The Goodrich football team may have been eliminated from the state playoffs, but they provided the Goodrich community with plenty of memories.
The Martians advanced to the regional finals for the second straight year in Division 5 before losing to Detroit Crockett 40-13 Nov. 13 at Detroit Martin Luther King High School.
Despite the loss, the Martians finished at 10-2 on the season, the first 10-win season in the history of the school, and won outright the Genesee Area Conference Red Division championship. Goodrich coach Tom Alward said the Martians have plenty of reasons to hang their heads high.
‘I was proud of them for how hard they worked all season and where they brought us to,? he said. ‘I was proud of the effort they put forth against Crockett.?
Alward said it was the team’s work ethic that helped them have a successful year.
‘The positive attitude that our players had all year made this happen and made it an outstanding year,? he said. ‘It was a wonderful group to be around.?
Senior running back Kirk Elsworth, with the help of his offensive line and the rest of his teammates, provided many highlights for Martian fans. He set the Genesee County record for most rushing yards in a season, and set the state record for most touchdowns in a season.
Alward said plenty of schools have expressed interest in Elsworth. He said Elsworth has an official visit scheduled to the University of Minnesota, one of the schools expressing an interest in the GHS senior.
However, Alward stressed it will take a long time before Elsworth makes a decision on his college future.
‘We’ll just wait and see how that plays out in the next few months,? he said.
Among those players returning to next year’s team are Joe Leppek, Basil Wilson, Bennett Gillam, John Johns, Scott Edwards, Dominic Rivera, and A.J. Harmon.
‘They’ll all be key for us next year,? Alward said. ‘We’ll try to get better at what we do, and work on our strength and speed in the offseason.?