School: Big Rapids
Nickname: Cardinals
Coach: Mitch Cumings
2012 record: 8-2
Player lost: Nick Baldwin
Players returning: Ty Lattimore, Lucas Armand, Remington Ulman, Eric Boyd, Jamison Green
Coach’s comment: “We need to do more work to create our own identity.”
School: Central Montcalm
Nickname: Hornets
Coach: Marty James
2012 record: 2-7
Players returning: Keagan James, Tyler Baker, Austin Phenix, James Fancet
School: Chippewa Hills
Nickname: Warriors
Coach: Larry Jose
2012 record: 7-4
Players lost: Trent Karcher
Players returning: Tyler Williams, Zach Biller, Matt Dietz, Marcus Merrill, Marcus Guerrero, Andrew Whaley
Coach’s comment: “We’re strong on the line, and we’re strong at running back this year.”
School: Hesperia
Nickname: Panthers
Coach: Todd Myers
2012 record: 4-5
School: Holton
Nickname: Red Devils
Coach: Chris Hilliker
2012 record: 1-8
Players returning: Corey Sokolowski, Brad Epplett, Nic Liuker, Austen Gillette
Coach’s comment: “We are the smallest school in our conference; each game is a battle.”
School: Lakeview
Nickname: Wildcats
Coach: Sean Rinehart
2012 record: 5-4
Players lost: Jared Taylor, Gus Ward
Players returning: Shawn Lindsey, Garret Cavendish, Brad Hamlin, Jared Behrenwald, Terry Grieser
Coach’s comment: “I feel we will have a very special season. Ever since we started workouts, we talked about being committed and never letting anyone outwork you. They have responded with a great attitude and feel that they can compete with the best teams in the area. One of our strengths is our senior leadership. We have 13 seniors on the team this year, and they all have high goals for the program. Another strength is a strong commitment to the core of our program, which is a relentless intensity to be successful.”
School: Morley Stanwood
Nickname: Mohawks
Coach: Clark Huntey
2012 record: 3-6
Player lost: Steven Malloy
Players returning: Levi Arnold, Damian Dewey, Chase Huntey, Matt Maguire
Coach’s comment: “Damian Dewey and Levi Arnold are returning as starting offensive lineman and starting middle linebackers.”
School: Newaygo
Nickname: Lions
Coach: Andrew Busch
2012 record: 9-3
Players lost: Max Harrington, Preston Cross, Conor Bradley
Players returning: Weston Butler, Zach Cantu, Dustin Childs, Brandon Foster, Zack Night, Heath Harrington
Coach’s comment: “We do not have a large number on this year’s roster. Depth will always be an issue with a small squad. Each day we work with all the players as if they are all starters to build skills and knowledge, so we can keep a rotation of fresh legs on the field. We need to focus more during the big moments of the season to not make mental mistakes or penalties that create ugly situations that are hard to come back from. As a team, we will also talk a great deal about keeping our composure during road games, because each venue was new for us last year. I feel that we may have been rattled a bit on the road. That will also again be the case this year, so we must focus greater for our road trips. We will continue to do major footwork and speed drills each day at practice to improve our overall team speed. ”
School: Reed City
Nickname: Coyotes
Coach: Monty Price
2012 record: 10-1
Players lost: Garrett Benson
Players returning: Chad Samuels, Dean Eichenberg, Eric Grannis, Kyle Wright
Coach’s comment: “We have to see where we’re at and where we need to go.”
School: White Cloud
Nickname: Indians
Coach: Julian Castillo
2012 record: 0-9
Players returning: Aaron Koning, AJ Asuncion, Alan Burkholder, Bowman Seabrook, Brandon Schumacher, Cameron Hutson, Daric Paul, David Dykstra, Dillon Maring, Dylan Woytik, Erik Visser