Dusty Fairfield
BORN: DECEMBER 14, 1958, MUSKEGON, MI
Dusty Fairfield made tiny Ravenna a state football
powerhouse during his 17 years as the Bulldogs’ head coach. Fairfield took
over a dormant Ravenna program in the late 1980s and wasted no time putting
it on the football map, advancing all the way to the 1988 Class C state
finals at the Pontiac Silverdome.
And that was merely a foreshadowing of
what was to come. During a memorable 10-year stretch from 1994 to 2003,
Fairfield’s Ravenna program was arguably the finest in the state of
Michigan. The Bulldogs won four state titles during that stretch (1994,
1996, 1997 and 2003), fueled by Fairfield’s trademark power-I rushing attack
and relentless aggressive defense.
He resigned as coach in 2004 for family
reasons,
but returned for a second tour of duty in 2007 and led the Bulldogs
to three-straight playoff appearances, including two more playoff runs to
the state semifinals. Athe the time of his retirement, he ranked fifth
all-time in area coaching victories, sporting a gaudy 164-55 record in 20
years as head coach. Fairfield, a standout prep athlete at Reeths-Puffer,
also coached at Muskegon High School and in Texas before settling in at
Ravenna.
Glenn Meyers
BORN:
JUNE 19, 1961, FREMONT, MI
Glenn Meyers’ amazing skill with a bow and arrow took him from the small town of Fremont, to college at Division I Arizona State and, ultimately, to the Olympic Games.
Meyers learned the art of archery from his father, Earl, but said he didn’t get serious about the sport until the age of 16. He competed in his first Olympic Festival in 1979 at the age of 18, which helped him earn a scholarship to one of the country’s top archery programs. At Arizona State, Meyers helped the Sun Devils win three national titles and, individually, he placed third at the NCAA championships in 1983.
The highlight of his career came in 1984, when he represented the United States at the Summer Olympic Games in Los
Angeles. He emerged as one of three US representatives from 117 candidates at the Olympic trials, and placed 12th overall at the games among a field comprised of 62 competitors representing 31 countries.
Since that time, he has competed around the world in both individual and
team competitions, including representing the U.S. at the Pan American games
and at the World Archery Championships.
Meyers is still actively involved in the
sport, passing on his love of archery to many youngsters through the Fremont Packer Plunkers,
a program that was founded by his parents, Earl and Hazel, in 1970. In
addition, he currently serves as president of West Michigan Archery Center.
In August of 2014, the organization opened a million dollar training,
education and practice facility in Rockford, MI.
Thomas Kresnak
BORN:
FEBRUARY 17, 1943, MUSKEGON, MI
Tom Kresnak was one of the top offensive linemen to ever come out of football-rich Muskegon County. The force up front for two of the first great teams at Muskegon Catholic Central, Kresnak helped lead Coach Ed Farhat's Crusaders to consecutive 8-1 records in both 1958 and 1959. Named to the Detroit News, Detroit Free Press and Detroit Times All-State Dream Teams his senior year, he was referred to by Farhat as “the toughest and most talented football player I ever coached.”
Recruited by more than 30 major-college football programs, Kresnak eventually chose to enroll at the University of Colorado over Michigan and Michigan State, among others. He was just as dominating in Rocky Mountain country as he was in Muskegon, starting both ways for three years for the Buffalos, as a guard on offense and noseguard on defense. Kresnak was named team captain in 1964 as a senior and received the Zack Jordan Award that same year as the squad’s most valuable player.
He continued his success in the business world, serving a variety of leadership positions in the computer field, including his final six working years as an IBM Global Account Manager.
