B-CC football goes out on winning note

Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2007

B-CC football goes out on winning note

by John Y. Wehmueller | Staff Writer

E-mail this article \ Print this article

It was a trying football season at Bethesda-Chevy Chase, but the Barons can take solace from the way they ended things. After an 0-7 start against teams that went a combined 51-19 this season, B-CC closed with two wins in its final three games, including Friday’s 24-6 victory at Wheaton.

‘‘We knew coming in that it was going to be a tough first six or seven games,” B-CC head coach Joe Allen said. ‘‘It was good experience for the juniors and sophomores, and we ended up with four sophomore starters. In the long term, in terms of the program, it was good for them to get that experience.”

In his first season as head coach, Allen implemented new offensive and defensive systems at B-CC. The team clearly labored under the combination of the difficult schedule and all the changes. Only one of the Barons’ first seven losses was by fewer than 29 points.

But things slowly turned around. Junior Jake Boros, who transferred to the school before the season from Chesapeake, Va., eventually took over the quarterback job and made it his own.

‘‘Since he’s come in from Chesapeake, he’s taken over,” Allen said. ‘‘His work ethic and leadership have taken over the team. ... With him coming back next year and having had an opportunity to play a full year under this offense, that should be an advantage.”

Against Wheaton, B-CC (2-8 overall, 1-6 in the Montgomery 3A Division) took advantage of turnovers by the Knights to post an early lead. At halftime, the Barons made a defensive adjustment to shut down the Wheaton running game and were able to coast home.

Despite the loss of some key seniors on the line and at the skill positions, the Barons expect better things in 2008. Plenty of talent returns, and they will have had a year in the system. The early-season schedule will be the same, but Allen believes that the Barons won’t be.

‘‘Some of those teams are losing some players next year, and we have a lot of kids in the school we want to try to get a hold of early and get into our offseason program,” Allen said. ‘‘We can’t worry about the schedule. ... Those guys are going to be consistently competitive. We have to be the same.”