MUSKEGON - Joe Tanis gave all he could to the Orchard View football program.

He regrets not being able to give the Cardinals more wins, but it was not through a lack of effort or desire.

Tanis resigned Monday afternoon as Orchard View's head coach after seven seasons at the helm. He made the announcement via Twitter.

Orchard View athletic director Leroy Hackley Jr. said that Tanis made the decision to resign on his own. Tanis said that he and Hackley met earlier Monday in a scheduled meeting.

"I don't think they were going to fire me and I just said, 'I've kind of given everything I've got. It's time for me to pursue some other opportunities,'" Tanis said.

Orchard View was 19-44 during Tanis' time with the program. The Cardinals' best season under him came in 2014, when they went 5-4 and just missed the playoffs.

Orchard View was the first head-coaching job for Tanis, who is 36 now but achieved one of his goals with the Cardinals by becoming a head coach before the age of 30.

"I think it's really tough in Muskegon County to win because you're surrounded by a bunch of great programs and great tradition. That makes that fish bowl a little bit larger, especially with social media in 2018," said the Grandville High School alumnus, who served as an assistant coach in Olivet College 2005-07 and at Northern Michigan University 2009-10.

"Being an outsider of the Muskegon area, most of the Muskegon-area coaches are alums. That presented some challenges trying to assemble staffs and all that kind of stuff, but I just think Muskegon County is a great football county and it's tough to win."

The Cardinals finished the 2018 season with a 2-7 record, including a 2-2 mark in the Lakes 8 Activities Conference.

A couple of the bright spots of Orchard View's season included the 32-14 victory Muskegon Catholic Central in Week 3, which was the Cardinals' first win over the Crusaders since 1966, and the Week 8 game against Mason, when special-needs student Fletcher Payne Jr. scored an unforgettable touchdown.

"I think it's really tough in Muskegon County to win because you're surrounded by a bunch of great programs and great tradition. That makes that fish bowl a little bit larger, especially with social media in 2018," said the Grandville High School alumnus, who served as an assistant coach in Olivet College 2005-07 and at Northern Michigan University 2009-10.

"Being an outsider of the Muskegon area, most of the Muskegon-area coaches are alums. That presented some challenges trying to assemble staffs and all that kind of stuff, but I just think Muskegon County is a great football county and it's tough to win."

The Cardinals finished the 2018 season with a 2-7 record, including a 2-2 mark in the Lakes 8 Activities Conference.

A couple of the bright spots of Orchard View's season included the 32-14 victory Muskegon Catholic Central in Week 3, which was the Cardinals' first win over the Crusaders since 1966, and the Week 8 game against Mason, when special-needs student Fletcher Payne Jr. scored an unforgettable touchdown.

https://articles.mlive.com/sports/muskegon/index.ssf/2018/10/high_school_senior_with_autism.amp?__twitter_impression=true&fbclid=IwAR3z-LURzkeexnykInZf6h-MwTinwzdx51lZYhDer5DPEjnawO-a7EESsR8

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October 5, 2018

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The Orchard View football team cruised to a 55-6 victory over Muskegon Heights on Friday in a Lakes 8 Conference game in front of a Homecoming crowd.

The Cardinals were paced by Armony Gutierrez with 183 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 15 carries while Edmari Mitchell added 64 yards from the ground on nine carries and one touchdown.

Orchard View rushed for 334 yards as a team on 41 attempts.

Owen Swanson, who had one rushing score, was 5-for-10 in passing for 53 yard and one touchdown.

The Cardinals were paced defensively by Tommy Shawl with 6.5 tackles while Brendan Nelson, Alex Andrews, Tavion Chavez and Blake Trevino each had an interception.

The Tigers lone touchdown was scored on a 60-yard reception by Austin Thomas.

Arlester Sims led Muskegon Heights with three catches for 72 yards while Curtis Hughes led defensively with 12 tackles.

Orchard View is now 2-5 on the season and will host Mason next Friday.

The Tigers are now 0-7 on the season and will look for their first win against Oscoda next weekend.

Posted Sep 27

MUSKEGON - Orchard View's football team gave undefeated Manistee all it wanted last week before falling, 35-20.

Armony Gutierrez played a big part in that for the Cardinals.

