In a competitive area such as South Florida, rarely do you hear opposing coaches heaping praise on teams and other coaches. In the case of Belen Jesuit, it seems that the Wolverines and coach Richard Stuart are in a positive spotlight.

When you think of football powers in this area, Belen is not one of the first names that would roll off your tongue. But if you look at what this program has done in the nearly three decades that Stuart has developed student/athletes, you might be surprised to learn that some non-BCS programs have made a ritual of bringing home some impressive players.

No matter what happens this week in the second round of the playoffs when the Wolverines host Booker T. Washington, this season has been a success for a program that is more popular at schools such as Brown, Penn, Harvard, Cornell and Dartmouth than the University of Miami and Alabama. But that could be changing.

While defensive back Pablo Alvarez is currently the only player on the team with a D-1A commitment (Virginia), the talent level has improved, and schools from the SEC, ACC and Big East are now sharing hallway space with the Ivy League, Colonial Conference and Patriot League.

Wins over Miami-Dade County budding powers Jackson and Norland have given the Wolverines credibility. Talk with Stuart and he will downplay the team's success. He has been around too long to start boasting about the little things.

If you think that what Belen has done this year to get to the second round of the state tournament and capture a district title was as easy as just showing up each week, you would be kidding yourself. This is a program that has outworked everyone in South Florida.

The offseason is filled with camp appearances from Broward County to DeLand and up and down the east coast of the country. The coaching staff, which includes Ed Delgado, Marcel Moreno, German Delgado, Auguston Venegas and Angel Aparicio, scouts more teams in the region than any other. They will travel anywhere a potential matchup for the Wolverines awaits.

Somewhere along the way, Stuart figured out that if this program was going to compete with the best, it would have to gain an edge. While they are very talented, the Wolverines cannot match the talent of Norland, Booker T. Washington, Jackson and other schools of that caliber. So what they do is go to camps, scout the opponents, and work hard.

A Belen home game is like an Ivy League setting with small tailgate gatherings at a stadium with no lights and very few frills. Beyond the football is a stringent academic institution that will not bend, and that's why success on the field has come slower than in most places.

In an area that thrives on boasting nationally-rated players, names like running backs Sergio Fernandez-Soto, Manny Sicre, Imani Davis and Lorenzo Woodley are not sending fear into opponents. Neither are quarterback Nic Platt, receiver Reggie Colas, and linemen Nigel Dondo, Nick Busse and Max Rich. But watch this team play, and you quickly change your mind about a group of overachievers who make plays.

``We may not have the kinds of players you read about in recruiting magazines or on Internet websites,'' Stuart pointed out. ``But we do have young men who work as hard as anyone to achieve success.''

While Alvarez is currently leading the way as the lone Division I prospect, the 6-3, 195-pound speedy cornerback might not be alone. Platt, at 6-2, 185, is emerging as a player whom many schools are watching, and junior linebackers Nick Menocal (6-3, 230) and Nick White (6-2, 190) have heard from major colleges. Davis, a sophomore, freshman Woodley, and a few others could continue the pipeline.

``We have the kind of team that cannot make mistakes and expect to win games,'' Stuart said. ``While we may have the athletes to compete, depth becomes a problem, but so far, things have fallen into place.''