After Will Beesley's dominant performance at Ford Field Saturday night, the Detroit Catholic High School League might just have to consider renaming its annual Prep Bowl the "Beesley Bowl."

The senior standout's three forced turnovers in the first half propelled the Pilots (8-0, 3-0 Catholic League Central Division) to a 49-14 victory over Detroit U-D Jesuit in the 2021 Catholic League Bishop Division championship game. 

It also gave the Purple and Gold two wins over the Cubs on the season, whom they outscored, 93-21, in the two contests. 

After the game, Pilots head coach Dan Rohn couldn't say enough about Beesley and his impressive play all season long.  

"You know, I've said all year long, I think Will Beesley might be one of the most underrated players in the state of Michigan," Rohn said. "If he was 6-foot-4, he'd probably be going to any college he wants. But, he's 5-foot-11, and he plays with the biggest heart of anyone on the football team. He makes our team go on defense, and now, we need him to play with that same kind of energy throughout the state playoffs."  

Along with Beesley, junior quarterback Brady Drogosh came through with a big performance, accounting for five touchdowns for the second straight week (four rushing scores and a passing TD). 

In fact, at the 11:13 mark in the first quarter, Drogosh got the Pilots on the scoreboard for the first time of the night, via a 58-yard TD run. 

Beesley followed it up with his first forced turnover of the contest. 

The Princeton commit blocked a U-D Jesuit punt attempt with 8:05 to play in the opening quarter. It was recovered in the end zone by senior Devin Schmelter for a Pilots score, providing De La Salle with an early 14-0 advantage. 

The Cubs answered right back, though, with a 14-yard touchdown pass from senior Nathan Brown. It cut the Purple and Gold's lead to 14-7, with 4:10 left in the quarter. 

The end of the quarter saw both teams commit turnovers. 

The first came on a fumbled handoff between Drogosh and senior Alton McCullum. It gifted U-D Jesuit with a great opportunity to tie up the game. 

However, it was squandered when Beesley picked off an errant pass from Brown, with 1:13 remaining in the quarter. 

It helped the Pilots march into the second quarter with a 14-7 lead -- one which they would never relinquish. 

From the second quarter on, Rohn's squad managed to outscore the Cubs, 35-7, with 21 of those points coming in the final quarter of the first half. 

Drogosh was responsible for two of De La Salle's second-quarter scores, with his second one -- a 2-yard scamper to the end zone -- being set up by Beesley's third forced turnover of the game (a forced fumble that was also recovered by Beesley). 

Schmelter set up the first score of the quarter, intercepting a pass from Brown, with 10:57 remaining in the opening half. 

It led to a beautifully-designed trick play by DLS offensive coordinator James Light which saw sophomore Rhett Roeser -- also a pitcher on De La Salle's varsity baseball team -- take a handoff from Drogosh, run to the outside and toss a pass on the run to junior Jack Yanachik. 

Yanachik had to wait on the ball a little bit from Roeser, and once he caught it, he proceeded to take it to the house for the 77-yard score. 

At the half, the Pilots held a decisive 35-7 lead over the Cubs. 

Drogosh & Co. didn't let their foot off the gas pedal as the second half started, though. 

In fact, the Purple and Gold kicked off the final half of play with a bang, as Drogosh connected with fellow junior Triston Nichols on a 62-yard TD pass. It came with 10:54 to play in the third quarter. 

And then, for Drogosh's final score of the night -- also the Pilots' final TD of the game -- the junior signal-caller found a running lane and took it 52 yards to the end zone. 

Meanwhile, after U-D Jesuit's touchdown with 4:10 to go in the first quarter, De La Salle's defense stymied the Cubs, and did not allow them to score again until the 7:08 mark in the fourth quarter. 

It was a solid game on both sides of the ball in the Purple and Gold's regular season finale. 

"Playing a team twice is always difficult. It's always really difficult," Rohn said. "I was proud of the kids for doing the right things and playing hard tonight. Our kickoff coverage was way better than it had been all year long. We were 100 percent on PATs (point-after-try attempts), too. And now, we'll just hopefully continue to play at a high level, as we head into the playoffs."

Up next for the Pilots, which finished undefeated in the regular season for the first time since 2008, is the start of the MHSAA Division 2 state playoffs. 

Rohn & Co. will find out who their first-round opponent is during the MHSAA's “Selection Sunday Show." The program is set to air Sunday at 5:30 p.m. on Bally Sports Detroit.