By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – After a sandpaper start to the 2024 campaign, Bedford North Lawrence is under no delusions of adequacy. Two mercy-rule losses against quality competition have exposed issues, in all phases. There’s no shortage of work ahead.
The Stars are tackling that long to-do list right now, preparing for the season’s first road trip, and their Hoosier Hills Conference opener. BNL, lacking momentum, will collide with a juiced opponent that got an overdose of that wonderful serum when it journeys to Jeffersonville on Friday night.
After 15 consecutive losses, the Red Devils ended that sorry skid with a remarkable comeback last week, battling back from a two-score deficit in the fourth quarter to stun Seymour. Jeffersonville drove 99 yards for the game-winning touchdown with 33 seconds left to cap a thrilling 14-12 road triumph. That drive might as well have been a mile. Its impact on the program might be immeasurable.
“That was a huge win for the team psyche, and the confidence of the players that have been in the program for all four years,” new head coach Joe Washington said. “For them to be able to fulfill the goal of the seniors, which is a change the foundation of this program, that was a great brick we added for the team and community.”
So that’s the backdrop for this road trip. Totally different tangents, one team with a scowl of determination and the other with wild-eyed energy.
Where does rebuilt BNL, with obvious growing pains from its young roster, begin? The offense has produced only one late score in a running-clock scenario and surrendered seven turnovers, the special teams gave up multiple scores last week against Bloomington North.
“We’ve addressed a lot,” BNL coach Derrick Barker said. “The biggest thing was being more of a cohesive team. We had some issues with being selfish and playing for ourselves. We’ve put on emphasis on the fundamental things we did wrong, which cost us a lot of points, but we needed to come together as a team and understand it’s not a one-man game. It takes 11 on the field doing their job at a high level to have success.
“We’ve eliminated some of the two-way players to get more guys reps, to focus in and eliminate some mental mistakes.”
Despite the shortcomings, the Stars have shown signs of progress. The defense held up, except for one missed-tackle touchdown by the Cougars, last week. There have been individual bright spots.
“I was pretty happy with the defense’s performance,” Barker said. “I saw some improvement and we can build on that. It’s putting it all together on the same night.”
What about the Devils? They are on fire after the late comeback. Cordell Thomas connected with Cameron Holloway for a 74-yard touchdown to spark it, and Riko Wright bolted home from 10 yards to finish it. Washington, a former All-State player at North Hardin and Western Kentucky alum, hopes that was the springboard to stability and success. Jeffersonville has gone 13-37 the last five years and has endured eight straight losing seasons.
“The foundation I want to build this program on is being a competitive football team, playing hard and being relentless in the pursuit of greatness,” he said. “I just want this program to be something that the community can take pride in, week in and week out. Expect this program to return back to prominence.”
“They’re not the Jeffersonville of old,” Barker said. “They’re a dangerous team. They’re very good at what they do. They have athletes, when they get the ball in their hands, you really have to be locked in. They’re really good on defense, they hustle to the ball. They will have a lot of momentum.”
BNL has won three straight in the series. Two years ago at Jeff, the Stars trailed 18-0 at halftime before a stunning rally produced a sensational 19-18 triumph with a late score from Trace Rynders. Last year at BNL, Cal Gates ran for 108 yards and two touchdowns, and also caught a 72-yard TD pass from Memphis Louden. Ryker Hughes added an interception return for a score during a 49-20 runaway win.
“Two years ago, we got off to a slow start and had to come from behind,” Barker said. “If we get behind this team, we’ll really have our work cut out. You have to be on your toes from the first play and it will take a four-quarter game.”
Washington is bracing for BNL’s best to surface.
“The thing that concerns me about BNL is how battle tested they are,” he said. “They played two pretty good opponents the first two weeks. They have pretty good players that stand out to me. I really like Daxton Short, he’s a dynamic player, a game changer that has great size, great skill.
“Another guy that stood out to me is Driven Axsom. This guy is a high-energy, high-motor guy that flies around on defense to make his impact felt. Although he is small in stature, his game plays pretty big. Dayson Kirby is another guy as I watch film, I’m more impressed. He has a quick release, he gets rid of the ball and makes good, catchable passes for his receivers. That’s going to be tough on our secondary to cover those guys.”
BNL suffered another blow with the knee injury to senior receiver Gavin Pedersen, who caught 7 passes for 116 yards and the lone score for the Stars.
BNL at JEFFERSONVILLE
Kickoff: Friday, 7 p.m.
Records: BNL 0-2 (0-0 in HHC); Jeffersonville 1-1 (1-0 in HHC)
Coaches: Derrick Barker, 17-17 in fourth season at BNL; Joe Washington, 1-1 in first season at Jeffersonville
Series: Jeffersonville leads 31-17
Last meeting: Last year at BNL, the Stars rolled to a 49-20 victory. Cal Gates ran for 108 yards and two touchdowns, plus he caught a 72-yard TD pass. Piaire Childs also ran for two TDs. Brandon Harris had 101 yards rushing for the Red Devils.
Previous game story: Gates, Stars break the chain
Game notes: BNL has won three straight games in the series. First-year Jeffersonville coach Joe Washington played six years in Arena football. The Red Devils have suffered eight straight losing seasons.
