MANDATA - Way back in the preseason, even before the first scrimmage, Mike Carson knew his Line Mountain Eagles could be a pretty good football team.
Really good, possibly, but Carson and his staff would have to fill some holes.
The had plenty of knowns. ... Quarterback Marty Beninsky was set for his third year as a starter. Running back Kyle Troutman, while not a starter in 2010, had put up pretty impressive numbers in a reserve role and his skills were well known to the coaching staff. The line was solid, anchored on one side by senior steamrollers Alex Karlovich and Luke Erdman.
The potential was there.
But they needed help from some new faces. Graduation robbed the Eagles of experience and depth. If the potential was going to be reached, new faces would have to become key players.
Enter Tyler Bonawitz.
A senior this year, Bonawitz's playing time through his junior season was limited.
Mostly mop-up duty, Carson said, was a good way to characterize it.
But this year, Bonawitz came to camp ready. Never very big, still he shed some weight. Now 5-foot-10, 160 pounds, he's more streamlined, showing a quickness that Carson and the other coaches said they didn't think he had.
"No one would have ever described him as being quick," Carson said. "He went along with us to 7-on-7s this summer, and that's where we got an idea he might be a different kid this year.
"Some kids, at some point, just come to a realization that hey, they can play at this level and that sort of kicks in."
In last Friday night's 34-28 victory over Pine Grove, a game that clinched the Eagles' second straight Twin Valley Conference championship, Bonawitz showed just how much that kicked in for him.
Although he plays some tight end on the offensive side, it's at defensive end where he's really earned his keep. Against the Cards, he registered a solo sack of quarterback Nick Todero in the third quarter. Then, with the game on the line late in the fourth quarter, he teamed up with Erdman, the defensive end on the other side, for another. He also batted down a pass and was a key in the second-half defensive surge that considerably slowed down standout Pine Grove runner Cameron Conrad.
"Somewhere along the line, he gained a lot of confidence," Carson said. "He's been physically tougher than we expected.
"He's been a real positive contributor, and a real positive surprise. Every year, you watch kids mature and progress."
Bonawitz's forte is the pass rush - he's tied with Erdman for the team lead with 6.5 sacks - but he's also a solid run stopper despite being nearly 100 pounds lighter than Erdman on the other side.
In the past, Carson said, the Eagles would line whoever was the smaller of their two defensive ends up on the opponents weak side, away from the tight end. With Bonawitz, that's not necessary, he said.
"He plays physically," Carson said. "Even if they kick a big fullback or guard out at him, he gets into it and creates a pile. He's even made tackles while he's on the ground.
"He's been relentless."
So, while players like Beninsky, Troutman, Karlovich, Erdman and other known quantities, have had much to do with Line Mountain being 9-1 and the No. 2 seed in the District 4 Class A playoffs and a first-round matchup with Canton at home on Friday at 7 p.m., so to have the players like Bonawitz, players who have emerged to be major contributors.