Eagle 2012 Season Recap

Grand Rapids Christian Eagles

2012 State Champions

ACE

“I pulled the kids together and said one day over Thanksgiving weekend you are going to play Orchard Lake St. Mary’s and you are going to remember this day,” Fellows said.

“We could stop right now or get back out there.

We are going to do an overtime period cause that’s how we are going to win the state championship.”

—Coach Don Fellows Summer 2012 Grand Rapids Christian Loaded With Talent: Eagles Wear the Target on Their Back in 2012 Ason Hutton FOX 17 P 4:05 p.m. EDT, August 10, 2012 One could argue that Grand Rapids Christian's undefeated regular season in 2011 was a surprise. With receiver Drake Harris committing to Michigan State this offseason, Alex Vandevusse returning at quarterback and several other players being recruited by division 1 schools, the Eagles won't be sneaking up on anyone in 2012. "We talk about that, we try not talk about did we go 9-0 last year or 7-4 we just kind of plug in and do the best we can, but we have high expectations" head coach Don Fellows said.

Fellows estimates that he has as many as 12 division 1 or 2 college players on this seasons team, one of them is senior tight end Zach Crouch who has verbally committed to Central Michigan. "We are not going to think about last season, yeah it was great (going undefeated in the regular season) but we are just really focusing on one game at a time" Crouch said.

The OK White might just be the toughest in the state this season, and the defending champs have aspirations on repeating. "Most of our varsity players have been playing together since they were in third grade, they've been our strongest football class so there is a lot of cohesiveness among those guys" Fellows said.

Grand Rapids Christian begins the season as the top team in our blitz poll. The Eagles will be featured as part of our game of the week to open the season August 24 when they host rival South Christian. "It's our best team combined since I have been here" Fellows added.

OK White football preview: Rugged conference loaded with playoff-caliber teams Steve Kaminski | skaminsk@mlive.com, August 14, 2012 8 a.m.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Grand Rapids Christian’s football team is coming off its first undefeated regular season, and when Eagles coach Don Fellows looks up and down his lineup, he can identify 12 guys who will be playing college ball in a year or two.

Only in the rugged OK White Conference, though, would a team like the Eagles not be the clearcut favorite heading into the following season.

Even Fellows said, "Who, us?"

“That’s very dangerous thinking because on any given night, Grand Rapids Christian could lose a game,” said Fellows, whose team plays seven opponents who qualified for the playoffs last year. “I think what last year showed was that we can compete with those guys. But I don’t think you can look at anybody and say that they are the favorite.

“Look at our schedule. We play Lowell in Week 9. We might be two different teams from Week 1 from Week 9. You just don’t know.”

The Eagles became the first team other than East Grand Rapids or Lowell since 1998 to win the OK White last year.

Hudsonville, which is now in the Red, was the last team to do so.

The main challenge for the Eagles, though, remains EGR and Lowell. In fact, EGR came back to beat the Eagles in the second round of the playoffs, and while the Pioneers’ string of five consecutive titles came to an end, East Grand Rapids did advance to the state semifinals. Experience on the offensive and defensive lines should keep the Pioneers in the fight for another league title.

Meanwhile, Lowell qualified for the state championship game for the third consecutive year before falling to Birmingham Brother Rice. Lowell only has one returning starter on offense, but that doesn’t make EGR coach Peter Stuursma sleep any easier at night.

“I think you have to pick Lowell,” said Stuursma, when asked to name the White favorite. “You have to respect what they have done.”

The Red Arrows do return six starters on defense, and Lowell coach Noel Dean predicted his team will be a physical one.

“I think our team is stronger than we have been in the last couple years. They might rival our 2009 team as far as what they've accomplished in the weight room,” Dean said. "I think we'll be a very physical team, the kids like to hit and they like to deliver a blow and assert their will.”

Predicted order of finish 1. Grand Rapids Christian 2. East Grand Rapids 3. Lowell 4. Forest Hills Central 5. Jenison 6. Caledonia Grand Rapids Christian Eagles 2011 Record: 10-1Coach: Don Fellows, 3rd year (17-5) Key players: WR Drake Harris, TE/DE Zach Crouch, OT Tommy Doles 2011 Review: The Eagles won the OK White Conference championship and finished the regular season undefeated for the first time in program history. Their only loss came to EGR in the second round of the playoffs.

2012 Outlook: The Eagles look to be a White contender once again, thanks to a roster that features 12 players who plan to play football, including Drake Harris (Michigan State) and Zach Crouch (Central Michigan). Tommy Doles has an offer to play at Michigan.

Grand Rapids Christian starts fast, holds off South Christian in 38-28 win at home GRAND RAPIDS – Grand Rapids Christian’s fast start gave the Eagles just enough cushion to hold off South Christian when the Sailors went on a furious finish Friday night.

The host Eagles defeated the Sailors, 38-28, and it looked like it was going to be easy in the opening half when Christian stormed out to a 17-0 second-quarter lead. The Sailors rallied, and while they never got closer than 10 points, they made a game of it.

It marked the 14th consecutive year that the two teams have opened the season against each other, and Christian’s win enabled the Eagles to even the series at 7-7 during that stretch.

“I think this was the second time in school history that we have beaten South Christian three years in a row,” Christian coach Don Fellows said about the rivalry, with the last time the Eagles having this much success against the Sailors was when they won four-straight games from 1974-1977.

“Before I took this job, everybody said, ‘Just beat South Christian.’ We knew we were going to get their best effort. We have the last two years.”

