Ram Country, Here We Come
February 3, 2012
Rockford is next up on our "Battle of the Fans" tour, and we'll be making our stop for tonight's boys basketball game against Hudsonville.
So far, all good. We're having a blast. We've been to two Class B and one Class C school, and all three have brought a ton of what we're looking for in a "Battle of the Fans" champion. Rockford is one of our largest Class A schools -- so we're expecting more big things, especially amid the Twitter buzz we've been following this week.
MHSAA staff and Student Advisory Council members already have visited Frankenmuth, Grand Rapids Christian and Reese, and will finish up Feb. 17 at Petoskey. Voting on our Facebook page runs Feb. 20-23, with the winner selected Feb. 24.
Click to check out our YouTube channel playlist of our finalists we've seen so far.
What's My Why: Official Murray Rose
May 26, 2026
Murray Rose, Zeeland
After a wrestling coaching career that began in 1985-86 and stretched over 31 years, Rose immediately became a wrestling official with the start of the 2017-18 season. He remains ranked ninth for coaching wins in the sport after building a 767-167-2 record at Allegan, where he led teams to two Finals championships.
After 30 years of coaching wrestling, I decided to become a wrestling official. My wife asked me, “Why would you ever want to do that?”
I said the answer is simple: I’m a wrestling guy. It’s what I do. It’s been my passion my whole life. It’s time for me to give back to the sport that’s given so much to me through the year.
Think about it. I get to work out, get paid and have fun, all at the same time. I get to be in the middle of the action, and I get the best seat in the house. I get to shake hands with thousands of student-athletes, coaches, and I get to make hundreds of new officiating friends.
For me, officiating is a way of life – and it’s been a wild ride for nine years now. I encourage all of you young men and women out there to jump on this officiating train and challenge yourself – because I want you to have as much fun officiating as I am.
“What’s My Why” is a weekly feature telling the stories of MHSAA-registered officials in their own words. If you’re an MHSAA official and would like to share your reason why, please submit a 15 to 45-second video, taken horizontally, to director of officials Sam Davis at [email protected].
Don't miss Officiate Michigan Day 2026, July 25 in Grand Rapids! Check out MHSAA.com/OMD to register and learn more.
What's My Why
May 22: Mike VanLaan, Alto - Watch
May 18: Clint Abbott, Newaygo - Watch