ROUND 3 PLAYOFFS: Mitchell Is Now 11-0!
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For weeks, those “experts” who claim to follow this game statewide had talked about Mitchell being a novelty – and the unbeaten season the Mustangs were going through would come to an end. Still waiting! Even traveling to Apopka last…
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Continue ReadingFor weeks, those “experts” who claim to follow this game statewide had talked about Mitchell being a novelty – and the unbeaten season the Mustangs were going through would come to an end. Still waiting!
Even traveling to Apopka last Friday to take on Wekiva was a given that it would the end to such a magical season. Never happened!
What did happen is now everyone knows this program – and the 11-0 record is not a farce or overblown.
After edging Wekiva 24-18, head coach Andy Schmitz and his team move on to the next round – as 95 percent of the state has never heard of the Mustangs.
When wide receiver Maguire Anderson hit Jonathan Fairbank with a 28-yard touchdown pass, it was 10-0.
A 63-yard kickoff return by safety Cole Castro helped setup Mitchell’s second touchdown of the night, a 25-yard pass from Ezra Brennan (14-of-27, 186 yards) to Fairbank to push the Mustangs’ lead to 17-6.
In addition to that huge win by Mitchell, there were some other impressive performances this past week as well:
Senior quarterback Sammy Edwards, who ran for two touchdowns while passing for one, ran for 70 yards and went 10 of 12 passing for 111 yards to lead St. Augustine to a 6A win over Pace.
Baker County converted two broken plays into explosive touchdowns and forced three turnovers in a 28-19 win against Pensacola Pine Forest. Scooby Graham set the tone from the opening kickoff with a run that put the Wildcats in Pine Forest territory and finished with two touchdowns, bringing his season total to 13.
Quarterback Michael Townsend aired out three touchdown passes, connecting twice with Rico Watkins and once with Torey Walker as Tallahassee Rickards beat Jacksonville Ribault, 44-26.
Trevonte Rucker Trevonte Rucker 6'0" | 185 lbs | WR Ocala Vanguard | 2021 State FL , a University of Florida commitment, had a hand in each of the Ocala Vanguard’s first three scores in three different ways over Clay (9-2), 38-7. In the opening drive, Rucker threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to fellow senior Tevin Williams, and he later made a scoring grab from quarterback A.J. Law and a 15-yard rushing touchdown.
Two touchdown passes from Gunner Boree to Davis Ellis helped Jacksonville Bolles beat South Sumter, 42-7.
Orel Gray rushed for two Jacksonville University Christian touchdowns and Joe Carter added another in a 2A win, 35-20, against Tallahassee North Florida Christian.
1A Madison County quarterback R.J. Williams broke away for the game-winning touchdown early in the final period as the three-time defending champions beat Union County.
Sophomore Sam Singleton ran for a school record 274 yards and four touchdowns on 18 rushes as Fleming Island trounced visiting Atlantic Coast (5-6) in a Region 1-7A semifinal.
AJ Jones, Santino Marucci Santino Marucci 6'1" | 215 lbs | QB Jacksonville Bartram Trail | 2021 State FL and Eric Weatherly Eric Weatherly WR St. Johns Bartram Trail | 2022 FL combined for four rushing touchdowns, and the Bartram Trail Bears generated four takeaways in a 35-13 regional semifinal victory. Marucci, a Wake Forest quarterback commit, threw for 228 yards and another score. Jones led the ground attack with 107 yards and a couple of touchdowns.
Sanford Seminole QB Timmy McClain Timmy McClain 6'1" | 190 lbs | QB Sanford Seminole | 2021 FL ran for 121 yards, and his momentum-turning touchdown run was his fourth over the last four games in a 40-20 win against Jacksonville Sandalwood.
Junior Jaylon Glover Jaylon Glover 5'9" | 195 lbs | RB Lakeland Lake Gibson | 2022 State FL ran for four touchdowns as Lakeland Lake Gibson rallied for a 48-22 win against Bradenton Southeast. Glover finished the night with 112 yards rushing.
Tampa Bay Tech senior quarterback David Wright threw for 318 yards and five touchdowns. He was 20 of 34 and did not throw an interception in a 55-34 win against Lakeland.
Coming into last Friday night’s playoff game at Naples, the Golden Eagles had a huge advantage over Miami Central – having played 36 quarters of football to the Rockets’ 10. But Texas A&M commitment Amari Daniels Amari Daniels 5'9" | 190 lbs | RB Miami Central | 2021 State FL ignited Central with 210 yards rushing in a 31-21 win.
Fort Myers Dunbar linemen Chris Thomas and Demetrie Morgan spent most of the night in the Palmetto Ridge offensive backfield and sacked Bears quarterback Evan Rodriguez on back-to-back plays and forced a punt with 2 minutes to go in a 12-7 win.
Senior Calvin Stringer ran for 257 yards and five touchdowns as Sneads rolled to a playoff win. Jason Patterson added 130 yards and two touchdowns and CJ McMillan 118 yards and a touchdown. Stringer raised his season totals to 1,473 yards and 21 touchdowns.
Bloomingdale scored on a touchdown pass from quarterback Tre Simmons early, and he completed a few big passes and had a 22-yard run on his team’s opening drive of the second half, setting up a score that would be the first of two trips to the end zone for Bloomingdale in a 90-second span. The scoring spurt extended a lead the Bulls held the rest of the way in their 24-14 victory against Armwood.
Tampa Gaither (11-0) continued to roll along with a 49-0 win over Clearwater Countryside. The amazing defensive effort, which was highlighted by a pick-6 from junior four-star talent Mario Eugenio Mario Eugenio 6'3" | 230 lbs | DL Tampa Gaither | 2022 State FL — his second of the year — another interception from Eugene Wilson III and a fumble recovery by Jean Duclos, helped hold Countryside (8-4) to minus-9 yards of offense.
Sophomore running back Joquez Smith rushed for 163 yards on 16 carries and three touchdowns, senior quarterback Joe Pesansky (9-of-16, 221 yards) threw for two scores, and freshman defensive end Peter Pesansky — Joe’s brother — came up with the defensive play of the game as Tampa Jesuit pulled away from Bishop Moore 43-23.
Senior Kamarii Austin threw three touchdowns as Lithia Newsome beat Steinbrenner and advanced to a region final for the first time in school history with a 37-20 victory. Austin (7-of-14, 202 yards) connected with Lamar Frederick from 11 yards out and Newsome never looked back.
Quarterback Michael Townsend aired out three touchdowns passes. He connected twice with Rico Watkins and once with Torey Walker as Tallahassee Rickards beat Jacksonville Ribault, 44-26Running back De’Andre Francis sprinted for two scores. With these rushes, Francis now has seven touchdowns in the state tournament.
Jeremy McKnight and Keyshawn Mitchell led the way with nine tackles apiece for 10-2 Madison County as the Cowboys got by Union County, 19-7. This was the seventh time Madison County held an opponent to single digits or less this year.
You Can Contact Larry Blustein with prospect or team information at: Foridakids1@aol.com. We are also on Social Media on @PrepRedzonefl.