The quarterbacks for both teams took over with their arm and legs. Christian senior Alex Van De Vusse completed 11-of-24 passes for 155 yards, and that included a 39-yard touchdown pass to Michigan State University-bound Drake Harris. Van De Vusse also ran for 94 yards on 26 carries and a touchdown. South Christian sophomore quarterback Jon Wassink dazzled in his varsity debut. Wassink completed 12-of-24 passes for 227 yards and three touchdowns. Wassink also ran for 145 yards on 18 carries, and he scored on a 35-yard run.

“Jonny doesn’t play like a sophomore,” South Christian coach Mark Tamminga said. “He didn’t make a bad decision tonight. He never forced the ball anywhere tonight. Jon was outstanding.

“We are disappointed we lost this football game. This team believed we could win. We fell short, but we are going to be OK for this year. We feel good about the effort we got from our guys.”

The Eagles scored on their first three possessions, and three times during those drives they converted on 4 th down, including Christian Van De Burg’s 2-yard run on 4th-and-goal that put the Eagles up 7-0. Davaris Collier scored on a 6-yard run later in the first quarter, and Joel Schipper’s 29-yard field gave the Eagles a 17-0 lead in the second.

South Christian failed to get a first down on their first three possessions, but they eventually broke through on it had the ball. Wassink connected with a leaping Derek Woltjer’s in the end zone for a 14-yard touchdown pass. South Christian’s Chad Sterk set up the scoring drive by returning a punt to Christian’s 25.

The two squads combined to score touchdowns on five consecutive possessions at one point in the second half, and all five of those drives were 71 yards or more.

“It was a great game,” Van De Vusse said. “Every time we (scored), they had an answer. Playing in games like these are always a lot of fun. You wish you could blow them out, but games like this will help you out. They always had an answer, and we had to come back at them.”

It was a game in which offenses dominated, but Christian made just enough big plays on defense to pull it out. The Eagles got a standout goal line stand after the Sailors took the second-half opening quarter and marched down to the Christian 4 where the drive stalled. Christian lineman Tommy Doles wrapped Wassink on a 3rd-and-1 quarterback sneak for no gain. Linebacker Ryan Betts then stopped Geff Plasman for a 1-yard loss on 4th down In addition, Matthew Hall scooped up a fumble and returned it 32 yards for a touchdown that put the Eagles up 24-7 in the third quarter.

“I’m excited,” Fellows said. “We have a long ways to go, but we have some good football players on this team.”

Grand Rapids Christian football team represents Michigan well in 42-34 loss to nation's No. 14 ranked team CINCINNATI, OH -- Grand Rapids Christian head football coach Don Fellows thought his team had only a "very slim" chance to beat the 14th-ranked team in the nation. Imagine his surprise when the Eagles were up by 10 points at halftime.

"We had a 10-point lead at halftime with a chance to finish," Fellows said. "But Moeller was solid as well, and well coached teams are going to make great adjustments."

Alex Van De Vusse threw two touchdowns in the first quarter. The first was a 36-yard pass to Dwayne Barfield. A blocked punt in the end zone by Cincinnati Moeller's Gus Ragland evened the score 7-7.

The second Van De Vusse touchdown pass was a 29-yard strike to early Michigan State University commitment Drake Harris. Harris finished with seven catches for 101 yards.

"The Christian quarterback (Van De Vusse) is a great high school quarterback," Moeller coach John Rodenberg said. "We had a dilemma of how to cover Drake Harris, he's a great athlete. We had to double team him when they abandoned the run and we still had a hard time of stopping him."

Zach Crouch opened the second quarter with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Van De Vusse. The quarterback finished with 282 yards on 18 completions, but threw three interceptions.

Keith Watkins II scored on a 37-yard run to give Moeller its first offensive touchdown. Joel Schipper added a 48-yard field goal before the half.

"We had an old fashioned slug fest going on, unfortunately for us we also had 3 turnovers," Fellows said.

The second half was all Moeller.

Watkins II scored on a 39-yard reception and a 50-yard run. He finished with 219 yards on 20 carries and two touchdowns on the ground, and had three catches for 82 yards.

Moeller quarterback Spencer Iacovone was 10 for 18 with 166 yards and two touchdowns. His second ended the third quarter. Jospeh Eramo's touchdown run in the fourth gave Moeller a 15-point lead. Van De Vusse scored on a 4-yard run for Christian's final score.

"Hats off to Fellows' game plan. I was very impressed with his no-huddle offense. it was just fantastic," Rodenberg said. "Sometimes I just want to have a good old-fashioned Friday night, but Christian was a classy team. I could see them going undefeated the rest of the way."

The Eagles will face Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills next week, but coach Fellows knows that this long road experience still had benefits.

"I didn't expect to beat that team, they're the real deal," he said. "But I think we represented Michigan and the OK Conference well. I think it was easier for the game plan to work against good coaches."

"Everyone was respectful and I was proud to be part of that today."

The weather and Kenowa Hills can't slow down Grand Rapids Christian in shutout win WALKER, MI – With a strong wind and rain blowing in its face to start the game, it looked like the Grand Rapids Christian might get off to a slow start.

But it was Kenowa Hills that was caught in the perfect storm.

The visiting Eagles scored four touchdowns during the first 12 minutes of play, added two more in the second quarter when they had the wind to their backs, and cruised past Kenowa Hills for a 43-0 win Friday night.

The entire second half was played with a running clock.

