Yet, in tracing Bloomington High School's journey back to the Class 6A state championship football game, among the most significant steps was the first.

The Aug. 29 opener at Champaign Centennial answered a huge question the Purple Raiders brought into the season: Could Jeremy Peden do the job at quarterback?

The senior was replacing strong-armed star Andre Brown, who had moved on to Northern Illinois following a record-setting BHS career.

Peden threw only seven passes at Centennial, but completed six for 127 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for 45 yards and a score in a 42-7 victory.

Clearly, the offense was in capable hands.

"I was pretty nervous with it being my first varsity start," Peden said. "But I played pretty well, and it was downhill from there. It gave me a lot of confidence."

The strong debut, followed by a good effort in week 2 against Normal Community, made believers of Peden's teammates and coaches.

He has gone on to throw for 1,206 yards and 17 touchdowns with only six interceptions, complementing tailback James Wade (2,095 yards rushing) and fullback Justin Harrison (1,010).

The 5-foot-10, 160-pound Peden also has run for 295 yards and five TDs in helping BHS to a 13-0 record.

"I took it as a little bit of a challenge," Peden said. "I knew Andre's shoes were going to be big shoes to fill. I just came in knowing the program and doing what they asked of me."

Coach Rigo Schmelzer points to Peden as "one of the reasons we're where we are," saying he has "exceeded our expectations."

"He has performed very well," Schmelzer said. "We're happy with how he's taking care of the football.

"We believe we have an offense where he doesn't have to win the game for us. He just has to take care of the ball and get it into the hands of the kids who can do some damage with it."

Among them is senior receiver Brandon Hughes, who teamed with Peden on the freshmen and sophomore levels, but said, "We didn't throw the ball too much."

Thus, the speedy Hughes was as eager as anyone to see how Peden would do.

"I knew he could get the ball to me. But I didn't know how far out he could get it," Hughes said. "Andre could hit me like 60 yards down the field. Peden has to release it a little quicker, but he's adjusted real well.

"He has really been like an inspiration. He's risen to the occasion."

The Raiders insist they all elevated their play following the 14-12 loss at Eisenhower. It became a forfeit win three weeks later when it was ruled Eisenhower used an ineligible player.

The effect did not change.

"That loss made us more of a unit," Hughes said. "We had a big head going into that game. Eisenhower took it to us. After that, practices were different, the team attitude was different, everybody's attitude toward each other was different."

"That definitely helped us realize teams don't just lay down and die for Bloomington," senior two-way lineman Dan Pettie said. "We just didn't come to that game prepared. That's what happens when you're not ready."

Schmelzer said the stunning defeat made the Raiders "realize they all have to take an active role in being successful, that they couldn't just rely on James (Wade) or Justin (Harrison)."

"We've definitely played better football since then and better defense since then," he added.

Offensively, the emergence of Peden has been aided by the development of a small but quick line. The Raiders have scored 34 points per game behind a line which averages 5-11 and 201 pounds -- much smaller than last year's unit.

It all has made Schmelzer adjust his sights higher as the season progressed.

"In the summer I said, 'I'll be happy if we split the first two games,'" he said. "And I would have been."

Contact Randy Kindred at rkindred@pantagraph.com.