By the time the lights come on at the Dragons Den in Carver City tonight the City of Tampa may have already experienced a record high temperature for this day in September. Fitting that the weather may match the heat generated by the expectations and current situations between two of Florida’s most recognized programs. The Defending 3A State Champs Jefferson and the 4A State Runners-up Armwood Hawks will line up and go at it, but are two teams headed in opposite directions at the moment.
Had this been 2010, we might be discussing a potential “Game for the ages” between two of the most talented teams in the country let alone state or region. Instead, Armwood comes in with its #2 National Ranking while the Dragons are simply trying to rebuild, find its purpose and move on from the shadow of their most decorated team in school history.
Gone are the Quentin Williams’, the Andre Davis’, the Chris Moore’s. Most importantly, gone are the entire OL that helped protect Williams to a statistically historic season and earned recognition as Mr. Football.
If not for a few unfortunate circumstances in Orlando last year, Armwood would have come sporting some bling of their own. A horrific injury to WR Ronnie Thomas, an unusually off day for Josh Grady and some untimely penalties saw Lincoln upset the Hawks and seemingly put them on an even greater mission than last year’s. That bitter taste in their mouths has already spelled doom for a few county teams and even a nationally-ranked Bishop Gorman Squad out in Las Vegas. Aside from that 20-17 victory against Gorman, Armwood has won their last 3 games by an average score of 54-7 against Brandon, Tampa Bay Tech, and Leto.
Jefferson in the meantime has had its issues, or should we say growing pains as they opened the season with a sound defeat at the hands of Robinson 38-18, a hard-fought 22-21 win versus Newsome, and a 52-13 loss at the hands of the nation’s #9 team St. Edward’s from Lakewood, Ohio. The Dragons through the first 3 games are giving up an average of 362 yards per game to their opponents, while Armwood has been averaging 306 yards.
That’s enough background however so let’s get to the good stuff. The common element bonding these two is that they have played against nationally ranked competition this season. Specifically, both schools have played Top 10 competition and it’s pretty apparent who is equipped to handle the stress of top-level talent. At least in the short-term it’s Armwood, but Jefferson will not be silent for too long. There’s a ton of talent on the roster and they’ve got coaching. The one thing that cannot be rushed is the maturation and retention of the current players. They’ve got the skills, but can they buy into what’s being sold? You never know with teenagers these days, but they’ll figure it out. It’s a question of when, not if for Jefferson.
The same can be said for Armwood when speaking about their next title. Problem IS is, the Hawks have been saying that a little too long for their liking. The “when” part is starting to become the great unknown. The reasons they’ve lost on the way to the mountaintop are not for lack of talent. That’s not even up for debate. They’ve been snake-bitten at the worst possible moments and are the example of why you’ve got to show up for every play of every game no matter how monotonous it seems when you want to reach the level they’re aiming. Charles de Gaulle once said, “Nothing great will ever be achieved without great men, and men are great only if they are determined to be so.”
“Soooo, you’re saying Jefferson has no chance Pugh?” Actually I would never say that a team such as Jefferson doesn’t have a chance. How many people living outside of Leon County gave Lincoln any sort of chance last December? Count them on one hand. I know I didn’t. I couldn’t believe what happened that dreary day and still can’t to a certain extent. Armwood can be beat, I just don’t know if it’s Jefferson that will do it. If I was standing in the locker room of Jefferson my “Dr. Lou-esque” motivational moment would appear like this.
“Fellas, sometimes it’s not WHAT you do, but what YOU DON’T do. A passage from “The Art of War” by the great Sun Tzu reads: “To secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy itself.”
In other words, don’t make mistakes and allow the pressure of the moment to suffocate the opposition. Control what you can control, execute the plan and expect them to question themselves why they haven’t put this game on ice by the 2nd Quarter. This is the ONLY way Jefferson wins. They’ve got to play assignment football. Sounds cliche, but if Evan Davis were to script the first 15 plays with a run-pass ratio of 14-to-1, the ONE play could be a play-action that was setup by a misread or over pursuit and it would he the one play that produces a touchdown. Alvin Bailey or Javonte Sneed won’t need to be targeted but a few times in each half in order to see some gaudy stats. This will be one of two phases.
The other phase is quite simple. How nasty can you get big fellas? If Jefferson allow themselves to get pushed around up front, it won’t matter what’s happening in the secondary. Matt Jones’ Dreadlocks will be flapping in the breeze as he gashes through their lines like something from a John Wayne WWII Movie. If the OL can give their QB any time to throw, it’s still on the young Sophomore Deiondre Porter to make the right read. Let’s not forget Armwood’s Secondary is on the short list as best in the entire state and is salivating at the chance to not only get picks, but will be expecting to take one of those back to the house which would only compound the enormity of the task at hand.
My prediction? Gulp. Here goes. Jefferson has managed to score a grand total of 8 points in the 1st Quarter combined in three games. If they don’t hit the brakes on this skid then we will have ourselves a one-sided affair. Best-case scenario is they’re tied or within a touchdown going into the half. The longer this stays close, the greater the young J-Boys confidence grows. You see it all the time in sports. Problem is, we all know it’s a game played with four, not two periods. Their average margin of defeat has been by a score of 45-15. I have a feeling we may see the scoreboard read something similar. Then again, stranger things have happened. Ask Lincoln.