“We were kind of disappointed that we had to go against the wins at the start of the game, but we've talked about whether it is rain or snow, just do what we do,” Grand Rapids Christian coach Don Fellows said “we talked about maybe altering the gameplan because of the wind, but we think (Christian quarterback Alex Van De Vusse) is one the best quarterbacks for our system, and then everybody just execute.”

The Eagles (2-1)executed on both side of the ball.

After the Christian defense turned the ball over on downs after a long Kenowa Hills drive, the Eagles' first touchdown came in a bit of an unorthodox way.

Van De Vusse, who had two long runs during Christian's drive that took the ball to the Knights' 1-yard line, he tried to sneak the ball in from one yard out but fumbled. Senior running back Davaris Collier saw the loose ball and scooped it up and ran it in for the touchdown and a 7-0 lead.

The Eagles' defense then struck one play later, as sophomore defensive back Malike McLaughlin intercepted a Cody Ritsema pass and ran it in from 50 yards out for a 14-0 lead.

Van De Vusse's big arm came into play on the Eagles' next two possessions.

During the first drive, he connected with junior wide receiver Drake Harris for a 71-yard touchdown pass, and then after that hit Collier for a 72-yard touchdown pass and a 28-0 lead with 1:28 still left in the first quarter.

At that point, Kenowa Hills coach Scott Van Essen was left scratching his head in disbelief.

“We felt pretty good that they had to go against the weather and our defense in that first quarter,” said Van Essen, whose team fell to 2-1. “And then we had a good drive, didn't think three points was going to be good enough there, and then turned the ball over. And then they just out-executed us. And when you play against a team like them, you can't keep giving them opportunities.”

Christian had two more scoring opportunities in the second quarter, as Van De Vusse scored on an 11-yard touchdown run midway through the quarter.

He was then replaced by junior quarterback Sam Kuiper, who threw a 48-yard touchdown to Harris just before halftime. After the 2-point run, the score was 43-0, and the second half was used to get much-needed playing time for some of Fellows' reserves.

“In the second half we got some kids in, and that was good for us,” Fellows said. “We had a short week (after traveling to Cincinnati Moeller to play a game Saturday), and it was good to get some kids some rest and play some of our backup players.”

For Van Essen and the Knights, who were held to 168 yards of total offense, it's back to practice.

“I still think we have a good football team, but we played a good football team tonight,” Van Essen said. “We just have to regroup and get better.”

Grand Rapids Christian forces running clock with 56 -point first-half explosion GRAND RAPIDS, MI – As the Hudsonville and Grand Rapids Christian football teams lined up for the postgame handshake, a train raced by the outside of Grand Rapids Christian's Eagles Stadium.

During the game, it was a Grand Rapids Christian offense that was like a runaway locomotive.

After being stopped on their first drive of the game, the Eagles scored on their next seven possessions to race away from Hudsonville 59-13 Friday night.

It was the second week in a row that Grand Rapids Christian caused a running clock in the second half. The Eagles built a 56-7 lead by the break thanks to seven offensive touchdowns and one defensive score in the first half.

Last week, Grand Rapids Christian (3-1) forced a running clock at Kenowa Hills, scoring six touchdowns by the break in that game while on its way to a 43-0 win over the Knights.

Related: See more photos from Grand Rapids Christian's romp over Hudsonville “This is a special group, and we knew it was a special group coming into the season,” Grand Rapids Christian coach Don Fellows said. “There is no magic pill here, these kids work their butts off. We have 100% participation in our morning lifting, and it shows. These kids put in the time to succeed.”

That was evident throughout the entire first half Friday.

After being stopped on their first drive, Christian senior quarterback Alex Van De Vusse and all state junior wide receiver Drake Harris struck quickly on a 59-yard touchdown pass on their second possession.

The Harris touchdown reception came in front of Michigan State University basketball coach Tom Izzo, who was there to watch his prized recruit. Harris plans playing football and basketball for the Spartans when he is done at Christian.

Izzo also had to be impressed with Van De Vusse, who completed 15 of 20 passes for 305 yards and five touchdowns, all in the first half.

His night was done by the break.

“Our offense was clicking tonight,” Van De Vusse said. “We went into this game knowing we had a great gameplan.

Our coaching staff puts in a lot of hours, and when we all came in Monday, we had a scouting report and gameplan ready to go, and it worked. It was a special night.”

And the Eagles showed that they just aren't an offensive juggernaut as the defense harassed Hudsonville sophomore quarterback Mason Opple, who was just called up from the junior varsity team this week. The defense forced a fumble that was recovered by noseguard Jeremy Stygstra, who took it back for a touchdown .

After halftime, the special teams had their time to shine, as senior kicker Joel Schipper kicked a 48-yard field goal to complete the Grand Rapids Christian scoring.

“They are a wonderful team,” said Hudsonville coach Dave Lidgard, whose team fell to 1-3. “They were bigger, faster, stronger and they coached better than we did tonight. I don't see any weaknesses with that team.”

Lidgard and his Eagles did have a few bright spots as Opple avoided the Christian pass rush in the first half and hit junior wide receiver Louie Diaz on an 84-yard touchdown pass. Opple later punched in a 1-yard run in the second half after a 58-yard dash by junior running back Dakota Prince.

“They really wore us down up front,” Lidgard said. “I felt like we got good pressure during our first game, but tonight to get pressure up front tonight. It just snowballed on us.”

