Tampa Wharton Loading Up Again

Instead of dwelling on the 21-7 playoff loss to Newsome, players and coaches at Tampa Wharton are channeling their energy in a different direction this off season. Coming off a 7-2 record, there were certainly highs and lows for this program in 2020. Getting off to a 6-0 start with wins against Tampa Freedom (50-0), Palm Harbor University (7-3), Tampa King (14-0), Tampa Middleton (19-3), Tampa Alonso (44-17) and Tampa Plant (10-0) showed that the Wildcats certainly had a tremendous defense. The team only let up 91 points throughout the season. With a solid winter and spring, this is a team that has the talent to make another solid run in 2021 under head coach<strong> Mike Williams.</strong> <strong>SENIOR LEADERSHIP WILL BE IMPORTANT</strong> While there is plenty of talent on the roster for the upcoming season, the Class of 2022 will be called upon to help with that all important leadership, which successful programs use as a lifeblood in building their teams. The rising senior class (2022) features<strong> [player_tooltip player_id="111467" first="Daveon" last="Crouch"]</strong> (OLB/SS 6’3 215), who had 62 tackles 12.5 sacks 6 FF 2 INT 1TD. Voted Captain as a junior. Hard working kid. Another stellar athlete is <strong>Booker Pickett Jr</strong> (6’4 205 DE/OLB), who is the son of former Florida high school and NFL standout. Had 67 tackles 8.5 sacks. Standout cornerback <strong>Jairon Dorsey </strong>(5’11 175) had 5 INTs 3 for TDS. Has that edge you can’t teach. Yet another Class of 2022 standout is MLB <strong>Henry Griffith</strong>. This 6’2, 210-pounder averaged 11 tackles per game. Leader, smart, instinctive and an explosive hitter. Boasts a 4.0+ GPA all honors classes 1400+ SAT. Son of a Midshipman. <strong>UNDERCLASSMEN WILL BE A PLUS</strong> The Class of 2023 and 2024 prospects that this program will roll out this season is going to be the future of this team. There are some gifted football players such as <strong>Tolu Onikeku </strong>(6-4, 283, Guard), his twin brother <strong>Lolu Onikeku</strong> (6-4, 290, Guard/Tackle), who will be some of the top linemen in the state. Both have 3.8+ GPA. Wide receiver/cornerback <strong>Dijon Johnson</strong> (6-3, 182) is a gifted two-way athlete. Explosive and tough as a receiver, and a <strong>Jalen Ramsey</strong>-type that wants to bump and run. Class of 2024 standout <strong>DeAndre “DJ” Newton</strong> (6-1, 170) is big-time route runner that is explosive. Has a chance to be special. <strong>Arkese Parks</strong> (6-3, 180), who is a gifted, electric and explosive. Great feet. Had 10 TDs as a freshman. His older brother is Utah running back signee <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="32684" first="Ricky" last="Parks"].</strong> <strong>Y<em>ou Can Contact [player_tooltip player_id="111610" first="Larry" last="Blustein"] with prospect or team information at: Foridakids1@aol.com. We are also on Social Media on @PrepRedzonefl.</em></strong>