By Randy Gregory,
Michigan Sports Radio
Rams hit the road for first time versus Grandville
The first third of the 2021 regular season schedule was entirely favorable for Rockford as they hosted Sterling Heights Stevenson, Cedar Springs and East Kentwood consecutively while coming away with three impressive wins. But September 17 will mark their first contest as the visiting squad as they head to Grandville to take on a 1-2 Bulldog team.
But that 1-2 record is somewhat deceptive as Grandville fell 50-26 to a powerful Glen Ellyn Glenbard West (Illinois) squad in their opener and 24-14 to an undefeated Caledonia team this past week. Those results were sandwiched around a very impressive 50-0 rout of a normally stout U of D Jesuit team from Detroit.
Grandville faced on paper a somewhat difficult rebuilding season as they had to replace their entire arsenal of starting running backs as well as their leading receiver from a stalwart 7-2 team that fell to Rockford 34-28 in triple overtime in the third round of the MHSAA playoffs. They do however return starting senior quarterback Ian Sanders.s The only other loss they suffered was also against the Rams during the regular season by a 28-8 count. But the Dawgs most recent victory in this hardcore rivalry came in the 2019 season when they hosted a 7-0 Rockford team and crushed the Rams 30-3 to ruin a perfect regular season for the orange and black.
Rockford has squared off with Grandville on far more occasions than with any other team since 1950. The two teams have met 74 times with Rockford holding a 43-31 advantage in those contests. The next most frequent opponent for the Rams is Holland West Ottawa who has butted heads with Rockford in 55 games.
Grandville runs an offense under head coach Eric Stiegel that closely resembles what the Rams saw against Cedar Springs. It is run out of the “T” formation with a seven-man front on the line and relies on a plethora of deception and an emphasis on ball control. Passes are normally few and far between though the Bulldogs have capitalized on the pass when teams place too much emphasis on trying to stuff the run and allow a leaking receiver to get open in the secondary. One of their two scores against Caledonia came via the passing game.
“Grandville is a system offense and they run that system extremely well,” said Rockford Head Coach Brent Cummings. “We will have to match their discipline and maintain our responsibilities on every play in order to be successful. They are capable of beating anyone when they impose their will on a game and we will have our hands full.”
The Bulldogs went through some rough seasons before Stiegel’s arrival but have been a regular part of the post season over the last several years. Six of the last seven post-seasons has seen the Bulldogs secure their berth in the field. This year may prove a little challenging but there is still plenty of time for the Bulldogs to right the ship and extend that streak.
Kickoff is slated for 7:00 P.M. and a large crowd is anticipated for both teams.