Grand Rapids Christian romps in the rain in 38-21 win over Caledonia GRAND RAPIDS – Some things you just never outgrow.

Grand Rapids Christian's senior quarterback, Alex Van De Vusse, still loves playing in the rain and Friday night at Eagles Stadium he showed how well he can play in the precipitation.

Van De Vusse completed 18 of 26 passes for 332 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 77 yards and a score to lead the Eagles to a 38-21 victory over Caledonia.

“Growing up as a kid, you want to play in the rain and the snow and then when you get to high school people think you don't feel that way anymore, but I do,” Van De Vusse said. “I love to play in the rain. It's fun to play in the rain. They kept the ball dry for us and it didn't affect us at all.

“We try to be 50-50 between the pass and the run but I know it wasn't 50-50 tonight. They were giving us a lot of routes underneath, so we took advantage of that. We run if we have to, and we pass if it's open, and tonight it was open.”

The Eagles (4-1) rushed for 158 yards Friday night despite the steady rain that fell throughout the contest. The team cut accumulated 490 total yards in the wet weather.

Van De Vusse one blemish came at the end of the Eagles' first drive of the game as he threw an interception that Fighting Scots sophomore Logan Soule returned 62 yards for a touchdown.

The Eagles answered on their next possession when senior Joel Schipper booted a 22-yard field goal. After the Eagles defense stopoed Caledonia inside the Eagles' 10-yard line, Van De Vusse and junior wide receiver Drake Harris hooked up for an 86-yard TD reception with 4:32 left in the first quarter.

Caledonia took a 14-10 lead with just 18 seconds left in the first half on a 1-yard TD sneak by quarterback Ryan Zoet.

The Eagles needed just 15 seconds and two plays to head into halftime up 17-14. Van De Vusse completed two passes for 61 yards, the final 41 coming on a touchdown pass to junior Sam Kuiper.

Van De Vusse rambled 40 yards for the only score of the third quarter while Kuiper went eight yards for a score early in the fourth to give G.R. Christian a 31-14 lead. Senior Seth McIntosh bolted 50 yards to make it 38-14.

The Scots, which racked up 380 total yards Friday, ended the scoring with a 3-yard Dean Chase score with 19 seconds left to play.

Eagles coach Don Fellows was so impressed by his team's effort Friday night that he called it, “the biggest win since I've been here.” He tempered that statement somewhat, remembering epic clashes with Lowell and East Grand Rapids, but he was sincerely proud of his Eagles' effort.

“You have to take what they give you,” said Fellows, who is in his third season at Christian.

“They had seven guys in the box, so we had to throw the ball."

The Eagles will take on East Grand Rapids next week.

Grand Rapids Christian's air attack puts perennial powerhouse East Grand Rapids on verge of missing post season EAST GRAND RAPIDS, MI – The Grand Rapids Christian football team was bounced out of the playoffs last season by East Grand Rapids in the second round.

The Eagles gained a bit of redemption Friday night and potentially prevented the Pioneers from making the postseason for the first time since 2000.

Behind a potent air attack, Grand Rapids Christian defeated East Grand Rapids 49-35 in a wild OK White shootout played in front of a capacity crowd at Memorial Stadium.

“We knew it was going to be a battle because they were playing for their playoff lives,” Eagles coach Don Fellows said. “East Grand Rapids is the best program in the state, traditionally-wise, and to knock a team like this potentially out of playoffs on their home field was going to take a great effort. I was really proud of our kids.”

While the Eagles improved to 5-1 and put themselves one win away from a playoff berth, the Pioneers dropped to 24.

East Grand Rapids has qualified for the postseason 11 straight years, but that streak is in serious jeopardy following their second consecutive loss. The Pioneers program, which has won 11 state football championships including five in a row from 2006 through 2010, has three games remaining and will likely have to win them all to make the playoffs.

“We're not used to this, but we are going to go back to the drawing board and we have some things to work with,” Pioneers coach Peter Stuursma said. “They are just so athletic, and they outmanned us at so many positions, but our kids played their tails off.

“We had a couple of mistakes in the first half that gave them good field position, but what a gutty performance from Jahaan Brown and an offensive line that has been decimated all week.”

Brown rushed for 347 yards on 40 carries and scored a pair of touchdowns. He finished with 442 all-purpose yards in the game that saw the teams combine for 940 yards of total offense.

It was the play of Grand Rapids Christian quarterback Alex VanDeVusse and wide receiver Drake Harris that defined the shootout and helped answer every East Grand Rapids rally.

VandeVusse completed 20 of 27 passes for 336 yards and six touchdowns. Harris caught 10 passes for 211 yards and scored four touchdowns.

“Drake and I have a special connection, but it's more than just me and Drake,” VanDeVusse said. “I'm truly blessed to have great athletes around me and a great offensive line that gives me time to show off our athletes.”

The Eagles capitalized on a pair of East Grand Rapids turnovers in the first quarter to take a 21-7 lead.

Grand Rapids Christian padded its lead on its first possession of the third quarter, going ahead 35-14 on a 25-yard pass from VanDeVusse to Sam Kuiper.

The Pioneers refused to go away and mounted a charge with 14 consecutive points.

Jahaan Brown plowed in from 1-yard out for a score, and after a goal line stand, East Grand Rapids went 99 yards and capped it off with a 3-yard run by Gerald Nystrom to make it 35-28.

On Grand Rapids Christian's ensuing possession, VanDeVusse launched a bomb to Harris for a 60-yard score to create breathing room.

