Youngest Brother Bryan Closing Convertini Family's Memorable 13-Year Run at MCC
By
Tom Kendra
Special for MHSAA.com
May 8, 2025
Bryan Convertini is nearing the end of an amazing four-year athletic career for Muskegon Catholic Central, but this swan song is not just about him.
Bryan is the last of the four “Convertini boys” at MCC, who collectively have provided Crusaders fans with plenty of big plays and thrilling wins – doing it all with their humble, no-nonsense leadership style – over the past 13 years.
“The Convertinis have really become the first family of Muskegon Catholic Central,” said MCC baseball coach Steve Schuitema, noting their father, Kolin, is an assistant varsity football coach and their mother, Jene, has served as the team mom for baseball and football for years.
“It will be different and a little sad to not have a Convertini out there for MCC anymore. All of them were leaders and a coach’s dream and really an extension of the coach on the field.”
Mason, 26, graduated in 2017 and set the sports tone for his three brothers, playing football, hockey as part of MCC’s cooperative team with Muskegon Reeths-Puffer, and baseball.
Nolan, 23, graduated in 2020 and, at 6-foot-2, is the tallest of the brothers. He played the same three sports as Mason, and was the most versatile of the boys, playing almost every position in football, including starting two games at quarterback.
Sam, 21, graduated in 2022, and also played football, hockey and baseball, but he opted to play basketball his senior year so he could play with his younger brother, Bryan.
Bryan, 18, will graduate June 1 after a standout, three-sport career, including the past three years as the starting varsity quarterback, before beginning college this fall at Grand Valley State.
“My memories at MCC go way back to when I was like 6 or 7 and the waterboy in football and the batboy in baseball,” said Bryan with a smile.
“The first word that comes to mind when I think about it is family. The whole school is like a big family that pushes and supports each other.”
Grandpa’s boys
The Convertini boys come from good stock, starting with their grandfathers.
On their mother’s side is Grandpa Bryan McLay who, at the age of 87, is still considered “Mr. Hockey” in Muskegon.
McLay, a Kenora, Ontario, native who first came to Muskegon in 1960 (the same year that the downtown hockey arena opened), tallied more than 1,000 points over his 13 seasons with the Muskegon Zephyrs and later, the Mohawks.
McLay moved in with the family after his wife, Peggy, died four years ago, and regularly regales his grandsons with his “old-time hockey” stories.
Jene picked up her father’s passion for sports and has been a natural in the Crusaders’ “team mom” role – organizing meals, carpools, fundraisers and sending out emails for game and schedule changes, among other things.
On their father’s side is Grandpa Fred Convertini, a California native who played in the 1966 Rose Bowl as an offensive lineman at Michigan State – as part of what is considered the top offensive line in MSU history.
Kolin certainly inherited his father’s athletic ability, making first-team all-state in football (running back), wrestling and track & field (pole vault) during his senior year of 1989-1990. He went on to play defensive back at Eastern Michigan University.
He also picked up his father’s humility and toughness, the latter which was put to the test in 2014 when he was diagnosed with cancer.
“Kolin’s cancer really brought us together as a family,” explained Jene. “We didn’t know how long we had, and we decided we weren’t going to do travel sports any more. I didn’t want to be in Chicago and Kolin in Detroit for the weekend and then we say hi on the way out the door to work on Monday morning. We decided to spend more time together.”
Like their grandfathers and father, all four of the Convertini boys were known for their dependability, rarely if ever missing games due to sickness or injury.
In fact, Bryan suffered an injury in the opening football game of his junior season, then played the remaining 10 games on what was later determined to be a broken left ankle – and, by the way, he earned first-team all-state as a defensive back with five interceptions.
“It hurt so bad,” Bryan said, shaking his head. “But I needed to be out there. My team needed me to be out there.”
Home cooking
The Convertini house in Norton Shores has been a gathering place for MCC athletes for years.
It all started when the boys were little, wrestling between the couches and shooting pucks at the walls in the basement.
Later on, that basement became the annual meeting spot for the MCC football team for “Selection Sunday,” when the team would learn its draw for the postseason playoffs.
Mason and Nolan, the two older boys, certainly enjoyed the most team success. Mason was part of three straight Division 8 championship football teams from 2014 to 2016. Nolan, meanwhile, played in three national championship games (with two titles) as a member of the Hope College men’s club hockey team.
