Blue Devils take care of businessBrad Bournival | Staff Writer Posted: Monday, November 12th, 2007
FREMONT ? Brunswick?s football team doesn?t need any stickum. The Blue Devils have all the adhesive they want at the quarterback position.
For the third straight time in the postseason, Sean Bedevelsky broke the school record for passing yards in a game. Saturday it came against Toledo Whitmer in a 37-23 Division I, Region 2 semifinal win.
A victory over second-seeded North Canton Hoover (10-2) at Byers Field in Parma this week will put Brunswick (12-0) in the state semifinals for the first time since 1995.
But Bedevelsky and Co. had to take care of the Panthers (9-3) first.
Did they ever.
Bedevelsky was 19-of-28 for 390 yards through the air with a touchdown and added 75 yards rushing on 16 carries, scoring three times with his legs. Add it up and it?s 465 yards total offense for ?Beda? and the Devils? fifth win over a playoff team this season.
?He?s the glue,? Brunswick wide receiver Ben Karaba said. ?He?s amazing, how composed he can be.
?We know what to do because he keeps us together.?
Bedevelsky certainly kept the Blue Devils together against Whitmer when Brunswick found itself in a position it hadn?t faced this season.
Trailing for the first time in the second half this year, the 6-foot, 180-pound All-Ohio quarterback rallied his team and the Blue Devils rolled the rest of the way.
The Panthers took a 20-14 lead after they recovered an onside kick and drove 47 yards to paydirt midway through the third quarter.
That?s when Bedevelsky took over.
Finding Jordan Gribble (8 catches, 188 yards, TD) and Karaba (8, 172) pretty much whenever he wanted, Bedevelsky mixed in the run and mixed up the Panthers.
It took just 118 seconds for the Blue Devils to regain the lead as Bedevelsky scored his second rushing touchdown from 7 yards out.
?I try to get to that next level so I can play another week,? Bedevelsky said. ?We needed to come back and score. You win, you get to play another week. That?s all I was thinking about.?
It worked.
In a six-minute span, Bedevelsky marched the Blue Devils to three straight scores, going 5-of-7 for 109 yards and rushing for 36 yards and two scores during that time.
Numbers that have become commonplace for the Blue Devils, who are returning to the regional finals for the first time since 2004.
?We stuck to the gameplan and, as always, Sean Bedevelsky made big plays,? Brunswick coach Rich Nowak said. ?Beda shines when he gets to the postseason.
?His big games always happen then. We say, ?Let?s see what you can do?? But when you?ve been there before, you know what to do. Sean?s a winner. These players look at him and he?s up, whether we?re down 17 or winning by 17.?
A fact not lost in the playoffs.
In the last three postseason affairs, Bedevelsky is 61-of-86 (.709) for 1,110 yards and eight touchdowns and has rushed for 215 yards with four scores. That equates to a 139.4 NFL passer rating.
In the last two, Bedevelsky has repeatedly found Gribble and Karaba. The trio has connected for 34 catches, 668 yards and five touchdowns.
?He?s amazing,? Gribble said. ?Just look at the things he?s done. To break his own record for the third time.
?Most people don?t look at his running either. If they don?t, he?ll make them pay. He makes the plays. Either this week or last week was his best game ever.?
Bournival may be reached at wp.medina-gazette.com or bournival929@sbcglobal.net.
