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Norwalk sophomore Kyle Kurtz (7) looks for an open receiver while his older brother Brandon , blocks one of the top linebackers in the league, Bellevue's Tim Keegan (10).

BELLEVUE- If you ask some Norwalk fans leaving the Truckers Northern Ohio League contest at Bellevue, the most exciting part of the game may have been the skydiver that brought in an American flag from the sky just before kickoff. Even more fitting was the large contingent of military personnel saluting America before the game, as the Truckers have just one win at Bellevue post-World War II.

The Redmen handed Norwalk their 27th straight loss in Bellevue, dating back to the 1949 season. The Truckers are also now 0-20 at present-day Bellevue Athletic Field, and furthermore, just two of the 27 losses have been decided by one score or less.

With the 47-13 win, however, the Redmen continue to put themselves in a good position within the league, as that makes it 11 straight league wins dating back to week 9 of the 2003 season.

The Truckers appeared to get a strong start to the contest, however, as a turnover on downs by the Redmen on the opening drive at the Norwalk 10-yard line spurred the offense, which had been nothing short of non-existent the past two weeks. Brandon Kurtz got his first workload-type game at running back, and had three carries on the opening drive for 20 yards, while younger brother Kyle Kurtz threw a 30-yard gain to running back Trent Ringle. Faced with a 4th and 3 at the Bellevue 29, Kurtz then found senior captain Nate Phillips on a pass to the Bellevue 22. But it was at that moment, disaster struck, as Kurtz was looking end zone and was hit while he was throwing. The ball was intercepted by David Foos, one of the top players in the league the past two seasons at defensive back. Foos returned the ball 52 yards to the Norwalk 48, but the big story once the play had ended was Kurtz had thrown his first interception of the season, snapping a streak of 109 straight passing attempts without one.

The Redmen then used the big turnover to push across 27 unanswered points to leave the Truckers reeling. Anthony Flores capped a 5-play, 48-yard drive with a 1-yard run  to kick off the scoring. The struggling punting game that has put the defense in bad positions all season then continued to do so, as Bellevue's next three scoring drives started at their own 46, the Norwalk 39, and the Norwalk 33. Derek Berberick started his big night with a 21-yard run at the 6:54 mark of the second quarter, and that was followed up by a two-yard run by Flores, and a Jeff DeBlase 38-yard pass to Tim Keegan with 3:40 left in the half to give the Redmen their 27-0 lead.

After starting the season 0-3, their worst start in 15 seasons, the Northern Ohio League has been put back on notice, as the Redmen have scored 102 points in their opening two league games.

"I think we took steps at getting better tonight than we did last week," Bellevue coach Ed Nasonti said. "We're not where we should be or where I'd like us to be, but I'm happy with the kids. They've been practicing hard and they've worked to get better. They've handled the fact that the league season is a new season for us, and they are really responding to it. We just want to take this one week at a time, and put ourselves in position to win another league championship."

Norwalk got on the board just before the intermission, as a much hyped and talked about moment finally came to fruition, when Kyle Kurtz threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to his older brother Brandon on a 4th and eight from the Redmen 15 with 1:03 left in the half. Kyle then added the extra point to put the halftime margin at 27-7.

Norwalk then appeared to be thundering towards another score and had a chance to cut the lead in half in the late stages of the third quarter, but the momentum again shifted towards the Redmen. After Bellevue again had great field position starting at the Norwalk 38, their offense was faced with a 4th and goal from the Norwalk 5, but DeBlase slipped and fell has he dropped back to pass, sending the ball back to Norwalk. Then on a 3rd-and-7 from their own 37, Kyle Kurtz was scrambling for running room, and found a whole lot more, as he bolted through the entire Redmen defense for a 70-yard run down to the Bellevue 3. But all momentum was quickly zapped out when four straight running plays denied the Truckers of a touchdown.

Then after DeBlase inched further towards the one-yard line, the quarterback dropped back and fired a pass to Berberick, who had it deflected off a Norwalk defender into his waiting hands around the Norwalk 30, and Berberick used his speed to turn in a school record 99-yard pass and catch for the back-breaking touchdown with 2:03 left in the third quarter. The extra point made it 34-7. Kurtz then took a hard hit on the ensuing play from scrimmage, and lost the ball in the process, where Berberick again caught a touchdown pass, this time from 15 yards out for a 40-7 lead entering the final quarter.

DeBlase then fired his third touchdown of the night with ten minutes left, finding Travis Brown on a six-yard score after again being set up with a short field at the Norwalk 35 after a turnover on downs. The Truckers then got a late score when Kurtz hit tight end Tyler Smith on a 4th-and-5 play for a 19 yard touchdown pass with 1:36 left to wrap up the scoring.

For Bellevue, DeBlase finished the night 9-of-15 passing for 245 yards with three touchdowns and one interceptions. Berberick caught just three passes, but they covered 126 yards and two scores. He also ran for 86 yards and a touchdown on just seven attempts rushing. Flores added 124 yards rushing and two scores on 16 attempts, as in all the Redmen racked up 451 yards of total offense.

For Norwalk, Kyle Kurtz finished 15-of-32 passing for 141 yards and two touchdowns and the interception. Phillips had six catches for 38 yards, Clay Duncan caught four for 34 yards, and Smith has two catches for 21 yards and a score. Thanks in part to the big run, Kurtz finished the night with 76 yards rushing on 10 attempts, while Brandon added 43 yards on 15 attempts, and Trent Ringle finished with 39 yards on 11 attempts.

"We didn't make enough plays," Norwalk coach Jeff Cole said. "We had some opportunities early in the game to make some plays and we didn't get it done. Bellevue did, and that's why they won. That goal line stand was a huge play. You've got to be able to get a yard in that situation. We have to make a play. You can be in a right spot but at some point you've got to make a play. It's all about making plays. If you make them you can win, and if you don't, you will come up short...and that's why we came up short, we didn't make enough plays."

The Truckers will now play four of their remaining five games at the friendly confines of Whitney Field, as it is homecoming week vs. the Upper Sandusky Rams (1-4, 0-2). Bellevue will be in prime position to stay hot in league play and get back to .500, as they host Galion (1-4, 0-2), losers of 23 straight league games.