David Bostic is Edinboro's leading receiver./Photo by Christopher Millette/Erie Times-News

In spring ball before the 2011 season, David Bostic fully embraced the idea of being a receiver – and it’s paid dividends for himself and Edinboro.

Leading the Scots (7-2, 4-2 PSAC West) in catches (39), receiving yards (613) and touchdown catches (seven), Bostic is coming off a career game last week against Lock Haven.

The senior receiver set a single-season school record for receptions (13), receiving yards (255) and tied the school record for receiving touchdowns (three) in Edinboro’s 42-7 win against the winless Bald Eagles (0-8, 0-5).

“Whenever you can break a record at Edinboro, that’s a great thing,” Edinboro junior cornerback Branden Williams said. “A lot of the times he got the ball early and then broke a lot of tackles and broke out. He did an awesome job.”

With two games left in the regular season, the 5-foot, 10-inch, 187-pound Bostic is five catches shy of breaking the school’s all-time record for career receptions. Gary Nolen (2007-10) is first with 149 catches.

The Tavares, Fla., native came to Edinboro as a tailback, but was switched to receiver in his junior season in 2010. That year, he was the team’s second-leaidng receiver with 34 catches for 373 yards and two touchdowns.

The following spring, Bostic began liking the idea of playing receiver.

“I started understanding the defense and understanding the coverages,” Bostic said. “I told (Edinboro coach Scott Browning) before we went home for summer that I’m a receiver.”

So when Browning came to Bostic and his high school teammate, sophomore tailback D’Andrea Vaughn, about switching positions, they were steadfast on staying put.

“They both came in my office, sat down, looked me square in the eyes and said, ‘Coach, this is where we really belong,’” Browning said. “‘That’s where we feel the most comfortable at. That’s where we can be the most productive.’ Sometimes you got to just sit back and listen.”

Drew Herrell rushed for a game-high 76 yards to help No. 19 Edinboro win 27-0 at Gannon./Photo by Christopher Millette of the Erie Times-News.

Sophomores Drew Herrell, D’Andrea Vaughn and senior Brian Davis all had their moments in Edinboro’s 27-0 win at Gannon today.

Herrell had a game-high 76 yards on 10 carries, Davis had 61 yards on 12 carries in mostly relief duty and Vaughn, who started the game, had 52 yards on 11 rushes. Together, they accounted for 189 of the team’s 193 rushing yards to help the No. 19-ranked Scots (4-0, 1-0) stay perfect and open PSAC West play with a win.

The Knights (1-3, 0-1) were without junior defensive tackle Ian Jeffers and junior defensive end Matt Jones, whom were both injured. Senior Wesley Smith had six total tackles in place of Jones and redshirt freshman Sean Herron, a Strong Vincent graduate who is 6-3 and weighs a whopping 360 pounds, had two assisted stops in place of Jeffers.

So Gannon’s defensive unit wasn’t full strength, but it may have struggled to stop Herrell, Vaughn and Davis running behind a veteran offensive line even if it was.

Herrell broke the longest run of 45 yards on a play in which he hid behind the lineman as if someone was trying to get him across the kitchen table, moved left and then roared to the right for the long gainer.

Vaughn brought his usual spin moves and elusiveness to his runs while Davis just plows people with power, but sophomore quarterback Cody Harris had his wheels going, too particularly early in the game.

On the game’s first drive, Harris had five rushes for 29 yards and capped it with an 8-yard touchdown pass to senior receiver David Bostic. Now Harris just had a net six yards rushing because he was sacked three times, but his ability to run kept Gannon off balance early.

James Jackson (11) and David Bostic (3) are two of four Edinboro players from the state of Florida./Photo by Christopher Millette of the Erie Times-News.

The Sunshine State is shining bright on Edinboro these days.

The Scots (1-0) have four players from the state of Florida.

In 2009, tailback D’Andrea Vaughn (Tavares) came to Edinboro and last season, cornerback James Jackson (New Smyrna Beach) arrived.

This season, the Scots added linebacker Trevor Lindsey, who played high school football with Jackson.

Jackson had a say in this.

“He was looking for a school,” Jackson said. “Too short to go D-1 (5-foot-9) so I got with the coaches. Showed them the film of him. They liked him. Got him up here. I wouldn’t lie to them. He liked it so he just committed.”

Edinboro senior receiver David Bostic had the same influence on Vaughn.

Vaughn and Bostic were high school teammates as well at Tavares. Vaughn was a prospect of the Detroit Tigers, but stopping pursing that and wound up continuing his football career at Edinboro.

In last week’s 30-14 season-opening win against West Liberty (W.Va.), Vaughn scored a touchdown, Jackson made eight tackles and broke up four passes and Bostic lead Edinboro in receptions (four) and receiving yards (38).

See a pattern?