POLK COUNTY

Three Red Devils Needed to Beat the Blue Devils

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The Kathleen Red Devils may be 2-3 going into their matchup with Winter Haven this evening, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t have a lot of good prospects on their team. Head Coach Irving Strickland is the man responsible behind the 9-2 season that was 2015, and he’s been responsible for producing some really good players from years past. Here’s just six of the many players that have made an impact over the last five games for the Red Devils.

Tobias Larry (6) has verbal offers from Power Five schools like Illinois, Kentucky, and Louisville.
Tobias Larry (6) has verbal offers from Power Five schools like Illinois, Kentucky, and Louisville.

Ventrell Miller, 2017 ILB:

The Florida commit has had a pretty quiet season so far in 2016, but he’s been quietly working some magic in the Kathleen defense. He’s the leader, and he’s been very quick across the line of scrimmage, getting in the backfield quite a bit. Miller has also been good in defending the pass, breaking up a few and intercepting one as well. He’s certainly shown why Strickland can rely on his ability to get things done on a defense that only allows 11.8 points per game.

Tobias Larry, 2017 OLB:

Larry has been a guy that the Red Devils have been able to rely on in the passing game to stop the pass and to stop it well. He’s got an interception on the year, just like Miller, and he’s terrorized ball carriers. It’s crazy to see his 6’2”, 205 lbs. frame go from attacking a running back from behind the line of scrimmage to knocking a ball out of the air on the next play, but Larry has been able to do it very often thus far in 2016.

Brendan Gant, 2019 DB:

This is a newcomer that we’ve liked to watch develop over the past weeks, and if you remember, we ranked him as our fifth best newcomer to watch in 2016. Just a sophomore, he already has verbal offers from Florida, Florida State, and Arizona, just to name a few. Gant’s ability to shed blocks is really good, and he’s been able to jump routes and cut off wide receivers to grab a couple interceptions. Watch for Gant to be a prospect that will be important in the next few years, and watch for his recruiting to take off during the spring.

Kathleen will take on Winter Haven this week, in an important Class 7A-District 7 matchup, where these three and the rest of the defense will be tested by the spread offense led by Will Tate, Davie Henderson, and Terrence Aglin.