Homecoming was not so festive to the Plant City football team last night. The home Raiders fell victim to turnovers once again in a great battle between two class 7A powers.

The Tampa Bay Tech Titans defeated the Plant City Raiders 38-21 last night. The Titans swarmed the Raider offense and overwhelmed their defense. A game with plenty of big plays and “Wow” moments, it was defined by the best players on each team coming through big and the roles player taking on an even bigger role.

TAMPA BAY TECH
Fred Russ LB – All around excellent game. The Florida International verbal commit was a one man wrecking crew. He couldn’t be blocked; he sniffed out plays and attacked the ball like a bloodhound. He was the game MVP by far. Several times, it seemed like Plant City ball carriers were going to break and out of no where, Russ would come flying in for the tackle. He was “Russ” good! That good!

Ricky Pyron ATH – Pyron filled-in in a big way for injured Deon Thompson. When TBT needed to grind the Raider defense and kill the clock, #20 was called on and the Titan offense never missed a beat. Pyron scored two touchdowns on the night. The first coming on a scoop and score in the 1st quarter of the ball game and the second, late in ball game on a 4-yard rush to extend the Titan lead.

Deon Cain QB – The 2015 prospect played well. Did a great job of managing the offense and hurting the Raider defense with his legs. Was harassed all night, but stood in the pocket, starred down the rush, took hits, got up and kept playing. Showed a lot of guts and leadership.

Deon Thompson RB – One of the best RBs in the area, was the best RB on the field last night. He was a beast between the tackles and allowed TBT to simplify the offense because of his effectiveness versus the Plant City defense. He left the game late, with what seemed like a minor injury. But, before he was finished for the night, he was a headache for the opposition.

Elijah Spann WR – Coming out party for Mr. Spann. He really sparked the TBT side of the stadium after Landon Galloway scored a big TD for the Raiders, momentum started to swing towards the home team and looked like Plant City was on their way to take the lead. Then Boom! Spann popped a big 90-yard kick off return to silence the orange and green crowd and put visiting Titans up by 10 points.

Tajee Fullwood ATH – We think highly of Fullwood as a defensive player. But, I am starting to think he can possibly be a respectable offensive threat at the collegiate level. Made a big impact on offense, several chain moving catches and moved well when the protection broke down, breaking off his route and making himself a big target for the running QB.

PLANT CITY
Landon Galloway QB – Plant City was bit by the turnover bug again and from the untrained eye, it may seem as though PC QB, Landon Galloway was responsible for the majority of them. That would not be the whole truth. The protection broke down a number of times, the snap was low a few times and receivers did not work to the soft spot of the zone a few times. All that to say this, Galloway tried to force the issue a few times and it bit him in the butt more than one. But, he was really the only offensive threat. PC struggled to move the ball of the ground, so TBT just attacked Galloway by any means necessary. And their defensive planned worked. Note: Landon had 2 dropped TD passes, threw a TD pass and ran for another. Gave his team more opportunities for success than hurt their effort for success.

Markese Hargrove ATH – It was such a pleasant surprise watching this young man work. He played both sides of the ball, locking it down at corner, catching a few passes on offense and owning the kickoff returns.

Tavares Chase ATH – One of our favorite, under recruited 2016 prospects. Quietly had a big game. Known for his skills as a receiver, arguably played better as a safety. Really tackled well, getting in the alley for run support and keeping short gains from becoming big plays.

Sawyer Dawson OLB – Dawson owned the third quarter. During one series, he made 3 straight defensive plays in a row. The PA announcer was calling his name before he even made the tackle (haha). Returned a fumble for a score to pull plant City within 3 points. Dawson looks great in pads and could be a good sleeper prospect next season as he is only a junior.

John Broome and Sedrick King DE – These two were as good as advertised. They make each other better because it’s tough to help one offensive tackle with an extra player like an RB and leave the other in an one-on-one situation with the other offensive tackle. Either will win the one-on-one matchup 9 times out of 10. They lived in the TBT offensive backfield and knocked around TBT QB Deon Cain all night. King is a Central Florida verbal commit and Broome is starting to strike up some real recruiting interest.

Montel McBride OG/DT – The Alabama verbal commit played both sides of the ball last night and really stood out. 6-3/330 lbs, Montel was a handful for the Tampa Bay Tech interior offensive linemen and protected well when at offensive guard.