Big Walnut comes out of gate quickly against Bradley, but knows track is long
Friday, August 21, 2026
By Steve Blackledge
sblackledge@cbussports.com
Big Walnut running back Nolan Buirley, a Northwestern commit, looks for a lane during the Golden Eagles’ home win against Hilliard Bradley Friday. Photo: John Hulkenberg
Sunbury, Ohio – Well before the transfer of Ohio State-bound five-star receiver Jamier Brown to Big Walnut and after his unceremonious transfer back to Huber Heights Wayne during August two-a-days, the bar was significantly raised for this burgeoning Delaware County program.
Back-to-back Final Four runs in Division II have not spoiled the Golden Eagles fans, coaches and players, rather made them even hungrier.
But after Big Walnut feasted on perennial Division I playoff contender Hilliard Bradley 32-7 in its season opener Friday night, coach Curtis Crager wasn’t about to make any bold proclamations about another deep run quite yet.
“Obviously, we’re happy with the win, but we’ve got a long, long way to go,” Crager said. “We’re out of shape, we’re not tackling or finishing drives. I love our kids and I hate to sound like I’m being negative, but we’ve got to do a better job going forward. There are things we can teach and there’s a lot to build on. It all comes down to execution. It looked like we were dragging in the second half, and it’s all because we’re out of shape.”
That comment raised the eyebrows of two-time first-team All-Ohio senior running back Nolan Buirley.
“Coach has had us doing more conditioning than ever this year,” Buirley said. “I’ve been pushing a lot of sleds the past few weeks. I feel strong and I know my boys up front are weight room beasts … but we can always get better.”
In stretches, Big Walnut looked pretty darned good on both sides of the ball against Bradley.
Big Walnut quarterback Eli Stumpf, a Michigan State recruit, threw for 172 yeards and two touchdowns against Hilliard Bradley Friday in Sunbury. Photo: John Hulkenberg
Buirley, a legitimate Mr. Football candidate who has committed to Northwestern, rushed for 187 yards on 22 carries with two touchdowns, made two receptions for 40 yards and completed a two-point conversion pass. He did it with power, speed, precision and elusiveness.
One can only wonder why Northwestern recruited the 6-foot-2, 202-pounder to play linebacker in 2027.
“I want to play running back, of course, but they’re telling me linebacker and maybe return kicks,” Buirley said. “We’ll see. I’m just happy for the opportunity.”
Senior quarterback Eli Stumpf, a Michigan State commit, completed 14 of 20 passes for 172 yards with two touchdowns and an interception and added 54 yards rushing on six attempts. Showing outstanding mobility and poise in and out of the pocket, Stumpf spread the ball around to seven different receivers.
Stumpf passed for 2,150 yards with 23 TDs and just three interceptions last season.
“We’ve got a lot of people who can make plays in space and my job is simply to get it to them,” Stumpf said. “Tonight, I think our offense was all about taking advantage of what the defense showed us and finding what will work. A lot of people stepped up. We missed an opportunity or two to finish drives, but all in all I was excited about our performance tonight. That said, there’s plenty to work on yet.”
Fen Stumpf, Eli’s cousin, made five catches for 45 yards and Gavin Harrington and Jackson Bowers both had touchdown grabs.
And on defense, junior lineman Thomas (TJ) Minor was an absolute beast. He recorded three sacks, one tackle for loss and one forced fumble, while bulling his way into the Bradley backfield all night. On the first two plays of the game, he smothered Jaguars running back Rashaud Truss for a two-yard loss and sacked third-year starting quarterback Declan O’Neil to set the tone.
Hilliard Bradley quarterback Declan O’Neil, a Wittenberg commit, escapes a tackle and goes on to score at Big Walnut Friday. Photo: John Hulkenberg
The star of Minor, who owns offers from the likes of Ohio State, Indiana, Michigan and Tennessee, has soared after a sophomore season in which he made 17 tackles for loss and seven sacks.
“I was just trying to stay low and outmaneuver their tackles,” said the 6-3, 305-pounder.
Added Crager. “He definitely can be a difference-maker in a game.”
The game seemed to turn dramatically when Bradley fumbled a kickoff return in the first quarter. Big Walnut capitalized quickly and subsequently roared to a 25-0 halftime lead.
The Jaguars showed some spunk in the second half.
Golden Eagles kickoff returner Brady Simon seemed to be en route to a potential TD to open the second half, but kicker Xavier Love leveled him near midfield, forcing and recovering the fumble. Bradley promptly drove 43 yards for its only score, a 1-yard keeper by O’Neil.
Truss rushed for 62 yards on 14 carries to pace the Jaguars, who went 6-6 last season.
“We’re super green,” Bradley coach Mike LoParo said. “I saw some huge eyeballs out there when we took the field, and for good reason. That’s a really talented team over there. We blew up right at the beginning of the game and it kind of snowballed. I challenged them at halftime to just get better one play at a time, and we saw good things as the game progressed.”
Talented as Big Walnut may be, the challenge will be steeper than ever come November. Region 7 is absolutely stacked. Two-time unbeaten defending Division III champion Watterson moved up. Massillon Washington – which Big Walnut beat in 2024 and 2025 regionals finals – got several move-ins and some are touting the Tigers as the top team in Ohio regardless of division.
Also in the mix are perennial power DeSales, Ashland, Canal Winchester, North Canton Hoover, Uniontown Lake and Uniontown Green to name just a few. And there’s also powerhouses Avon and Cincinnati Anderson to deal with at the state level.
A host of Big Walnut tacklers take Hilliard Bradley’s Bralyn Gordin to the turf during the Golden Eagles’ home win Friday. Photo: John Hulkenberg