GROVE CITY - Win or lose, Jeff Bell will treat the final game of the 2004 season with a bit of somberness.

"There is no next game," the Grove City High School football coach lamented. "That, for me, is going to be the toughest part. I'll never be able to coach these kids again."

Ah, but there is that one more game, and this one is bigger than any Bell or the Golden Eagles could have imagined in the sweltering days of August.

The Eagles, winners of 11 straight, will face Lansdale Catholic - a small private school located in the suburbs of Philadelphia - in the PIAA Class AA championship game at noon Saturday at Hersheypark Stadium.

Grove City (11-2) earned its way to the state title game by using a heaping helping of perseverance and guile, as well as a sprinkling of good fortune.

The cosmic tumblers have fallen into place with precision for the Eagles, leading them to a showdown for the ultimate high school football prize in Pennsylvania.

Getting there was fraught with pitfalls:

After an 0-2 start, the Eagles rolled off seven straight dominating wins to get into playoff contention.

Even then, Grove City's fate was left up to the District 10 committee, which considered taking Fort LeBoeuf over the Eagles for the final spot in the playoffs.

Once in the postseason, the Eagles needed to block a North East extra point and then score a touchdown and a two-point conversion in the final six minutes to force overtime and eventually win on a 27-yard field goal by Andy Hay.

And. perhaps the most improbable, the Eagles beat Tyrone Saturday, thanks to a first down decided by a piece of paper that didn't slide between the tip of the football and the first down marker.

"It's hard to describe," Bell said. "It's hard to put into words."

Awaiting Grove City in is a team that is built around speed and aggressiveness.

The Crusaders (13-1) blitz a lot - about 75 percent of the time and from every conceivable direction. Their players aren't very big or stout, but they are fast, elusive and tenacious.

That will put a lot of pressure on Eagles quarterback Jim Jaskowak and his offensive line to block the Lansdale Catholic players zooming in from all sides.

"We haven't played a team with a defense that is that aggressive," Bell said. "I told the kids that they are going to guess right and get some big plays on us, but we can also get some big plays on them if we pick up the blitz. They play a lot of man-to-man behind it, so we can hit some big plays."

But Bell isn't going to air it out in the hopes of catching the Crusaders secondary compromised because of their blitzing style. The running game will still be important.

Running is also difficult against Lansdale Catholic's blitz. The Crusaders love to run blitz on first down.

"But if they are playing man-to-man and we pop a guy through there, it could be a big play," Bell said.

Lucky for the Eagles, they have the guys to exploit the Lansdale Catholic defense.

Jaskowak has thrown for 1,635 yards and 12 touchdowns this season. He has hit on 89 of his 197 attempts and is averaging 18.4 yards per completion.

He isn't choosy about who he throws to, either, completing 10 or more passes to five different receivers and another has nine. Junior Jesse Alfreno leads the team with 32 receptions for 663 yards and six scores.

"Grove City is very impressive," said Lansdale Catholic coach Jim Algeo. "But we're particularly impressed with their offense. Their quarterback can hurt you with his arm or his feet, and they have a number of different weapons on offense."

Grove City is just as balanced in the running game with fullback Jack Vallely leading the way with 841 yards. The Eagles have four players with more than 200 yards rushing.

And the Eagles are smart, too, spending loads of time watching tape and deciphering the opponents' strategy.

"We watch film 18 hours a week," said senior wide receiver-cornerback Adam Rudolph. "We watch it before practice, after practice. We watch a lot of film."

Bell, though, isn't treating this week like a normal week because, well, it is naïve to think it is.

"You have to prepare the kids for the atmosphere," Bell said. "They are going to be on TV in a big stadium and playing in front of more people than they'll ever play in front of. If you try to treat it like any other game, you're going to be in trouble. This isn't Week 5 against Hickory."

Most of the players have watched the state championship games on television. Bell has been to Hershey many times, as a wrestling official and as a Little League baseball coach.

But no one on the Eagles has been on as big a stage as this.

Neither has Lansdale Catholic. Both schools are making their first state championship game appearances.

Bell doesn't think a loss will diminish what his team has accomplished.

"Surely it would be disappointing, but I've always told the kids that as long as they go out there and give me everything they have, hey that's all I can ask," Bell said. "I've been in the stands watching games like that and wondered, 'jeez, what would it be like?' Is all the work you do worth it? Well, it is."

PIAA CLASS AA Championship Game

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Grove City (11-2) vs. Lansdale Catholic (13-1)

Noon, Saturday at Hersheypark Stadium

Statistic: Grove City defensive tackle Kent Uber has recorded double-digit tackles totals in all four playoff contests and blocked a key extra point in the first-round contest against North East.

Streaks: The Eagles have won 11 straight games after an 0-2 start.

Strategy: Grove City will try to exploit Lansdale Catholic's blitz-happy defense with some big plays from the passing attack.

Speaking: "If you try to treat it like any other game, you're going to be in trouble. This isn't Week 5 against Hickory." – Grove City coach Jeff Bell.