TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Hillsborough County Football Capsules: Week 3

ADVERTISEMENT

TBO.com staff

Published: September 18, 2008

CHAMBERLAIN (2-0) at HILLSBOROUGH (2-0)

Hillsborough has won five-consecutive games in this matchup. This year's game will highlight the Chiefs' triple-option threat and the Terriers speed, arguably the fastest in the county. Chamberlain has dominated its first two opponents with a pick-your-poison pairing of quarterback Dontae Aycock and backs Kenny Allen and Lamond Scott. In their first two victories, Chamberlain has outscored opponents, 80-27.

Hillsborough will counter with a heavy dose of Lindsey Lamar. Lamar is fourth in the county with 247 yards in two games and an average of 13.7 yards per carry. The Chiefs also have to be concerned with quarterback Tarean Austin, who is dangerous with his legs and last week proved as dangerous with his arm. Austin aired it out for a career-high 317 yards and three touchdowns.

ROBINSON (0-2) at LETO (1-1)

The Knights have struggled to get their offense going in their first two games. They've been outscored, 62-7, and turned the ball over six times in last week's loss to Jefferson. The young defense will have its hands full with the speed of Leto's backs Jeremy Deering and Antwoun Howard.

In its season-opening victory, Leto proved it's capable of putting a lot of points on the board. It outscored Sickles, 30-6. In last week's 41-6 loss to Tampa Bay Tech, Leto proved it can also struggle on offense. Robinson isn't up to the level TBT, so Falcons should be able to get back on track in terms of moving the ball consistently.

MIDDLETON (1-1) at PLANT (1-1)

The Tigers are a somewhat young team in the midst of a rebuilding year. Still trying to find an identity on offense, so far Middleton's been led by running back Rodney Johnson, who is averaging 86 yards a game. They'll face a Plant defense that is giving up an average of only seven points per game.

Plant's offense got back on track against Gaither last week, putting up 444 yards on the Cowboys defense. Quarterback Aaron Murray accounted for five of the Panthers seven touchdowns (four passing, one rushing). Murray can take advantage of Middleton's young defense by throwing to his various weapons, including tight end Orsen Charles and wideout Allen Sampson.

JESUIT (2-0) at ST. PETE CATHOLIC (0-2)

The Tigers have dealt with a variety of injuries, but still managed to win their first two games. Quarterback Ryan James and running back Greg Dupell have been banged up with ankle injuries and starting safety Will Hagen has been out with a separated shoulder. All three should be back this week and will be big factors against the Barons.

In its first two losses, St. Pete Catholic was outscored 68-15. With Hagen back and the presence of linebacker P.J. Hobson, the Barons will certainly struggle to get anything going on offense. Defensively, they'll have a tough task in defending the Tigers new spread offense, which features Division I prospects Erick McGriff and John Plasencia.

GAITHER (0-2) at FREEDOM (1-0)

Freedom is off to its best start since the 2005 season. The Patriots are coming off a bye week, giving them time to heal and prepare for Gaither.

Gaither running back Jarvis Giles practiced on Tuesday, but is still questionable.
The University of Tennessee commit has missed two consecutive games with the injury he sustained in the Kickoff Classic against Durant on Aug. 29. Giles was hurt when he took a helmet to the back of his leg.

Gaither won last year's meeting, 42-6.

EAST BAY (2-0) at WHARTON (0-2)

East Bay is coming off a come-from-behind win over rival Durant, in which the Indians too advantage of two turnovers in the second half to win, 17-3.

Wharton lost to nationally ranked Armwood 52-10 last week. The Wildcats were held to under 20 yards rushing in the loss.

Wharton won last year's meeting, 20-17, on a last minute field goal.

LENNARD (1-1) at SPOTO (2-0)

Lennard scored 21 unanswered points to beat Sickles, 21-14, last week, led by the senior quarterback Andrew Burdick's 187 passing yards and two touchdowns.

With the win, the Longhorns have already tied their win total from 2007.

Spoto's offense exploded against Bloomingdale last week, amassing 258 yards and four scores in a 26-12 win over Bloomingdale.

