DETROIT--With just a handful of underclassmen scattered around Orchard Lake St. Mary's two-deep lineup last season, it appeared - on paper - that 2005 could be a rebuilding year for the Eaglets. As it turned out, however, any necessary rebuilding occurred before the season.

The Eaglets opened the year with a 44-3 victory over Oxford and never stumbled. They completed a 9-0 regular season by defeating Birmingham Brother Rice in the Prep Bowl final, 20-7, at Ford Field on Oct. 22.

"With the strength of our schedule, I thought it was a great accomplishment for our kids to go 9-0," said St. Mary's coach George Porritt. "We played so many good teams, and the Central Division of the Catholic League is so tough."

The Eaglets' two toughest games were played against Rice the past two weeks. St. Mary's edged the Warriors 24-21 on Oct. 15, then the teams played a rematch in the Prep Bowl's A-B Final.

"Our kids played hard," said Brother Rice coach Al Fracassa. "St. Mary's is a very powerful team with a lot of talent. It is one of the best St. Mary's teams I've seen in a long time."

Neither squad had much success on the ground at the Boys Bowl. Rice gained 98 yards on 27 carries, while the Eaglets managed 111 yards on 36 tries. The difference was the St. Mary's passing attack, as Eaglets quarterback Justin Siller completed eight of 18 passes for 174 yards and two touchdowns.

St. Mary's opened the scoring on Steven Andrews' 27-yard first-quarter field goal. The three-pointer was set up by a 31-yard completion from Siller to Dionte Allen on a fourth-and-nine play, as Allen made an acrobatic catch at the Rice three.

In the second quarter, Taurian Washington's fingertip catch of a 24-yard pass set up Andrews' 31-yard field goal for a 6-0 lead. Siller then unloaded a 71-yard touchdown bomb to receiver Nick Koenigsknecht late in the second quarter to give the Eaglets a 13-0 halftime advantage.

Defensive back Christopher Mitchell stopped a Rice scoring bid with a third-quarter interception at the St. Mary's 20. That triggered a drive which culminated in Siller's 12-yard TD toss to running back Anthony Bowman, followed by Andrews' second extra point.

Reserve quarterback Andy Lentz broke up St. Mary's shutout with a 14-yard scoring pass to John Goebel with 3:01 left in the game.

Aaron Gant led the Eaglets in running with 79 yards on 14 carries. Goebel gained 94 yards on 13 tries for Rice.

St. Mary's defense, which made a trio of fourth-down stops, was led by defensive end Jon Misch, whose seven tackles included one sack, plus defensive tackle Jerron Horn, who also recorded a sack among his six tackles.

Asked about the biggest surprise on this year's team, Porritt pointed to his defensive line, including Misch, Horn, Matt Brimer and Blair Hollis, a unit that "really proved to be a big plus for our football team this year."