By Scott DeCamp
LocalSportsJournal.com

When Aaron James was hired as Orchard View’s football coach in February, he noted accountability and culture as keys to flipping the Cardinals’ fortunes.

The first-time head coach and highly successful former offensive coordinator at Mona Shores also is a firm believer that attention to detail means everything.

Orchard View coach Aaron James.

“Even if it’s having the proper color of socks on. ‘What does me having on green socks got to do with playing football?’ Well, if you can’t even choose to put the right color of socks on, how are we going to trust you when it’s fourth-and-3?” James said.

“Being on the same page – you’re doing it for the team, not doing it for yourself.”

James fills the position vacated by Fred Rademacher, who resigned following the 2023 season. Rademacher guided Orchard View to a 9-0 regular season in his first year on the job in 2019, but low roster numbers of varsity-ready players plagued the program in recent seasons.

Orchard View finished 3-6 last season and 0-9 the year before.

In his debut season with OV, James said he expects to carry about 25 players on the varsity roster and 50 program-wide. Excitement appears to be on the rise for the Cardinals.

For himself, James is experiencing a mix of excitement, optimism, and nervousness all at the same time.

James said this group of Orchard View football players is basically a “blank canvas” with few bad habits. He’s been pleasantly surprised by their ability to pick up what the staff has been telling them and teaching.

“We don’t have a lot of seniors and a lot of kids didn’t play last year,” James said. “A lot of kids that I have, they either last played in eighth grade or youth league, so they don’t have those bad habits. All they know is what we teach them, like we’ve got to get in the weight room, we’re going to get our core lifts in, we’re going to circuit, we’re going to run, we’re going to do abs.

“We don’t cuss, we don’t use the ‘N’ word, we don’t be disrespectful. We say, ‘Yes, sir’ (and) ‘No, sir’ … ‘Yes, ma’am’ (and) ‘No, ma’am.’ You know, just trying to feel like respectful young men and they understand. And it happened fast, too.”

James believes that Orchard View could surprise a lot of people this season and compete well in the West Michigan Conference and beyond.

The addition of transfer quarterback Peyton Babbitt from Muskegon to Orchard View has been a big plus for the Cardinals and changes their dynamic, according to James.

The 6-foot-1, 185-pound junior has the ability to run and throw, the coach said. James is installing the veer he ran at Mona Shores, which forces opponents to cover 100 yards vertically and 53 yards sideline-to-sideline.

Babbitt is looking to help build a legacy at Orchard View, one that can last into the next decade or two.

James called Babbitt a “good kid” and “good student,” who is very competitive. He did point out that Babbitt has to earn the QB job, however. It’s not being handed to him.

Babbitt called James a “very energetic” coach, who is stressing to the Cardinals to practice until they can’t get it wrong.

“Everybody just needs to buy in. We’ve got talent on this team. People are going to overlook us and they shouldn’t. We have plenty of talent,” said Babbitt, who attended Mona Shores prior to his transfer to Muskegon, where he sat out last season because of transfer rules.

“You know, Mona Shores has a great culture. Muskegon has a very dominant culture. I feel like just being there helped me see what that looks like. I’m hoping that me coming over here helps the other players and even some of the staff see how to build that culture.”

Orchard View will be tested out of the gate this season.

The Cardinals open the season with three tough WMC Lakes Division games against traditional powers Oakridge and Whitehall at home in Weeks 1 and 2, respectively, and a road contest against Montague in Week 3.

“I think we do have some athletes and we’ve got some players that if we come out and do what we’re supposed to do and practice how we’re supposed to practice, we can make some noise,” James said. “And, of course, that’s the good thing about playing in a good conference: Every week is a battle. … We’ve got to stay even-keel all the time because you know every week you’ve got a tough game.”