The Spartans, who beat Lennard 26-14 last year, is hoping for its first 3-0 start in school history.

FAITH BAPTIST CHRISTIAN (1-1) at KISSIMMEE HERITAGE CHRISTIAN (0-3)
With the score tied, 6-6, in the second quarter, Faith Baptist and Landmark Christian experienced a light malfunction and had to reschedule its game.

Heritage Christian has been outscored, 146-26, in its three games.

PROVIDENCE CHRISTIAN (2-0) at INDIAN ROCKS CHRISTIAN (2-0)
Providence Christian has outscored its opponents, 80-20, in the last two games.
Junior running back Josh Leigh leads the team with 180 yards rushing and four touchdowns.

Indian Rocks Christian has outscored its opponents, 71-0, in its last two games. Running back Ethan Englebert leads the team with 175 yards rushing and one touchdown.

DURANT (1-1) at NEWSOME (0-2)
Durant dropped its first game of the season last week against East Bay, and turnovers were the Cougars' downfall.

Durant had success moving the ball and will probably turn to its ground game behind senior RB Ryan Rice again tonight to get off on the right foot.

Newsome has really struggled through the first two games on offense, totaling just one touchdown on a long Conner Powers scoring run. Coach Kenneth Hiscock has made some personnel changes on that side of the ball this week in hopes of giving the unit a spark.

Newsome is 3-0 all-time against Durant, including a 14-7 win last season.

PLANT CITY (1-1) at RIVERVIEW (0-1)
The Raiders are coming off an 8-0 victory over Blake, while the Sharks enter this game coming off their bye week. Plant City has struggled mightily on offense, totaling just two touchdowns through the first two games, but Coach Jason Strunk believes the unit is on the verge of clicking. The offense surely will be get a boost in running back Duran Lowe (ankle) is able to return after missing most of the first game and all of last week's win.

Riverview used it off week to focus on the defense, which struggled with tackling in a season-opening loss to rival East Bay. The good news is the Sharks' offense was productive against the Indians behind junior QB Jarid Heffers, who is now the starter.

This game was originally scheduled to be at Plant City but was moved because the new sod on the Raiders' home field is not yet playable. Riverview won this matchup at home last year 31-0.

ARMWOOD (2-0) at BRANDON (1-1)

The nationally-ranked Hawks finally saw their offense get untracked this season in last week's win over Wharton. Senior QB Mywan Jackson had a hand in four scores as the Hawks rolled up 51 points.
Brandon's offense has struggled a bit through the first two weeks, but Coach John Lima said QB Josh Celerin, who made his first varsity start in last week's win over King, is continuing to improve. Celerin and the Eagles' offense certainly will be tested against arguably the area's top defense, with Division I prospects Petey Smith, Ryne Giddins and Angelo Hadley leading the way for the Hawks.

Armwood defeated Brandon 34-3 last season, and the Hawks have won the last five matchups with the Eagles, who last won in this series in 2002.

CDS PREP (1-1) at MOORE HAVEN (1-0)

CDS Prep lost its first 11-man game last week to Sarasota Out-of-Door, and the Patriots are going to have a tough time avoiding a second consecutive loss. Moore Haven defeated Winter Haven All Saints' 34-14 in its season opener. CDS Prep lost to All Saints in a Kickoff Jamboree.

While the Patriots struggled last week on defense, the offense has performed very well through the first two games. Leading the way has been junior QB Billy Embody, who is among the area's leading passer with 546 yards and seven touchdowns.

CAMBRIDGE CHRISTIAN (0-2) at LAKELAND SANTA FE CATHOLIC (2-0)

The Lancers are still looking for their first points on offense, and that's not a good thing as Cambridge Christian is facing a team coming off two convincing victories.

The Lancers have just 166 yards of total offense through two games and have committed four turnovers.

Cambridge Christian, trying to avoid the first 0-3 start in program history, has lost all four previous meetings with Santa Fe Catholic.

ALONSO (1-1) at BLAKE (0-2)

The winless Yellow Jackets have yet to score a point this season and this week face yet another difficult opponent in Alonso. The Ravens are also a Class 5A school, making this an even tougher task for 4A Blake, where the varsity roster is less than 40 players and several athletes go both ways.

