This is what the Brebeuf Jesuit football team has been waiting for.

When Ryan Gallogly took over as coach three years ago, he knew success in Class 3A in Indianapolis -- and the state -- went through Bishop Chatard. His first two seasons, the Braves lost in sectionals to the team that played Bishop Chatard in regionals. This year, after realignment, Brebeuf (10-1) will get its chance at the Trojans in the sectional championship at 7 p.m. Friday.

"There's a bit of relief and a lot of excitement," Gallogly said. "This is an opportunity we've been working toward for a while. We had a tremendous offseason, and this game was the motivation for most of it. To play (Bishop Chatard) in the sectional championship means a lot."

Gallogly has seen Brebeuf grow from a small core of dedicated players to a full-fledged program. The Braves have won at least seven games for three consecutive seasons for the first time, equaled their best three-year victory total with a 26-7 mark (Brebeuf was 26-3-1 from 1965-67) and tied the school's single-season victory record (10 in '65 and '66).

"You're always trying to grow and take steps," Gallogly said. "Our hope is to be successful this week and we're putting plenty of energy into it, but we'll grow from this game regardless of the outcome. The environment, the competition, the fact we're playing for hardware, these types of things don't happen here traditionally.

"I hope it's the first of many big-time games down the road."

For No. 1 Bishop Chatard (10-1), however, this game is business as usual. The Trojans have won a state record nine state titles and 25 consecutive sectional games.

"I appreciate that," Bishop Chatard coach Vince Lorenzano said when told of Brebeuf's anticipation for this game, "but what it comes down to is you've got to do what you do with what you've got. (Brebeuf has) its own home field and coaches in the building.

"We don't deal with those issues. We don't compare ourselves. We deal with our situation to the best of our ability. (Gallogly's) done that, and I respect the work he's done, but we're just trying to do what we do."

What the teams do is similar, though they take different approaches.

Bishop Chatard is second in 3A in scoring at 42.2 points per game behind a power-oriented running attack led by Ari Pappas (1,733 yards, 36 touchdowns).

Brebeuf is seventh in scoring at 33.6 points per game with Evan Kroot (1,338 yards, 19 touchdowns despite missing three games with mononucleosis) but runs a spread attack and has gotten 1,499 yards of offense and 17 scores from quarterback Aloyis Gray.

Defensively, Bishop Chatard is No. 7 in 3A, allowing 9.1 points per game, while Brebeuf is ninth at 9.6.

"(Bishop Chatard) doesn't change," Gallogly said. "We know what they do. They know we know what they're going to do. They believe they're going to play Bishop Chatard football -- play hard and physical and don't make any mistakes -- and that will lead them to victory. We have to be just as physical and limit our mistakes; the question is can we do it for four quarters.

"Our confidence is through the roof. We're a dangerous team, (but) I don't think anybody's going to give us credit for being an elite team until we win one of these games."