By TONY KEIM
For The Tribune-Democrat
SIDMAN —
For much of Friday night’s contest, the 50-yard line was the cutoff point.
Bedford’s offense couldn’t pass midfield, while Forest Hills’ offense set up camp on Bedford’s end of the field.
Justin Gdula threw four touchdown passes and ran for another as the Rangers hammered the Bisons, 41-6.
Of 10 Rangers offensive possessions, five began in Bedford territory, including their first three possessions of the game.
The first began at the Bisons’ 45-yard line and ended with the Rangers putting up their first points of the season.
On the legs of Nick Dudukovich and Jeff Meier and the arm of Gdula, the Rangers needed 12 plays to find the end zone. Gdula found Adam Helsel from 9 yards out and Scott George added his first of five extra points to put the Rangers up 7-0.
After stopping the Bisons, the Rangers went right back to work. This time it was Gdula using his legs to get Forest Hills into to end zone. He snuck in from a yard out, and the kick made it 14-0 just seconds into the second quarter.
The Rangers’ defense remained stingy as the Bisons were forced to punt for the third time in three possessions.
Dudukovich, who finished with 89 yards on 15 carries, added a
1-yard run of his own to put Forest Hills up 21-0 midway through the second quarter.
“We had a great game plan, and we came out and executed it tonight,” Forest Hills coach Don Bailey said. “We knew that they were a running team, and we came out and shut it down.”
The Rangers found themselves in an unfamiliar position on their fourth offensive series. Fortunately for them, it only meant that they weren’t starting in the Bisons’ territory.
That didn’t stop Dudukovich and Gdula, as they capped off a nine-play, 71-yard drive with a 14-yard touchdown strike to give the Rangers’ a 27-0 lead heading into halftime.
As potent as the Forest Hills offense was scoring on four of five offensive possessions, the Rangers defense was not to be outdone. They held the Bisons to minus-4 yards of total offense and no first downs in the first half.
The Bisons’ lone outburst came on the opening kickoff of the second half.
Junior Dakota Hess caught the ball on his own 2-yard line and returned it 98 yards to give Bisons had their first points of the season.
Gdula, who finished 9 of 13 for 126 yards, wasn’t done. He led the Rangers right back down the field and hit Helsel 7-yard touchdown to make it 34-6.
“We had to come out and set the bar high,” Gdula said.
The junior quarterback produced one more touchdown, hitting Bobby Clifford for a 37-yard touchdown.
“That play was originally supposed to go to the outside, but Justin saw something in the defense and found Bobby wide open down the middle,” said Bailey.
Bailey will take his Rangers on a short drive to Richland next week to face his son Brandon and the Richland Rams.
“Familiar name; familiar opponent. It should be a good one, that’s for sure,” said Bailey.
The Bisons will host Cambria Heights in their first home game of the season.