The 60-man strong Ravens are coming off a humbling 41-14 loss to Hillsborough and will be looking to get back on track. In the game against the Terriers, Alonso defensive tackle Demonte McAllister had to leave with a laceration to his hand. The cut required six stitches but McAllister returned to practice Wednesday and he is expected back for the Blake game.

The key for Blake will be trying to contain Alonso quarterback C.J. Bennett, who is currently the county's No. 2 passer in total yardage (528 yards and 4 TDs). Against Hillsborough, Bennett attempted a school-record 56 passes, completing 32 for 267 yards and 1 TD. Blake's offensive leader is quarterback Eugene Davenport, who has passed for 186 yards and rushed for 40 in two games.

BLOOMINGDALE (0-2) at KING (1-1)

After winning its kickoff classic over Riverview, Bloomingdale has dropped its first two games by a combined score of 87-18, including last week's 61-6 mauling by Tampa Bay Tech. If first-year Bulls coach Jason Stokes is going to get things on track, his team needs to start Friday against King. The Lions were 2-8 last year but led by their first-year coach, Alvin Davis, have gotten off to a 1-1 start.
Last week, King lost to Brandon 16-7 and it was mistakes – converted into three field goals by the Eagles – that cost the Lions the game.

King is averaging less than 125 yards of offense per game and needs to find an offensive spark. The Bulls, meanwhile, have found some success on the ground with running backs Anthony Amos and Derek Johnson, with each scoring a touchdown in last week's 26-12 setback to Spoto. But Bloomingdale's defense has been giving up too much on the ground, too, and will have to shut down King quarterback Keith Graham and running back Donovan Celerin to get into the win column. If King can cut down on its turnovers and control the game, it should be able to take this game.

TAMPA BAY TECH (2-0) at SICKLES (0-2)

This time last year, this matchup was the Game of the Week because both schools were undefeated. But the Gryphons have dropped their first two games of this season – against Leto and Lennard – and are now facing a must-win situation. Tampa Bay Tech will make that difficult task because even last year, the Titans clobbered Sickles 47-0.

Once again, TBT owns superior speed over Sickles. The Gryphons will have to find a way to contain the Titans' potent ground game and fullback Maurice Hagens. In two games, Hagens has rushed for 255 yards and five TDs while quarterback Angel Rodriguez has posted 211 yards and four TDs. As a team, TBT has outscored its first two opponents (Bloomingdale and Leto) 102-12 and averaged more than 350 yards of total offense. Unless Sickles is prepared to match the Titans' productivity, it better find answers on defense or it will be facing an 0-3 start.

TAMPA CATHOLIC (0-2) at SARASOTA CARDINAL MOONEY (2-0)

Hard to believe it, but Tampa Catholic, last year's Class 2A state runner-up, is still winless after two games. You can put the bulk of that down to injuries, most notably quarterback Christian Green. Still suffering from an ankle sprain, Green sat out all but one play of last week's loss to Clearwater Central Catholic. Coach Bob Henriquez says Green was "about 60 percent" for that game and has improved to "about 80 percent" for the game against Cardinal Mooney. Henriquez says it's been difficult weighing the merits of winning the Crusaders' first game versus getting players healthy in time for next week's district opener against Lake Placid.

The good news for TC is several players should be back from injuries this week. Those include receiver Jordan Jones (shoulder), linebacker Colin Carter (concussion) tight end A.J. Mulkey (ankle) and running back Henry McCloud, who suffered a slight ankle sprain near the end of the CCC game. Meanwhile, lineman Chaz Green is still out with a high ankle sprain and right tackle Ronnie Barcena is playing with a fractured thumb in a cast.

Besides getting Green back in the lineup, the key for the Crusaders will be avoiding a strong pass rush by Cardinal Mooney. The Cougars like to blitz early to put opponents in long-yardage situations. Even without Green, TC should be able to use its superior team speed to avoid starting the season 0-3. But it will have to avoid mistakes – and more injuries.

Compiled by Adam Adkins, Katherine Smith, Bill Ward and Nick Williams

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT