By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – Fresh water, most of it trapped in icy glaciers, is the most precious natural resource on the planet. That means student manager Mike Jones was the most valuable person on the turf during Bedford North Lawrence’s heat-stroke scrimmage on a sweltering summer afternoon. He kept the water coolers full and flowing.
Water is the basic substance of all life. Healthy adults can last only three (maybe five) days without it, mere hours when sweating beneath football pads and helmets. Organs start to shut down without fluids in extreme heat. The Stars were never in mortal danger, but it takes a special level of dedication to vacate the comforts of air conditioning and compete in the humid Hoosier heat in the middle of July.
BNL looked a little dehydrated during the second scrimmage of the month, working out against Silver Creek on Tuesday. Some struggles were expected, not accepted, as the Stars continued their drive toward the start of official practice sessions for the 2026 campaign. Blame it on the fiery furnace, although the competition will be hotter when the regular season begins in five short weeks.
The Dragons breathed a little fire on BNL as well. That’s a program coming off a 3-7 season and starting fresh with a new coach, yet they were more enthusiastic about the situation. When compared to last week’s initial session against Terre Haute North, the Stars were not as sharp on offense, yet more in sync on defense (with only two projected starters missing this workout). And it’s a long time until November.
“I’d be really disappointed if I said we were playing the best we can play right now,” BNL senior linebacker Dyllan Smith said. “We’re getting better every scrimmage.”
“A lot of stuff was a lot better,” BNL coach Brayden Tidd said. “Some stuff obviously was not.”
During the next two weeks, with the summer work concluding with scrimmages on July 30, BNL has work to do before the IHSAA calendar begins on Aug. 3. The spotlight will shine first on the defense, a unit that’s replacing seven starters from a year ago. The secondary and the defensive line took the biggest hits.
“We’re all new, so making that big of a stride, from last week to this, I was impressed,” Tidd said. “One of our goals is to get one percent better every day. That goes for scrimmages, too. We want to see things cleaned up.”
“I want our defense to have confidence, really define what we’re out there to do,” Smith said. “Fly around. It’s the side that’s under renovation, we have a lot of new guys and young guys stepping in.”
On offense, Cutler Chastain was back from his summer baseball travels to show his skills at quarterback. It will take repetition to make connections with the receiving corps (which will be the strength of the Stars). With a veteran line up front, with Brody Horton and Malakai Goodman as explosive weapons, BNL could be fun to watch once again. Maybe not Air Raid (as Tidd’s hat signaled) fun, but with high-scoring potential.
“I think we’ve come a long way from last year, but we have a lot to work on,” senior lineman Cameron Morales said. “That’s what these scrimmages are for. Keep adjusting things we’re not too great on. There’s just a tad bit that we need to fix. Run the ball down their throats every game. Our run game is amazing right now.“
Next on the agenda is a road trip to Washington on Thursday to face Evansville North, Evansville Central (a possible sectional opponent in the postseason assignment BNL got shifted to for this coming season), Vincennes Lincoln and Washington. It won’t be any cooler.
“Man, I tell you what, it’s really hot,” Morales said. “But we get adapted to it, and it’s not that bad, honestly.”
Love the game, embrace the heat. It separates the cool posers from the fire-hardened. The Stars are thirsty and hungry.
“We want it all, everything we can get,” Morales said. “It’s very possible.”
“You have to love it to be out here,” Smith said. “I just like to win, I like the competitiveness. We’re building.”
BNL will also compete in a 7-on-7 event at Evansville Reitz on Saturday, then close the summer with home scrimmages against Edgewood and Vincennes Lincoln on July 30.
