by Matthew Florjancic ‘06
BEREA, OHIO-When Baldwin-Wallace’s 2003 football season came to a close, the offense graduated the top three rushers on the team in Mark Anders ‘04, Dan Larlham ‘04, and Randale Richmond ‘04. The three had combined to run for 2,665 of the team’s total of 3,036 yards in 12 games a year ago. So, one of the big questions among Yellow Jacket fans looking forward to the 2004 season was "who would step up and fill the void left by these fantastic players".
After a solid showing during training camp, sophomore running back Brandon Hedges (Oregon) emerged as the starter. Those who saw Hedges run as a freshman felt pretty good about his talent. But what transpired was even better than your imagination.
"Brandon has worked extremely hard and did a lot of extra work in the offseason to get stronger and faster," said third-year B-W Head Coach, John Snell ‘87. "He worked hard to improve from last season to this season.
"We did know that Brandon was a good player," Snell added, who led the Yellow Jackets to their first NCAA Division III Playoff appearance since 1991. "We thought Brandon would compete for the job at running back. It was wide open.
"What he has done has been key to our success so far on offense," continued Snell. "He has given us balance by having a strong running game. And, Brandon will be the first one to congratukate the offensive line.
Hedges, a native of Oregon, Ohio, experienced success at Clay High School both as a team member and as an individual. He set a Clay career mark for kickoff returns.
"We were a pretty good team my senior year," said Hedges. "We had a 6-4 record in a very competitive conference and played alot of close games."
At B-W, Hedges began his career on the junior varsity team and seeing action as a backup in a couple of varsity games.
So this year, when Hedges opened the 2004 campaign as the starter at RB and responded with a 156-yard, 21-carry effort with three touchdowns in a 27-14 win at Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania, who was surprised? Not Brandon Hedges. For his efforts, Hedges was the OAC Offensive Player of the Week.
In his second game, a 31-3 win against Ohio Northern University on Community Night, Hedges improved to a career-best 158 yards rushing with a TD, and he caught three passes.
As the 2004 season began, Snell began to notice certain strengths in Hedges’ game.
"Brandon has good feet and good vision," said Snell. "And, when he gets through the hole and out into the open field, he has pretty good acceleration."
His B-W teammates also became aware of his abilities.
"I think Brandon showed great work ethic last winter, and by running outdoor track last spring really helped and boosted his speed," said senior defensive back and co-captain Mike Scarcella (Strongsville). "In the Allegheny game and against ONU, he found the hole and just burst through it."
Hedges knew the task of being effective in his first two varsity starts would be his first major challenge.
"There are always doubts, but I have a lot of confidence in my offensive linemen and our entire team," said Hedges, who leads the OAC in scoring, rushing and all-purpose yardage after two games. "I knew we were all going to do pretty well."
The need to enhance one’s game is something Coach Snell instills in all of his players.
"He needs to improve because the competition does not get any easier," said Snell. "If he continues to improve and get better on a daily basis, who knows what he’ll be able to accomplish."
Hedges knows that he needs to enhance his skills in order to achieve the goals he has set for the team and himself.
"The goal for the rest of the season is to win as many games as possible, win the OAC Championship go back to the national playoffs and get a championship ring," said Hedges. "For the rest of my career here, I just want to play to the best of my ability."
The Yellow Jackets are back in action this weekend when they travel to Wilmington, Ohio to face the Wilmington College Quakers at 1:30 p.m. at Williams Stadium. Fans can listen to the game locally on either campus radio station WBWC, 88.3 FM, or on Cleveland commercial radio station WHK, 1420. In addition, the game will be carried over the InterNet on WBWC by logging onto the B-W InterNet Web Site at www.bw.edu/athletics and then clocking onto the WBWC link on the left hand side of the athletics FrontPage. Also, the game will be carried in the Warren/ Youngstown area on WHKW, 1440 AM.
For More Information regarding B-W athletics, please call Sports Information Director Kevin Ruple at 440-826-2327, FAX him at 440-826-2329 or e-mail him at kruple@bw.edu.
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Yellow Jacket Chatter
** Yellow Jacket freshman punter Kevin Soflkiancs (Middleburg Heights/ Midpark High School) is this week's Ohio Athletic Conference Special Teams Player of the Week. Soflkiancs earned the honors for his efforts in last Saturday's 31-3 win versus Ohio Northern University at Finnie Stadium. Soflkiancs averaged 45.3 yards per punt in seven attempts. He currently leads the OAC with a 42.8-yard average per punt.
** B-W senior wide receiver Dave Ehrman (Strongsville) has a streak of 34 straight games with at least one catch and is two games from breaking Lance Yandell's (1990-93) school-record of 35 games with a catch.
** B-W has a streak of 37 straight winning seasons in football. The streak is the second longest in all of college football.
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