“That was a real big game changer,” Harris said. “Alex threw a great pass and I came away with the ball. This was a big win for our community because East Grand Rapids is the best program in the state and this was a rivalry game.”

The Eagles, who were led on the ground by Seth McIntosh's 105 yards and a score, overcame 19 penalties and Brown's career night.

Grand Rapids Christian rolls over Jenison 34-0, qualifies for football playoffs Grand Rapids Christian was stout on defense, giving up 115 total yards, en route to its third-straight playoff qualification.

Eagles' quarterback Alex Van De Vusse led the way, completing 13 of 27 passes for 174 yards and three touchdowns. Van De Vusse also ran for a 1-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Drake Harris led GRC (6-1, 3-0 OK White) with seven reception for 103 yards and two touchdowns.

Jenison's Logan Mate led the Wildcats (1-6, 0-3) with eight carries for 39 yards. Quarterback Brett Bethke completed 6 of 9 passes for 30 yards.

Grand Rapids Christian runs past Forest Hills Central, damages Rangers' playoff chances GRAND RAPIDS - When a team has an incredible passing attack, sometimes the running game gets lost.

That wasn't the case for Grand Rapids Christian Friday night as the Eagles ran past Forest Hills Central 38-16, potentially knocking the Rangers out of playoff contention.

Drake Harris, Christian’s all-everything junior receiver, had 205 receiving yards and two touchdowns, but it was running back Seth McIntosh who put the Eagles over the top.

Down 16-10 in the second quarter, McIntosh plowed his way into the end zone to give the Eagles a 17-16 lead that they wouldn’t relinquish.

“They made it really competitive in the first half,” said McIntosh, who had 103 yards rushing and two touchdowns.

“But in the second half, we just imposed our will.”

The Forest Hills Central offense was fluid in the first half, taking a 7-3 lead after Zach Walker scored on a 2-yard run to cap an 80-yard drive. The Eagles (7-1) quickly countered.

Harris, a 6-foot-4 junior who is heading to Michigan State to play football and basketball, outjumped a defender on a 61-yard bomb from quarterback Alex VanDeVusse to give the Eagles a 10-7 lead.

“When I see man coverage (and throw into it), he knows he has it and I know I have it,” said VanDeVusse, a senior who had 345 yards passing and three touchdowns. “We’ve run a lot of routes together. It’s almost easy. Just pitch and catch.”

FH Central responded in the second quarter with a touchdown from Hunter Folkertsma on a 10-yard pass and a Grant Shull field goal to take a 16-10 lead. But McIntosh’s first touchdown in the second quarter gave the Eagles the lead and his 56-yard run in the third quarter gave them game-winning score. He broke four tackles to bust up the field and into the end zone.

“The running game helped us out a lot tonight,” VanDeVusse said. “Seth had a great game tonight. He broke a lot of tackles and he’s not afraid to run people over.”

Tyler Davison’s 11-yard catch in the third quarter, the first of his career, and Harris’ 12-yard TD catch in the fourth quarter capped the scoring. “We’ve been able to run the ball efficiently all year,” Christian coach Don Fellows said.

“We just take what the defense gives us.”

GR Christian stops Lowell, claims football program's first back-to-back OK White Conference titles GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Grand Rapids Christian football coach Don Fellows acknowledges his team is known for its explosive offense.

But Fellows also knows that if his Eagles are to accomplish what all high school teams in the state want - a state championship - then Grand Rapids Christian is going to need to play some defense.

The Eagles played a little defense Friday night, holding a solid Lowell team to just one touchdown in a 21-7 win in front of a packed house at Eagles Stadium.

The win gave Grand Rapids Christian (8-1, 5-0) it's second straight OK White Conference championship, marking the first time the program has won back-toback league titles.

“We feel we have been close all year on defense,” Fellows said. “We have put good halves together, but tonight played pretty well all game. We start four sophomores and one freshman on defense, and we've told the kids all year we need to keep getting better on defense.”

Grand Rapids Christian's defense sacked Lowell quarterback Titan Anderson five times and intercepted him three times.

The offense showed up, too.

In what appeared to be another Eagles blowout early, Grand Rapids Christian scored the games first 21 points in the game's first nine minutes. And this time, it wasn't only the vaunted Christian passing attack that did the damage.

Junior wide receiver Drake Harris scored the game's first touchdown on a 72-yard end-around play on the Eagles' second drive of the game. After an interception, Grand Rapids Christian made it 14-0 on a 35-yard run by senior running back Seth McIntosh.

On their next possession, the Eagles scored again, this time a 33-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Alex VanDeVusse to Harris.

“It was an awesome start,” Fellows said.

But a proud program like Lowell (7-2, 4-1), was not going to back down with the league championship at stake.

The Red Arrows defense began to pick up its pace and the offense finally got on the scoreboard seconds into the second quarter when Anderson found Kyler Shurlow on a 20-yard touchdown pass.

From there, it became a real defensive battle as the Lowell defense intercepted VanDeVusse three times and limited the potent Eagles offense the rest of the game.

“They got us out of rhythm,” VanDeVusse said. “Their defense did a great job. They bring so much pressure, that they really affected our timing, and that;s what our offense relies on, it's timing.”

Lowell had chances to get back into the game, but every time the Red Arrows would come up with a big play, a holding penalty would bring the ball back in a flag plagued game.

