EDITOR’S NOTE: Later this week, the Local Sports Journal’s 14th Annual High School Football Preview section will be hitting the streets. We just couldn’t wait for the printed version to come out so we felt we should start rolling out the stories so area fans could start reading about their favorite teams.
By Nate Thompson
LocalSportsJournal.com
If it’s the darkest right before the dawn, maybe it’s finally time for the bright lights to shine on the Grand Haven football program again.
The Bucs have surely experienced some dark days the last four seasons, as they’ve won a total of just five games during that span, including a 1-8 record a year ago.
It’s not a coincidence that second-year head coach Andrew Biedenbender said the program has struggled with roster numbers during that four-year stretch, including the school being unable to field a junior varsity team due to a lack of players. In turn, many underclassmen were thrown right into the varsity fire, whether they were ready or not for the physicality of varsity football.
Biedenbender, who played left tackle at Grand Valley State University from 2008-2012, and gained coaching experience as an assistant at Owosso, Mount Pleasant and under former Montague coach Pat Collins at West Ottawa High School, said he’s starting to see some progress at Grand Haven after just one year at the helm.
“We’re expecting between 45 and 50 on varsity this year, and fortunately, we’ve got some big classes in the coming years,” said Biedenbender, who graduated from Mount Pleasant High School. “We’ve got 25 juniors alone. And interest at the younger levels is really growing. We recently had 220 at our youth camp. Of course, success will only help spark that interest.”
Biedenbender believes the Bucs’ offensive skill rivals that of any other team he’s previously coached, and hopes their “speed in space” will be a season-long strength. It will be led by 6-foot-1, 185-pound senior wide receiver Will Korenstra, a three-year starter who committed to play at Grand Valley State in late July. Korenstra can beat defensive backs with his speed, or his ability to win jump balls.
At tight end, Biedenbender also said senior Alex Dixon is a big mismatch at 6-3, 225 pounds, while fellow receivers such as last year’s quarterback, senior Xzavier Rodriguez, and junior Collin Munford are also capable of big plays in the pass game. So is Korenstra’s younger brother, KV Korenstra, a sophomore.
A breakout season could be in store for sophomore running back Andrew Williamsen, who Biedenbender said benches 325 pounds and isn’t lacking in the speed department, either.
The signal-caller for the Bucs will be senior Luke Berry, a pure pocket passer at 6-6.
“He’s had some really good reps this summer,” Biedenbender said. “We think he’s ready. He played in two games last year, so he got his feet wet.”
Berry will be protected by a pair of talented guards in senior Harrison DeYoung and junior Carson Hardy, who both have aspirations of playing college football. The starting tackles are expected to be junior Jonah Broemer and sophomore Dom Pirratta, with junior Camden Meaker slated to play center.
On defense, Biedenbender said he likes linemen who also wrestle during the winter, and he has a pair who’ve excelled on the mat in seniors Ethan Riggs and Wyatt Siernecki. They will hopefully occupy blockers to let players like two-year starter Connor VanBeek rush the passer from his outside linebacker position. Other key Bucs’ linebackers will be senior Sam LaDronka, junior Levi Tubergan, Jonah Broemer and junior Sawyer Harrison.
Two key starters in the secondary for the Bucs will be senior Corey Preston and junior Ryan Moore, while Carson Tithof and Will Korenstra will also see some time at corner. A unique player on the back end is senior Dean Mattson, who played center as an underclassmen, but has enough athleticism to earn time at safety this year.
Grand Haven, which opens its season against Stevensville Lakeshore, will need to learn how to finish games if the Bucs want to add a few more wins on their schedule, Biedenbender said.
He noted having a 7-3 lead over Hudsonville going into the fourth quarter last year and also having an early lead against a talented Grandville squad. Both ended as losses, however.
“The key thing we need to learn about this group is if we can finish the fight,” he said. “Can we finish those tight games and fight through adversity? Yeah, we’re still young in a lot of key areas, but it’s a process of building a culture and sticking together.”