The 5-foot-8, 180-pound senior running back and linebacker rushed for 145 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries, and he finished with seven tackles and one-half of a quarterback sack.

For his efforts - and, more importantly, the efforts of those voting for him - Gutierrez is the winner of the MLive Muskegon Chronicle Player of the Week fan poll for Week 5 games.

Gutierrez garnered 13,472 of the total 38,651 votes, good for 34.9 percent. He held off the Mona Shores' defensive front seven, which racked up 10,883 votes.

Finishing in the next three spots were Montague's Luke Marsh (5,149), Whitehall's Kyler Honore (2,570) and Spring Lake's Caleb Montgomery (2,318).

The Player of the Week polls are not at all scientific. They're just a way to have fun and salute the players on the ballot each week for their standout performances from the week before.

Gutierrez is the second Orchard View player to win a poll in three weeks. Cardinals quarterback Owen Swanson was voted Player of the Week for Week 3.

September 28, 2018

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A great defensive effort pushed Ludington to a Lakes 8 victory Friday night over Orchard View 27-8 in football action.

Garrett Meeker opened the scoring for the Orioles with a two-yard touchdown run in the first, to give Ludington a 6-0 lead.

Both teams were held scoreless during the second quarter.

Ludington added a pair of touchdowns in the third quarter on a 35-yard run from Shemar Jennings and a 10-yard touchdown pass from Meeker to Jake Plamondon to give the Orioles a 20-0 advantage.

Meeker added his third touchdown of the game in the fourth quarter from three yards out to increase Ludington’s advantage to 27-0 late in the contest.

The Cardinals closed out the scoring with their lone touchdown from seven-yards out on a rush from Alexander Andrews with six seconds left in regulation.

Meeker led the rushing attack for the Orioles with 114 yards on 19 carries and two touchdowns while Jennings added 15 carries for 78 yards and a score.

The Orioles improved to 4-2 on the season and 2-2 in Lakes 8 play and will travel to face Wyoming Lee next Friday in non-league action.

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September 21, 2018

The Orchard View football team was unable to keep pace with Manistee on Friday night, falling 35-20 in a Lakes 8 game.

The game was tied 7-7 after the first quarter before Manistee scored 14 unanswered second quarter points to take a 21-7 halftime lead.

The Cardinals responded with 13 points in the third quarter to cut their deficit 21-20 heading into the final stanza.

Manistee pulled away in the fourth quarter with a 14-0 run.

Owen Swanson threw for 165 yards and two touchdowns on 17-of-24 passing for OV while Edmari Mitchell had 63 yards and one touchdown on four receptions.

Alex Andrews added 38 yards receiving and a touchdown for the Cardinals while Devin Doss had 86 yards on six receptions.

The Cardinal defense was led by Armony Gutierrez with seven tackles while Jarrett Prow and Tom Shawl added five tackles each.

Orchard View is now 1-4 on the season and will face Ludington next Friday.

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The Orchard View football team lit up the scoreboard, but fell to Belding 42-34 in a shootout on Friday night.

The Black Knights struck first, jumping ahead 14-0 in the first quarter. The Cardinals bounced back with two scores to even the score at 14 in the second.

Belding tacked on another score before the half to take a 21-14 lead into the break.

The Cardinals scored to open the third to tie the score at 21, but Belding answered with a touchdown to lead 28-21 at the end of the third.

Each team scored twice in the fourth quarter as OV’s comeback fell just one touchdown short.

Armony Gutierrez led the offense with 95 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Owen Swanson threw for 221 yards and a two touchdowns for Orchard View. Devin Doss caught 11 passes for 112 yards and a touchdown.

Tom Shawl had nine tackles to lead the Cardinals. Alex Andrews had seven tackles, an interception and a fumble recovery.

Orchard View is now 1-3 (1-0) this season.

MUSKEGON TOWNSHIP - The Orchard View football team lit up the scoreboard, but fell to Belding 42-34 in a shootout on Friday night.

The Black Knights struck first, jumping ahead 14-0 in the first quarter. The Cardinals bounced back with two scores to even the score at 14 in the second.

Belding tacked on another score before the half to take a 21-14 lead into the break.

The Cardinals scored to open the third to tie the score at 21, but Belding answered with a touchdown to lead 28-21 at the end of the third.