The two younger boys had less team success, in large part because MCC really started struggling with numbers, but Sam and Bryan certainly did all they could and were rewarded with individual accolades.
Sam was the first of the brothers to make first-team all-state, earning the honor as a tight end in 2021. Bryan did one better, making all-state twice – after his junior year as a defensive back and his senior year as an “athlete” for his contributions all over the field.
Bryan also made first-team all-state last year in baseball, batting .478 as an outfielder.
In football, he rose above his broken ankle as a junior to rush for more than 800 yards and 11 touchdowns. In a win over Benton Harbor, he had a rushing TD, a passing TD, a receiving TD and returned an interception for yet another TD. This past fall as a senior, he threw for 880 yards and rushed for 621, while making a team-high 81 tackles in his first year at linebacker.
But when asked about the individual highlight of his football career, he doesn’t hesitate.
“That would have to be my freshman year, when I threw a halfback pass to my brother (Sam) for a touchdown,” recalled Bryan, noting a play that occurred in a victory over Muskegon Heights Academy during what ended as the 500th win in MCC football history.
Going out with a bang
Bryan hopes to tack on some additional highlights over the next month of baseball season, effectively writing a happy ending to the Convertini novel.
The Crusaders’ baseball team is off to an 11-4 start after a home sweep of Byron Center Zion Christian on Tuesday, during which MCC pitchers allowed just one run over two games.
Bryan is currently batting .375 while playing the critical position of shortstop, out of need, since he is a natural outfielder.
He would love to have a repeat of his freshman year, when he batted leadoff and helped the Crusaders to District and Regional championships. MCC had won 11 straight Districts before falling short last spring, so he said avenging that District loss is a major priority.
That would also be an appropriate ending after an uncharacteristic football season when the young Crusaders (who started three 14-year-old freshmen on the offensive line) finished 1-7.
Things went much better in basketball, as Bryan teamed with all-stater Bradley Richards to help MCC to an 11-10 record, its first winning season in six years.
Through winning or losing, MCC football coach Steve Czerwon said the strong Catholic faith of the Convertini family is always front and center.
The family will gather to celebrate in early September, when Mason and his fiancée, Sophie, get married at St. Michael’s Church in Muskegon. That is about the same time that Bryan will be off to Grand Valley, and Czerwon and the MCC football program will begin the post-Convertini era.
“Bryan and all of his brothers have an inner strength which sets them apart,” said Czerwon, who took over as MCC’s head coach in 2013, which was Mason’s freshman year. “All of them respect authority and they want to learn and get better, which is all that you can ask.
“It’s been a pleasure working with their family. We are all going to miss them.”
Tom Kendra worked 23 years at The Muskegon Chronicle, including five as assistant sports editor and the final six as sports editor through 2011. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Muskegon, Oceana, Mason, Lake, Oceola, Mecosta and Newaygo counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Muskegon Catholic Central’s Bryan Convertini takes a look down the third-base line during a baseball at bat. (2) The four Convertini boys take a photo together after one of Bryan’s football games in 2023. From left: Sam, Bryan, Mason and Nolan. (3) Convertini brings the ball upcourt during basketball season. (4) Convertini (22), stands for the national anthem this past fall. (Baseball and basketball photos by Michael Banka. Football photo by Tim Reilly. Family photo courtesy of Jene Convertini.)
Playing 'Goodrich Football' at its Finest, Martians Make Title Dream Come True
By
Brad Emons
Special for MHSAA.com
November 29, 2024
DETROIT – Over his 32 years as head football coach at Goodrich, Tom Alward had come close once but was never able to hoist a state championship trophy.
But that all ended Friday as his Martians invaded Ford Field and rolled to a 35-6 victory over Niles in the Division 4 Final.
After falling 22-0 to Grand Rapids South Christian in the 2022 D4 championship game, Goodrich put on an impressive display in all three phases – offense, defense and special teams – to finish a 13-1 season and earn its first Finals title.
“I never gave up on a dream, and these guys are the ones that made it come true,” Alward said. “We tell the guys we want to get better every year. And I’ve had 32 of them get better. It’s been a great ride.”
To show how dominant the Martians were, Goodrich outgained the Vikings 424-96 in total yards.
And it all started up front.
“That’s Goodrich football,” Alward said. “That’s the way we play, that’s the way we coach it and we teach it, and what these guys bought into. We need to own the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, and when we do, good things happen.”
