GULFPORT – Boca Ciega’s had their struggles on the field this season, but have really made some strides the last two weeks. The Pirates went 0-6 to start the season, but pulled out a thrilling 42-41 overtime victory over Northeast to get their first win in week seven. They also put up big numbers in a 43-28 loss to Osceola last week. In fact, Boca Ciega’s 70 points over the last two weeks is nearly double their 38-point output the first six weeks combined. They’re a young squad, but thanks to guys like the 6-foot-2/170-pound wide receiver Sam Thompson, the Pirates may be starting to turn the corner for next season.
We caught up with Thompson briefly after practice on Tuesday to get his impression of the season and specifically what lead to the recent turnaround. His answer regarding that subject was candid and perhaps a valuable lesson to be shared with many other teams that may be sitting next to the Pirates in the same boat. Here now is Sam Thompson in his own words.
BCP: You started out 0-6, but there’s a ton of positives coming from your direction the past two weeks. What was the reason behind the teams’ slow start–but not seemingly fast finish to the season you think?
Sam Thompson: A lot of our team is young. Most of our starters are juniors and sophomores. I’m proud of my team. I’m happy that we’re doing good (now)–in the beginning we were struggling. A lot of our players can get down on themselves real fast, but over the season we’ve started to mature and we’ve also started executing better in practice. We didn’t take too much stuff serious too, we thought we could just show up in do good in the games. I’m happy that we’re getting better as a unit and as a team though as the season has gone on. I expect big things going on for us next year.
BCP: Aside from the light coming on and the focus, what was the key difference, specifically?
Sam Thompson: “We’ve focused on our fundamentals more–our receivers are holding their blocks better–our running backs are covering up the ball–our lineman are working and getting better–pretty much everyone’s working on technique and getting better at something right now.”
BCP: What are you doing as an individual and at practice to make sure the team is benefitting?
Sam Thompson: “Everyday I’m working on route-running–even doing cone drills in the backyard with my little brother if I have to. In practice I’m also working on my blocking downfield since I’m not too good with that and I want to get better at it. I’ve also just got to get stronger on my bench.”
BCP: Most importantly–what do those grades look like? Do you have a favorite class? Have you thought about anything to be studied in college yet?
Sam Thompson: “My grades are on track. I’m doing good and I like to keep my grades up–because my mom won’t let me play football unless I keep my grades up. My favorite classes I’d like to say are World History and American History. I like history. The best part about it really is finding out the things that you never knew about certain events and people. I’ve been thinking about college, but I just don’t know what I want to do. I’ve got a lot of ideas that will pop-up in my head about what I’d like to do, and then the next day things are different.”
BCP: What’s your summer look like in terms of offseason prep look like?
Sam Thompson: “I’d like to do some camps this summer, but I also play for Team Florida (7-on-7). I’m also going to run track.”