Each team scored twice in the fourth quarter as OV’s comeback fell just one touchdown short.

Armony Gutierrez led the offense with 95 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Owen Swanson threw for 221 yards and a two touchdowns for Orchard View. Devin Doss caught 11 passes for 112 yards and a touchdown.

Tommy Shawl had nine tackles to lead the Cardinals. Alex Andrews had seven tackles, an interception and a fumble recovery.

Orchard View is now 1-3 (1-0) this season.

MUSKEGON - As if Orchard View's 32-14 victory over Muskegon Catholic Central weren't enough, now the Cardinals are winning in cyberspace.

Orchard View sophomore quarterback Owen Swanson, who helped lead the Cardinals past MCC, was voted winner of the Week 3 MLive Muskegon Chronicle Player of the Week fan poll.

Swanson finished with 26,163 votes to edge Ravenna's Garry Johnson, who had 23,927 votes, in the spirted competition. An eye-popping 63,862 total votes were cast in this week's poll, which far surpassed the first two weeks' totals.

Rounding out the top five were Reeths-Puffer's Evan Moskwa, Muskegon's Johnny Martin III and Oakridge's Koleman Wall.

The weekly Player of the Week polls are not at all scientific, and they'll have no bearing on postseason honors. They're just a way to have fun and salute the players on the ballot each week for their standout performances from the week before.

Oakridge's Leroy Quinn and Grand Haven's Connor Worthington were the Weeks 1 and 2 winners, respectively.

Last Friday, Swanson helped engineer the Cardinals' victory over the Crusaders. It was Orchard View's first win over MCC since 1966. The 6-foot-2, 175-pounder was 28-of-39 passing for 332 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions.

On the season, Swanson is 57-of-88 for 635 yards with eight TDs and three picks. OV (1-2) has another big game at home this Friday, as the Cardinals host nemesis Belding (2-1).

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The Orchard View football team won a stunner on Friday night over Muskegon Catholic Central 32-14 in a Lakes 8 game.

The Cardinals win over MCC was their first against the Crusaders since the 1966 season.

Owen Swanson paced Orchard View with 305 passing yards and four touchdowns while Alex Andrews caught five passes for 86 yards and two scores.

Muskegon Catholic led 7-6 after the first quarter before the Cardinals scored 14 second quarter points to take a 20-7 halftime lead. The Crusaders cut their deficit to 20-14 heading into the fourth but OV scored the final 12 points of the contest.

Andrews started off the scoring with a 32-yard touchdown pass from Swanson to give the Cardinals a 6-0 lead early in the first.

MCC responded with a 21-yard touchdown run by Dawson Steigman to give the Crusaders a 7-6 advantage.

Swanson connected on two second quarter touchdowns passes from 13 yards out to Armony Gutierrez and 34 yards to Edmari Mitchell.

The Crusaders cut their deficit to 20-14 with the lone third quarter touchdown on a three-yard run by Soloman Waller.OV closed out the scoring with a 44-yard completion from Swanson to Andrews and a fumble return for a touchdown by Mitchell.

The Cardinals are now 1-2 on the season and will host Belding next Friday while Muskegon Catholic (1-2) will host Ludington.

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The Orchard View football squad held on to defeat Muskegon Heights 25-24 on Saturday in a Lakes 8 Conference game.

The Cardinals are now on a three-game winning streak and improved to 3-4 on the season, while Muskegon Heights dropped its record to 3-4 on the year.

Orchard View led 7-0 after the first quarter, 19-8 at halftime and had a slim 19-16 advantage heading into the final stanza.

The Cardinals opened the scoring on a five-yard run by Jayden Day with 3:57 left in the first quarter to take a 7-0 lead.

Orchard View increased its lead with a pair of rushing touchdowns by Thomas Shawl from two and 18 yards away, respectively, to take a 19-0 advantage.

The Tigers responded with 1:03 left in the second quarter to cut their deficit to 19-8 on a 13-yard rushing touchdown by Terrance Williams.

Muskegon Heights added an 11-yard touchdown reception by Arlester Sims from Williams and a two-point conversion with 4:33 left in the third quarter to make the score 19-16.

The Cardinals increased their lead to 25-16 with 10:20 left in the fourth quarter on a six-yard completion from Edmari Mitchell to Shawl.

