A new era is beginning this fall at St. Bede as alumnus Jack Brady takes over as head coach after nine years as an assistant coach.

So far, the players are believing in what the former Bruins quarterback has brought to the program.

“We’re all bought in,” senior quarterback Gino Ferrari said.

Brady has seen the buy-in over the summer and in preseason practices.

“They have been laser focused on what we are doing,” Brady said. “They are eager to learn, and any time we have been making mistakes in practice, their attitudes toward corrections are more than I could ask of them.”

Brady was the offensive coordinator for five seasons under former coach Jim Eustice, but he has made changes to the scheme as he takes over the program. The Bruins will rely on a strong running game led by junior Landon Marquez, who already has two years of varsity experience under his belt.

Last fall, the 6-foot-1, 215-pounder ran for 742 yards and six touchdowns on 164 carries.

Along with Marquez, AJ Hermes, Carson Riva, Brennen Hirst, Stuart McGunnical and Jose De La Torre also will get carries.

“We’re going to be giving a lot of guys touches,” Brady said. “It’s going to be kind of success by committee.

“Landon Marquez, our returning running back, is going to be a staple in the offense. We’re going to try to get him the ball as often as possible and get him moving downhill with his frame. We have a nice mixture of brute force from Marquez and a little bit of speed and elusiveness out of the rest of the guys.”

Ferrari returns at quarterback to lead the passing attack after throwing for 731 yards and five touchdowns with six interceptions as a junior on 63-of-117 passing. He’ll throw to Niko Pappas and Trajan Raffety at split end. The slot receiver positions will be by committee.

Returning starters Weston Heersink and Demian Baker will lead the offensive line. Luke Fess, Landon Boggio and Willie Sramek also will play up front.

“Assignment football is what we’re going for,” Brady said. “The first step is for them to know their assignment and where they’re going each play. Regardless of the outcome of a play, we need to be going 100%.”

Defensively, the Bruins will look to improve after allowing 29.2 points per game last season, giving up 28 points or more in seven of nine.

“Defense, we’re going to show a lot of movement pre-snap and try to give offenses something to think about,” Brady said. “We’re trying to get the kids playing fast and going 100%. We need to stop the big plays, and also our third-and-long coverage needs improvement. A lot of situational football, understanding the sticks, understanding the part of the game we’re in and communication are the biggest things.”

The defensive line will be a rotation of players from the offensive line. Marquez, Boggio, Raffety and Carson Riva will play linebacker, while McGunnigal, De La Torre, Hermes, Ferrari and Chase Riva will play in the secondary.

“We’re going to have to utilize everybody everywhere at any time with our numbers,” Brady said.

Coming off a 2-7 season, Brady said the Bruins are not looking into the future or “counting games on what we think an outcome would be.”

“We want to do the right things day in and day out and hopefully go out there Aug. 29 and win that first one,” Brady said.

The Bruins will face a schedule Brady described as “challenging,” including their only three games in the Chicagoland Prairie Conference, which is down to four teams. St. Bede’s schedule includes six playoff teams from 2024.

“Three of them are conference games with Dwight, Seneca and Marquette that we know are going to be physical,” Brady said, “and it’s going to take a lot of endurance and discipline to be successful. We have Peoria Notre Dame coming to our place Week 8. They’ll be a tough opponent. It’ll probably be a little bit faster paced football and a little more physical than we’re used to, but it’s going to be a good matchup.

“Every game is going to be a battle. There’s no gimme, which is going to help us overall as a team.”