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Plant deals Spoto 1st loss

Staff photo by BILL WARD

Plant's T.J. Glover finds room to run in the Panthers' win over Spoto Friday night.

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By NICK WILLIAMS

nwilliams@tampatrib.com

Published: October 17, 2009

RIVERVIEW - Plant junior quarterback Phillip Ely was too savvy, senior running back Turhan Glover was too elusive, and 6-foot-3, 220-pound junior prospect James Wilder Jr. was too much ... James Wilder Jr.

Aided by seven Spoto fumbles, four of which were recovered by the Panthers, the trio led Plant to a 27-13 win against previously undefeated Spoto on Friday night at Spartan Stadium.

Ely threw for 176 yards, and more impressively, rushed for 57 yards, including a 6-yard score. Glover rushed for a team-high 61 yards, including a 44-yard touchdown run, and was Ely's top target with 74 receiving yards on four catches.

Wilder, a defensive end and part-time running back, repeatedly infiltrated Spoto's backfield, forcing three fumbles, one of which he recovered. He also rushed for 42 yards with one touchdown, carrying most of Spoto's defense on his back as he went.

Spoto's defense had allowed 20 points this season, and just seven before last Friday. Known for its blitz packages, Spoto was picked apart by Ely - with his arm and his feet.

"We have a great offensive line and great receivers," Glover said. "If they get their job done, I can get my job done. The slots were open, the come-backs and the sideline, mostly everything was open."

"We're playing a team that plays man-to-man defense (and) we knew there would be tough sledding sometimes when they blitzed," Plant coach Robert Weiner said. "We knew there would be some negative plays but knew we would punch some through."

Plant went into the half leading 10-7. Spoto (6-1) scored first on a 77-yard touchdown run by senior Jamar Burns. Plant (6-1) responded with an 85-yard drive, capped by a touchdown run by Ely. With just more than three minutes left in the second quarter, senior Chris Finn made a 22-yard field goal to give Plant the lead.

Wilder forced a fumble on the opening possession of the second half, pushing Spoto back to its own 5. Spoto, which was limited to two first downs in the first half, couldn't move the ball and was forced to punt.

On Plant's first possession, Ely found Glover for a 47-yard pass, and on the next play, Wilder rushed for a 15-yard score. He converted a run for a 2-point conversion, giving Plant an 18-7 lead. The Spartans fumbled again on their next possession, and minutes later, Glover scored on a 44-yard run to make it 24-7.

Spoto didn't score again until Charlie Waits reached the end zone on a 10-yard run with 1:05 left in the fourth quarter.

"We watched a lot of their film," Wilder said. "We strategized all week. We knew what they were doing against Alonso and against other teams, and we're similar to Alonso, so we worked off what we watched."

Burns led Spoto with 92 yards on the ground.

"You can't play Plant and put the ball on the ground," Spoto coach Dale Caparaso said. "You can't do that. They're too good. But I told my kids, I think we gained more confidence in ourselves in one loss than in the six wins combined."

Reporter Nick Williams can be reached at (813) 259-7851.

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