Goodrich showed great balance offensively as junior quarterback Tanner Mazich was 6 of 9 passing for 168 yards and a touchdown, while senior running back Chase Burnett rushed for 157 yards on 28 carries and a pair of TDs. Junior Jakoby Lagat contributed 76 yards on 12 carries along with another TD run.
It was all Goodrich in the opening half – and then some.
The Martians took a 7-0 lead with a 10-play, 68-yard drive resulting in a Mazich 21-yard TD strike to senior Max Macklem with 4:38 to go in the first period.
“It’s amazing when you have five or seconds to get open,” Macklem said. “He just gives me time back there. I find open grass and just throw the ball.”
Burnett then scored on a 1-yard TD run with 9:49 remaining in the second quarter as the Martians marched 74 yards on 11 plays to make it 14-0.
“I just always follow my blockers,” said the 6-foot, 200-pound Burnett. “I’m not going to go down with one tackle. I’m going to bounce off them, keep following them and run through tackles.”
Goodrich’s Zaiden Hall then came up with an interception at his own 49 with 6:27 to go in the half to set up Burnett’s six-yard TD run just 78 seconds later for a 21-0 advantage following Landon Williams’ third straight PAT. (A 41-yard pass from Mazich to Macklem set up the score).
“We liked the matchups with Max (Macklem) and we took shots, and that’s what happened – it worked,” Mazich said.
Goodrich was poised to go up four scores at the end of the half as Mazich hit Lagat on a 34-yard pass to put the ball on the Vikings’ 11.
But the Martians – out of timeouts – couldn’t spike the ball in time before the half ended following a five-yard run by Burnett down to the Niles 1 as the score remained 21-0.
The Vikings, making their first Finals appearance, had only 34 yards of first-half offense while Mazich himself was 4 of 5 passing for 130.
Goodrich got the ball to start the second half, and the Martians used 7:50 to score on a 16-play, 73-yard drive culminating in a Colton Burnett one-yard TD run to go up by 28 points. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Lagat scored a 12-yard run as the Martians pushed the lead to 35.
Niles, a winner of 12 straight after losing its season opener 30-7 to St. Joseph, couldn’t find any bargains offensively against the Martians’ suffocating defense. If there was any consolation for the Vikings, it came with 1:02 remaining when Peyton Gordon rushed 35 yards for the game’s final score.
Meanwhile, with his ability to make throws on the run and extend plays, Mazich proved to be a major thorn in Niles’ side.
“We had a great season. I’m proud of these guys,” Niles fourth-year coach Scot Shaw said. “They (Goodrich) are good; they obviously have to be to be here. (Mazich) did what he did and did well. We couldn’t stay in front of receivers, and we couldn’t have an edge on that kid. They controlled both lines of scrimmage, and they’re well-coached, played hard. I don’t know if we got caught by surprise ... take nothing away from them, but we didn’t play real well. But that’s part of it. Probably because they played better than we did.”
Shaw said Goodrich’s team speed was somewhat deceiving.
“They’re quick,” he said. “They probably didn’t look that quick on film. Their alignment really didn’t surprise us because they had shown that, but I think they were stronger and faster than probably we gave them credit for.”
Goodrich’s first championship run began during the offseason.
“I believed in these guys all season; they’re an incredible group,” Alward said. “They started workouts at 5:30 in the morning on January 8 of this year. And these guys, along with many others, didn’t miss workouts. They’ve worked that hard to get to this point. They deserve all the success that they have achieved. I can’t tell you how proud I am of them, how physical they play and just how much they embrace what we’re trying to do. And that’s gotten us to where we are right now.”
It was only two years ago when Mazich, then a freshman, was serving as a scout team quarterback during the Martians’ 2022 tournament run.
“I got to experience it,” the 5-foot-10, 165-pound junior said. “I just remember how disappointed everyone was with the loss and obviously we got our butts kicked pretty good, but I think it helped us win this game today. They came out strong and owned us the whole game, and that’s what we had to do this game and we did. Obviously Max Macklem is a great receiver, and we have three great running backs. It’s kind of hard to stop the offense with a bunch of weapons like that.”
PHOTOS (Top) Goodrich football coach Tom Alward hoists his football program’s first championship trophy as players rush to him Saturday at Ford Field. (Middle) The Martians’ Thomas Niles (15) works to pull away from a Niles defender. (Below) Jakoby Lagatt (24) enjoys a replay on the scoreboard. (Photos by Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)