“We put our defense in some tough spots, and every positive play we had, would be called back because of holding,” Lowell coach Noel Dean said. “We had two touchdowns called back because of penalty, and you can't do that against a team like that. That's hard to overcome.”

Lowell's defense held VanDeVusse to 124 yards passing, but Grand Rapids Christian still outgained the Red Arrows 296 yards to 247 yards.

Anderson threw for 97 yards and rushed for 109 on 33 carries.

Now both teams will get ready for the postseason, which begins next week.

“We will celebrate this win and championship this weekend, but then we have to get back to work and get better,” Fellows said.

Grand Rapids Christian overcomes slow start to rout Fruitport in Division 3 district opener GRAND RAPIDS, MI – It's hard to keep Grand Rapids Christian's potent offense in check, but Fruitport managed to do just that for a quarter and a half in Friday night's Division 3 district opener.

The second-ranked Eagles, however, overcame the sluggish start to defeat the ninth-ranked Trojans 45-6 at Christian Stadium.

Grand Rapids Christian will host Zeeland West in a district final at 2:30 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 3. The Dux stunned previously unbeaten Zeeland East 46-0.

The Eagles trailed 6-0 midway through the second quarter before scoring 45 unanswered points, including 24 consecutive points in the final 6:36 of the first half.

“We came out slow because we had a bad week of practice, and they came out ready to play,” said Grand Rapids Christian senior quarterback Alex VanDeVusse, who accounted for six touchdowns in the win.

“They punched us in the mouth and delivered the first blow, but we got accustomed to the game and made a few small adjustments.”

The Trojans (8-2) stopped the Eagles on their first four drives and held them scoreless in the first quarter, the first time that had happened to Christian this year.

A muffed punt return by Grand Rapids Christian in the first gave Fruitport a short field and they took advantage of the miscue. Senior quarterback Tyler Fehler connected with Aaron Veihl on a 10-yard touchdown pass to give the Trojans a 6-0 lead.

“We felt like we had a great game plan, and we had to get off the bus and bring our attitude,” Fruitport coach Greg Vargas said. “I couldn't have asked for more of our kids, and we played courageously. We gave them all we got, and we threw everything at them we had, but in the end they were a little bit too much for us.”

The Eagles recovered from a pair of early fumbles and got on the board when Joel Schipper booted a 32-yard field goal.

After recovering a Fruitport fumble, they took their first lead of the game on a 5-yard run by VanDeVusse.

An ensuing blocked punt by sophomore Mitch Damstra set up a 22-yard scoring strike from VanDeVusse to Sam Kuiper.

VanDeVusse scored again in the final 20 seconds of the half on another 5-yard run, giving Grand Rapids Christian a commanding 24-6 lead at halftime.

“You can't hold us down for four quarters, and we had faith that our coaches would make adjustments and that our defense would keep giving us the ball,” said VanDeVusse, who threw for 249 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 89 yards and three touchdowns.

“We had to keep playing, and we just needed that one big play and eventually we got it. It was all about momentum, and our defense gave us that.”

Grand Rapids Christian's defense kept it in the game when the offense sputtered early.

“You have to have defense in the playoffs, and our kids came to play again,” Eagles coach Don Fellows said. “Our defensive kids have really jelled, and I thought we had a lot of kids make plays beyond Drake (Harris). And that's big when you have to defensd us all over the field.”

Seth McIntosh rushed for 110 yards on12 carries for Grand Rapids Christian, while Kuiper had seven catches for 110 yards. Drake Harris had five grabs for 103 yards.

“As the game wore on, they were running us around the field a little bit too much,” Vargas said. “Those kids are good athletes, and they recognized what we were doing and made the adjustments.”

Grand Rapids Christian beats Zeeland West 68-44 in a Saturday afternoon Division 3 playoff shootout GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Grand Rapids Christian’s football team has playmakers crawling out of the Eagles Stadium woodwork, and anyone wondering what would happen if they all clicked on the same day got their wish Saturday afternoon.

The Eagles defeated Zeeland West 68-44 in Division 3 second-round playoff action, giving them their first district championship in program history. The win sends the Eagles (10-1) to next weekend’s regional game at Stevensville Lakeshore.

The 68 points the Eagles scored against the defending Division 4 champion Dux was the most that they have totaled since they beat Creston 68-26 on Oct. 4, 1996. Christian amassed 664 yards of total offense and scored at least two touchdowns in every quarter.

Senior quarterback Alex Van De Vusse completed 16-of-30 passes for 413 yards and four touchdowns. Van De Vusse also scored four touchdown on the ground, rushing for 110 yards on 24 carries.

“I am kind of speechless because we were so efficient,” Christian coach Don Fellows said. “Alex played awesome, (wide receiver) Drake (Harris) played awesome and our line stepped up. We feel like we have a lot of kids who can make plays, and all of them came to play today. Our offensive line was outstanding, too.

“This is very surreal and very humbling. We will take some time to reflect on this, and hopefully, we will come back ready to work on Monday. This is a big deal for our kids. This group of seniors has been together since the third grade. We have traveled and played football together. It’s a special group of kids. We are excited.”

Van De Vusse completed seven passes for 208 yards to Harris, a junior who has already verbally committed to play basketball and football at Michigan State University. Van De Vusse threw touchdown passes of 32 and 42 yards to Harris, along with 70 and 19-yard scoring strikes to Davaris Collier. Van De Vusse also scored on touchdown runs of 12 and 10 yards. He scored on a pair of 1-yard runs, too.