The Tigers responded on a 13-yard scamper by Williams along with another two-point conversion to cut their deficit to 25-24, but ran out of time to gain the lead.

Orchard View was led by Mitchell with six completed passes for 94 yards and a touchdown while Shawl caught all six passes for 94 yards and a score.

Williams paced Muskegon Heights with 117 rushing yards on 16 carries while throwing for 41 yards on five completions.

By Andrew Johnson
LocalSportsJournal.com

MUSKEGON TOWNSHIP – Edmari Mitchell was supposed to be the starting quarterback for the Orchard View football team this season.

But three knee injuries in the Cardinals’ backfield convinced head coach Joe Tanis to reconsider his offensive strategy.

He moved Mitchell to running back in Week 2, and inserted freshman Owen Swanson at quarterback.

“We had to figure out what was best for us,” Tanis said about the moves. “We wanted to get him (Mitchell) the ball more going downhill, and we thought Owen would be able to handle it.”

It turned out to be a great move for the Cardinals.

Mitchell, a 6-1, 205-pound sophomore, has exploded for an amazing 579 total yards in the past two weeks, while scoring or passing for nine touchdowns.

Edmari Mitchell carries the ball for Orchard View. Photo/Mitchel Dixon.

In Week 5 against Manistee, he piled up 300 total yards, rushed for four touchdowns, caught one TD pass and threw for a score in the Cardinals’ 50-28 victory.

Last week against Ludington, he ran for 196 yards and two touchdowns, and had 83 yards receiving and another touchdown.

Mitchell’s performance has helped Orchard View overcome an 0-4 start. The Cardinals will carry a two-game winning streak into Saturday’s Lakes 8 Conference matchup against Muskegon Heights, another improving team.

“Our first four opponents were very good, and their records show that,” Tanis said. “I think it all comes down to gaining confidence, and we started to do that in the Belding game (in Week 4). We had a little success, then the next week we were executing at the level we’re capable of.”

“It’s been nice, because a lot of people doubted us, but we use that as motivation to play better and excel,” Mitchell said. “I feel like our program is building up a lot, and this is just the start right now. We should be good by next season and make the playoffs.”

Despite his outstanding performance in the past two games, Mitchell seems pretty calm about the sudden success.

“I like that I’m getting the ball a lot,” he said.  “I know the line will block for me, along with (senior running back) Jayden Day. I can always count on them.”

Mitchell says he may not have the fastest lateral speed, but thinks he makes up for it by running as hard as he can straight ahead.

Mitchell in action against Ludington. Photo/Mitchel Dixon

“I think I’m more of a run-up-the-middle type,” he said. “I can hit the sideline, but people get scared when they see me coming up the middle.”

Tanis says Mitchell’s ability to be physical is what makes him such a solid running back.

“I think he’s a big, physical runner,” Tanis said. “He’s intimidating to look at, whether it’s blocking or running. He does have the speed to run away, but he’s got an overall combination of speed, power and size.”

It’s not surprising that Mitchell comes from a football family.

His oldest brother, Khari Cunningham, was known as “Big Country” when he played defensive line for the Muskegon Big Reds.

Another brother, Sam Mitchell, was the Cardinals’ starting quarterback the last two seasons, before graduating and enrolling at Ferris State University, where he plans to try out for football next fall, according to Mitchell.

“I know I have a big role to fill,” Mitchell said,about following his brother in the Orchard View program. “Sam was a big leader and was always on time. He was one of those people you look up to.”

Mitchell said he’s been playing football for the past 12 years, largely due to the influence of his brothers.

“Khari was always bigger than us,” he said. “It would be me and Sam versus him. We always won, but if you asked him, he’d make up something about us cheating because we played 2-on-1.”

While he’s only a sophomore, with lots of high school football still ahead and a lot of improving to do, Mitchell admits that he dreams of being a college athlete.

“I think about it every day,” Mitchell said. “I watch college football and I love to see them play. I want to go to college and play college basketball or football, but I believe I can excel at football more.”

Tanis agrees that he has the potential to play at the next level. And after watching him perform the past few weeks, the coach thinks he knows what his position might be in college – and it’s not quarterback.

“He has a heck of an arm, but I think at future levels they will see him as a running back,” the coach said.