night to move to 3-0 on the year. They are led by their MSU commit Kayd Coffman and feature a prolific passing attack that has put up huge numbers every week so far. Kickoff is slated for 7:00 P.M. at Carlson-Munger Stadium in Rockford on Friday, September 19 and a huge crowd is anticipated.