Don Shula Stadium saw plenty of smiles as the sun set on the 2010 season for John Carroll. 

On the heels of a career-high 187 rushing yards and three touchdowns from sophomore running back DaQuan Grobsmith, the Blue Streaks retained the Cuyahoga Gold Bowl Trophy with a 31-28 victory over crosstown rival Baldwin-Wallace.

The Blue Streaks finish 2010 with a 5-5 record (5-4 in the OAC) after starting the season 1-3. Baldwin-Wallace, the conference's biggest surprise, finished with a 7-3 record (6-3 in the OAC) after being picked to finish 7th in the preseason coaches' Poll. 

With the victory, the Streaks evened the Cuyahoga Gold Bowl series at 11-11, and the all-time series between the two Cleveland area rivals, which dates back to 1921, at 23-23-4.

Box Score

John Carroll exploded offensively in the first half, literally right from the opening kickoff. Senior Bobby Mangiarelli, who established the school record for career kick return the yardage on his first touch of the afternoon, brought the ball out to the 45-yard line to give JCU excellent field position. 

Junior quarterback Devin O'Brien's first play from scrimmage saw fifth year senior Frank Ross catch and run for 47 yards. Two plays later, Grobsmith punched in his first of three rushing scroes of the afternoon.

"The seniors wanted this game so bad," said Grobsmith afterwards. "The dedication that the seniors have put in this season, including Phil (Bokovitz) and Adam (Miller), has been incredible. They deserved this win."

Fourth-year starting offensive lineman Phil Bokovitz quite literally picked up Grobsmith and threw him into the endzone after the sophomore back got tripped up by a swarm of Yellow Jackets at the two yard line.

"I had my mind set on doing whatever it was going to take to go out with a win," said Bokovitz. "Fortunately, Grobsmith nearly fell into my lap and I was able to throw him into the end zone."

The Blue Streaks defense could not hold off Baldwin-Wallace on their opening drive though, as the Yellow Jackets capped off a 13 play, 82-yard drive with a six yard pass from sophomore Ryan O'Rourke to junior tight end Aaron Hurd.

With 6:30 to go in the first quarter, sophomore cornerback D. J. Debick intercepted his first career pass and set up the Blue Streaks' ensuing strike. After a 27-yard scamper on an option pitch to Grobsmith, the sophomore back finished the drive with a four-yard score to put the Blue Streaks up by a touchdown.

Grobsmith scored his third touchdown in 16 minutes of play on John Carroll's next drive to put the Blue Streaks ahead 21-7. Ten minutes later, an 19-yard Bradley Marchese field goal increased the John Carroll lead to 24-7 with 3:30 remaining in the first half.

The Yellow Jackets were being dominated in all aspects of the game, but their coaching staff expanded the playbook. Wide receiver Anthony Fairhurst took a lateral from O'Rourke and fired it 41 yards down field to senior running back Kyrell Crook for a touchdown. BW brought the score to 24-14 going into the break.

As is usually the case in this series, the score would tighten. Following a 62-yard kick return from freshman Kevin Johnson to open the third quarter, BW went 32 yards in seven plays to narrow the margin to only one scoring possession. .

After JCU failed to convert on fourth down and BW's ensuing possession resulted in a punt, head coach Regis Scafe's offense struck again. Running the rock eight of the next nine plays, Frank Ross scored the final touchdown of his Blue Streak career - a 5-yard dive over the right side of the offensive line.

The Streaks defense, with a 31-21 lead in the early fourth quarter, seemingly came up with the game-sealing play when a Chukubueze Iheama forced fumble resulted in a significant loss for BW. But the Blue Streaks were penalized for sideline interference, and the drive continued. However, no damage was done as Brad Pollock attempted a 37-yard field goal that sailed wide left.

After taking some more time off the clock, the Blue Streaks gave BW the ball back with 4:38 remaining. The Yellow Jackets pieced together a 12 play, 66-yard drive that left less than 70 seconds on the clock. The score would be 31-28 after a Ryan O'Rourke one-yard touchdown plunge, putting the fate of the game on an onside kick.

Fittingly, the onside kick would bounce right to Ross. The JCU fifth-year senior and career leader in pass receptions would make one last big grab, as he held on to the squib kick in spite of absorbing a big hit. JCU would take a knee twice to seal the victory.

"John Carroll has brought out the best in me," said Ross after the win. "Both on and off the field, John Carroll has made me work harder. The one thing you can control as a football player is how hard you work. That's the legacy that I have tried to leave here and I am so proud of this 2010 team."

Devin O'Brien threw for 114 yards and rushed for an additional 102 in the win for John Carroll. Junior linebacker C.J. Seitzinger led the team with 17 tackles to increase his season total to 136. He finished the season in the top five in the country in tackles per game.

With the win, John Carroll finishes tied for fourth place in the Ohio Athletic Conference with Otterbein and Capital. Baldwin-Wallace, who was led by 161 yards passing from O'Rourke and a combined 150 yards rushing from senior running back John McGraw and Kyrell Crook, finishes the year in sole possession of third place in the OAC.

The Blue Streaks also finished the season with the best red zone offense in the league. 30 chances inside the 20 resulted in 25 touchdowns and four field goals (97% success rate). Of teams that average at least two attempts per game, the Blue Streaks had the best red zone offense in any division of NCAA football (as of 11/13/10). They scored on all five attempts against Baldwin-Wallace.

"All we talked about all week was finishing strong and playing with a lot of heart and passion," said Coach Scafe after the game. "There is no question that today's game was a huge step in the right direction for this program going into next year. The adjustments that our players and coaches made in the second half of the year after early injuries and losses have definitely given us something to grow on." 

Coach Scafe finished his 12th season at the helm of the Blue Streaks program, tying him as the longest tenured head coach all time.

The often overlooked offensive line also deserves praise for their efforts. Each of the past two seasons, John Carroll's big men up front have allowed a conference low in sacks (13 in 2010, eight in 2009). For the first time since 1992, JCU ran for over 2,000 yards as a team. Both Grobsmith and O'Brien eclipsed the century mark on the game, leading the Streaks to 306 rushing yards against a BW defense that ranked fifth in the nation in sacks per game and 3rd in all the land with ten tackles for loss per game.

"The offensive line carried us all season," said O'Brien. "We can't run the ball effectively without them and we are confident that they will be strong-hold for us again next season."