“I don’t know what to say,” Van De Vusse said. “The offensive line did a great job for me. They opened up holes, and I am so proud of them. They gave me a ton of time to let me utilize my assets, like Drake. Drake had a heck of a game, and we made plays thanks to our offensive line.

“This is the first district championship in school history. It was huge for us to get past this game. It’s not too often where you can score 68 points and not have a running clock. Zeeland West is a great team, and it was a battle. They are physical. It was a great game to be a part of.”

Zeeland West, which finished the season 7-4, made its share of big plays, too, even though the Dux lost fullback Marcus Lambert to a knee injury in the first half. Senior Jon Pung scored on touchdown runs of 1, 56, and 80 yards, and he finished with 245 rushing yards on 16 carries. Danny Bauder rushed for three touchdowns as well, scoring on runs of 31, 73 and 23 yards. Bauder finished with 159 yards on 11 carries.

But the Dux were unable to keep pace with the Eagles. The game was tied 14-14 early in the second quarter, but when Christian's Joel Schipper booted a 42-yard field goal in the closing seconds of the second quarter, the Eagles had opened up a 39-22 halftime lead. The Dux were unable to pull within two touchdowns the rest of the way. “(Zeeland West) had punted four times in the last five games,” Fellows said. “We told our guys that (Zeeland West) was going to score and make big plays, but just try to get four or five stops during the game, and if our offense was efficient, we thought we would have a chance.”

Seth McIntosh led the Christian ground game, rolling up 128 yards on 16 carries.

Grand Rapids Christian plays the wind, and an adjusted gameplan, to win its first football regional STEVENSVILLE, MI – Early in the second quarter Saturday, Grand Rapids Christian quarterback Alex Van De Vusse threw a simple little out pass that the wind caught and knocked to the turf at Stevensville-Lakeshore's Al Stockman Stadium.

At that point, Van De Vusse and the Eagles knew they were playing against 12 on defense – the 11 Lancers and a 35 mph wind.

So Christian took advantage of that wind when it was to its back in the first and third quarters, and made adjustments to its offense in the second and fourth quarters.

The adjusted gameplan worked to perfection as the Eagles scored three touchdowns with the wind to their backs, and played small ball with the wind to their faces in a 31-7 Division 3 regional championship win.

Related:Find more pictures from Christian's win here The victory gives Christian its first regional title, and sends the Eagles to next week's semifinals, where they will play DeWitt.

“That wind was really tough,” Van De Vusse said. “We didn't want to do too much with the win to our faces, we wanted to run the ball more. And we made some plays with it to our backs.”

The first came with the Eagles trailing 7-0 in the first quarter, and Van De Vusse found junior wide receiver Dwayne Barfield on a 33-yard touchdown pass to tie the game at 7-7.

The next big play didn't come until the third quarter with the wind to Christian's back, when Van De Vusse hit junior wide receiver Drake Harris on a 49-yard touchdown pass just two plays into the second quarter to give the Eagles a 14-7 lead.

Later in the quarter, Van De Vusse led the Eagles on a 13-play 80-yard drive that ended with a 2-yard touchdown run by senior running back Seth McIntosh, and the Eagles had a 21-7 lead. They would never look back.

“That pass in the second quarter, the one the wind took, that made the coaching staff and Alex a little nervous,” Christian coach Don Fellows said. “I think it got into Alex's head a little, so we knew we had to take advantage of the wind when we had it, and then did some more checking down on short passes and running the ball when we were against it. I think the adjustments worked.”

The offensive line was game for the moves.

“We always wan to go 50/50 with run and pass in our play selection,” senior offensive lineman Alex Korhorn said.

“We have had success with both this year, and we love to run block as much as we love to pass block. So we just wanted to do what was best for the team at that point.”

The offensive adjustments, and solid defensive play, led by senior defensive back Davaris Collier, who sealed the victory with a 34-yard interception return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Throw in a 25-yard field goal by Eagles kicker Joel Schipper in the fourth quarter with the wind in his face, and Christian is moving on to the semifinals.

“I broke down in tears,” said Fellows, whose team is now 11-1. “It's a little surreal now, but we have to get back to work tomorrow.”

On the other side of the field, Lancers coach Denny Dock, whose team ends its year with an 11-1 record, said his team couldn't come up with the answers for the wind and the Eagles defense.

“We just couldn't get anything solid going all day,” Dock said. “They played very good defense.

“I thought after halftime, and the score 7-7, that we could hold the fort and then play with the wind in the fourth,” he added. “But neither really worked out.”

Van De Vusse ended his day by completing 16 of 25 passes for 259 yards and two touchdowns. McIntosh ran the ball 13 times for 96 yards and one score.

Grand Rapids Christian dominates semifinal, books first trip to Ford Field KENTWOOD, MI – The Grand Rapids Christian football team wasted little time earning its first trip to Ford Field and the Division 3 state championship game.

The Eagles played an almost prefect football on the offensive side of the ball during the first half of their semifinal game with DeWitt Saturday at East Kentwood High School.

Christian scored on six of its seven first half possessions to build a 35-point lead at the half, and rolled past the Panthers 52-28.

The Eagles will now play defending state champion Orchard Lake St. Mary's for the title Saturday at 7:30 p.m. OLSM beat Battle Creek Harper Creek 28-7 in the division's other semifinal Saturday.

“Our offense was focused all week during practice,” said Eagles coach Don Fellows, whose team is now 12-1. “Today, we took what they gave us, and used everybody on offense.”

