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Sitting at 6-3 and almost a lock for the fifth see in the District 6-A playoffs, things have completely changed for Bellwood-Antis’s football team since September.

After starting the season with an 0-2 record, which was the worst start in school history since 1999, B-A has rallied to win five of six games.

There are a plethora of reasons that could account for Bellwood-Antis’s turnaround.

You could say that B-A’s ability to take care of the football and limit turnovers has been a factor, or  that the team’s new-found ability to make tackles is what led to the team’s turnaround season.

However there is no single factor greater than a lineup change made during the third week of the season to account for the team’s turnaround, making a maybe-500. team into a team that could make a deep run in the playoffs.

The change was moving quarterback Jake Burch to the starting tailback position and bringing junior Jarrett Taneyhill off the bench and promoting him to the starting quarterback position.

“Coming into the season I didn’t think I would play, but I was very excited with the opportunity,” said Taneyhill.

Burch has handled the move like one might expect from a senior leader, despite being taken off the hunt for several B-A passing records.

In the 2013 and 2014 seasons Burch threw for a total of 2,242 yards and 18 Touchdowns.

“It has been pretty easy because of the success we’ve been having. It’s a great feeling to see the team doing well even after we’ve switched things up,” said Burch.

The move has utilized each player to their maximum ability and is helping the team greatly.

“It has opened up a lot more options for us. We have a lot of different ways to attack, so teams have to play us differently,” said Burch.

Assistant Coach Nick Lovorich believes the change has done wonders for the team.

“When we first made the change it provided the team with a spark. It has provided the offense with more diversity as well, with more speed on the outside. Jake and Jarrett really complement each other nicely,” said Lovorich

Taneyhill and Burch have both been dominant at their positions.

Taneyhill has thrown for a total of 1,160 yards in seven starts so far this season, all while completing nearly 61% of his passes. He has thrown for nine touchdown passes and six interceptions.

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Burch has been a touchdown machine all season long, totaling 19 touchdowns – 13 coming on the ground and six receiving. On 117 carries Burch has run for 631 yards and has caught 29 passes, which has translated into 434 receiving yards.

Taneyhill, who was the starting quarterback on the junior varsity team, has given credit to hard work for his almost instant success at the varsity level.

“After the Mo Valley game I knew I had to get better. So I worked hard at practice and the next game turned out a lot better,” he said.

Lovorich praised his team’s selflessness and their ability to make sacrifices for the good of the team.

“Everybody on the team saw that the move was better for the team, and everyone on the team buys into the team goals, which will lead into our team being successful,” he said.