By STEVE JACKSON
All five South Shore high school football teams open their official football season this Friday under the lights. All five have a 0-0 record after preseason practice, which included exhibition games, or glorified practices, last Friday night for Lennard, Sumner, Riverview and East Bay. In the Kickoff Classics, which do not count in the regular season records or stats, Lennard dominated a weak Freedom High, 31-7. Sumner was trounced by Jesuit High in Tampa, 36-14. Pinellas Park blasted Riverview, 41-7. East Bay could not keep up with Durant, 30-13. Spoto did not announce a Kickoff Classic game.
East Bay High is the only one of the five South Shore grid squads with its season opener at home. Kickoff for Head Coach Mike Gottman and his Indians is at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Aug. 23, at Big Bend Road. Coach Gottman faces a Strawberry Crest High team that was 4-6 last season. Coach Gottman’s team fell at Durant in its preseason last week. After coaching at Durant for 17 years, Gottman has led East Bay to three straight winning seasons. The Indians are facing a rebuilding year as they prepare for the Chargers from Dover this Friday evening. Senior William “Rocco” Boyd is back at quarterback to lead a balanced attack for EB on a brand new AstroTurf field.
The Lennard cheer squad leads the team onto the field in Ruskin prior to the Longhorns exhibition game Kickoff Classic vs. the Freedom Patriots last Friday to open the season.
On paper and in practices, Lennard High’s Longhorns, under Coach KD Belton, appear to be the dominant pre-season favorite in the South Shore. The Longhorns take the trip to Dade City in its first attempt to transform potential into reality.
A Pasco County team, which went 2-8 last season, hosts Lennard, which went 3-7 in 2023.
“I don’t see anybody beating us,” brashly declares Coach Benton. “And that includes Plant City!”
Plant City is a perennially competitive team, hosting Lennard Oct. 4. The Raiders possess one of the top quarterbacks in Florida in Chris Denson, already committed to Coastal Carolina University.
Longhorn senior running back Gavin Fields makes a cut against Freedom in the team’s Kickoff Classic game on Aug. 16.
Lennard returns starting junior QB Jacob Mobley and proven placekicker senior Aiden Gibbons to boost the Longhorns chances to vastly improve last year’s 3-7 mark. Lennard has also attracted a number of top transfers from Sumner, Spoto and Blake. The Longhorns lost no players via the transfer route.
Coach Tony Rodriquez travels with his Riverview Sharks to Tampa to battle the venerable Hillsborough Terriers, 6-5 last year, at the oldest high school, which opened in 1885, in Tampa and Hillsborough County. One of the most veteran coaches is Earl Garcia Jr., the Terriers’ longtime grid coach. The Sharks had a decent 7-5 record last season but face quite a few challenges to match that record this year.
Spoto High of Head Coach Keith Chattin hits the road for a Friday game at Davenport High, a 5-5 squad last season. The Spartans are coming off a 2-8 mark and look to improve but have a bundle of question marks.
Spoto hosts Lennard next Friday, Aug.30, in an early season SouthShore rivalry game.
Francis Fedor Photos
Lennard head coach KB Belton, at left in blue, confers with the officials and Freedom coach prior to the Kickoff Classic game on Aug. 16 at Lennard High School.
Sumner is another South Shore team with tons of question marks. The Stingrays lost big to Jesuit in the exhibition game last week. Now, Sumner makes the 425 mile round trip to open at Bartram Trail High in St. Johns near Jacksonville. The first home game for Sumner is also a tough one as Armwood High visits Aug. 30. See The Observer News print and the ObserverNews.net digital for exclusive weekly coverage of Sumner High by Francis Fedor.