Like it has all season, the Christian offense starts with senior quarterback Alex Van De Vusse and junior wide receiver Drake Harris, and that was the case Saturday.

In the first half, Van De Vusse completed 14 of 19 passes for 277 yards and four touchdowns. Harris caught six of those passes for 164 yards and two touchdowns.

Harris also caught a 52-yard touchdown pass from swingback Davaris Collier on a double pass just before the half, to end the first 24 minutes with seven catches for 216 yards and three touchdowns. The score at the break was 42-7.

“We have been putting up numbers all year and knew we were going to have to score today because DeWitt has a good offense,” Harris said. “We came out and did what we have been doing all year and we were really clicking on offense.”

The second half started with a running clock, and Fellows making some substitutions in on both sides of the ball.

The DeWitt offense did show that it does have talent late in the game, scoring three second-half touchdowns, but Panthers coach Rob Zimmerman says the early deficit was just too much to overcome.

“I know the score doesn't reflect this, but we did have a great week of practice,” said Zimmerman, whose team ends its year with a 10-3 record. “What we realized early is that their offense was better than we expected, and their defense wasn't. We knew we couldn't make any mistakes if we were to have a chance.”

The Panthers moved the ball when they were on offense, but three interceptions, a fumble and a missed field goal all prevented DeWitt from keeping up with the Eagles in the track meet.

“They are a good team,” Fellows said. “Their quarterback is one of the better ones we have seen, they have two great wide receivers and there is a reason that Rob makes it this far almost every year. We just played really well today.”

This was DeWitt's eighth semifinal appearance since the 2000 season. It was the Eagles' first, and now its first trip to Ford Field.

“Today was a perfect day for our last game outdoors,” Harris said. “Now we have to get ready to play (Orchard Lake St. Mary's)."

Grand Rapids Christian finds plenty of heroes in Saturday's 40-37 overtime victory over OLSM DETROIT, MI – Grand Rapids Christian, the team loaded with state recordbreaking, big-school bound superstars, found itself in an unfamiliar position in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s Division 3 state championship game.

By game’s end, it took every one of those playmakers, as well as a number of unsung heroes, to beat defending state champ Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 40-37 in overtime, giving the Eagles their first state title in football.

It was the first time in three months that Christian actually found itself in a game late. The Eagles had beaten every opponent by two touchdowns or more since they lost to nationally ranked Cincinnati Archbishop Moeller in Week 2.

But placekicker Joel Schipper, a Division 1 recruit, came up big for the Eagles.

He won the game with a 27-yard field goal in the first overtime after the Eagles stopped Orchard Lake on downs moments earlier. It also was Schipper who sent the game into overtime with a 29-yard field goal with four seconds left in regulation.

“Coach had a lot of confidence in me coming in, and I was able to knock the first one in,” Schipper said. “I knew right after we got that stop (in overtime) that they were going to put me right back out there. I was nervous, but I threw my brain on the sideline and just went out there and kicked it in.”

You want more heroes? How about senior quarterback Alex Van De Vusse and Drake Harris? Van De Vusse completed 16-of-26 passes for two touchdowns, with eight of those passes going to Harris, a junior who has already verbally committed to Michigan State. Harris had 243 yards in receptions, including a 74-yard touchdown catch in the first half.

Christian ran the ball well, too, with Seth McIntosh gaining 91 yards on 11 carries and scoring three touchdowns.

It wasn’t just the usual suspects, though. Tyler Blaschka blocked an Orchard Lake extra point attempt after the Eaglets tied the game 20-20. Moments later, Davaris Collier returned the ensuing kickoff 67 yards, setting up another Christian score. Sophomore Qi’antae Ewing recovered an Orchard Lake fumble at his own 1-yard-line to squash another Eaglets’ drive.

And there was sophomore Malik McLaughlin, the defensive back who knocked away a pass in the end zone on 4 thand-3 in overtime. Schipper won it on the next play, setting off a wild celebration on the field.

“I’ve said all along, Drake Harris is Drake Harris,” said Christian coach Don Fellows, whose team finished 13-1. “But we have a lot of good football players. You don’t win this type of game and get this far with just one kid. It takes a whole team effort.

“I’m kind of speechless right now. I’m so proud of our kids. We made some uncharacteristic mistakes in the first half, and as much as you try to prepare for this environment, it’s awesome. So I was really proud of the way our kids settled in and kept fighting.”

The fourth-quarter drive that Christian engineered to tie the game left Fellows speechless, too. Orchard Lake went ahead 34-30 with 2:06 left in regulation before Van De Vusse drove the Eagles down for the game-tying field goal.

Van De Vusse completed a 4th-and-8 pass to Harris for 15 yards and a 4th-and-3 to Harris, also for 15 yards to keep the drive alive, giving Schipper the shot.

Schipper’s kick enabled Fellows to keep a promise he made to the Eagles way back during summer conditioning.

“It was one of the grinding days in the summer,” Fellows said. “I pulled the kids together and said, ‘Listen, one day on Thanksgiving weekend, we are going to be playing Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, and you are going to remember this day. So we can stop right now, or we can go back out there and do an overtime period right now. This is how we are going to win a state championship.

“As soon as we got into overtime, I thought our kids went out with some bounce in their step. But that was in July.

Unbelievable. I don’t know what to say.”

2012 Division 3 State Football Champions

2012 OK White Conference Champions 2012 Division 3 District Champions 2012 Division 3 Regional Champions 2012 Division 3 State Champions ACE