Coach Mark Brungard has his Poland Bulldogs off to a 2-0 start this season following a thrilling come-from-behind victory last week at Canal Fulton Northwest.

Poland has been a model of success under Brungard, who quarterbacked Youngstown State University to a national championship in 1994. The Bulldogs have made the playoffs for six straight seasons.

Q. How does a big come-from-behind win over a quality opponent on the road affect a team?

A. I think it’s a shot in the arm. It’s something we can draw from as the season goes on. You don’t know how your kids will respond to adversity until they are in it. We continued to play hard under the pressure of losing during the fourth quarter and were able to make plays on both sides of the ball. We came up with four turnovers and completed some big passes. It’s good to know we can come from behind against an opponent like that.

Q. You have most of your offensive skill position players back this year. Do you change how you approach the preseason in that situation, maybe adding things to the offense?

A. The structure and foundation of the preseason is the same each year but you kind of mix and match depending on what your talent level allows you to do. You don’t know until you get the kids out on the field and see what you can emphasize. Knowing your skill players are back puts you a little bit ahead of where you’d be if they all were new. From that standpoint it’s a nice thing to have.

Q. What about your team would you consider a pleasant surprise so far?

A. The secondary has played pretty well to this point. None of the kids started last year and it’s the area where we probably had the least experience coming back. They have really stepped up and done a nice job so far.

Q. The consensus seems to be the All-American Conference American Division is going to be a difficult grind this season. What are your thoughts?

A. The league is very balanced. Canfield has lost two close game to good teams and everyone else has one win or two which is an indication how the season could go with teams beating up on each other. For one team to run the table would be quite a feat. Struthers is 2-0, Hubbard is 2-0, Howland and Niles both had tough losses to Harding and Liberty or they’d be 2-0. It’s going to be fun to see what happens each week. You can’t have any letdowns.

Q. What about your opponent this week, Boardman?

A. Obviously the fact they have twice as many boys enrollment-wise, they are not a great fit consistently for our program. But we took a chance and signed a two-year contract and I think it’s going to be great for the communities. It should be a great atmosphere. They are 0-2 but they’ve lost to two perennial powerhouses, teams that are in the playoffs every year, so we’re not basing anything on their record. Also it doesn’t matter how many players they have on their team, what matters is the 11 they put on the field. They have skill as good as anyone we play and their line is like a line you’d see in the AAC. It’s not the biggest Boardman line but they are physical and they get after you. It’s going to be a challenge for our guys. If we make mistakes at the start like last week, we won’t be able to overcome them against Boardman.

Interview by Vindicator sports reporter Doug Chapin.