Tampa Catholic 26, River Ridge 14
Now, THAT was fun…
What a game between these two talented teams that could not be anymore diametrical in their styles, yet ready to tear things up come August and beyond with the same results regardless of the process. The Royal Knights knocked on the door several times, but just couldn’t find the end zone and might have fallen victim to a little bit of offensive predictability (who can blame them if it’s working, though?) in the end, while the Crusaders were stunningly efficient in the second half scoring 14 points and only needing nine plays to do so leaning on their heralded playmakers to step up and make a play when needed the most. As time wound down on the clock in the fourth quarter with under :30 seconds to play and the Royal Knights facing a fourth-and-goal trailing 20-14, TC’s Devan Barrett hit QB Trevor Hawks forcing a fumble which prompted Derek Ortiz to scoop-and-score which is where it ended. There was some craziness in this one, let’s try and break it down as best we can.
About those numbers…
Y’all ready for this? Here goes:
River Ridge 64 plays, 33:50 (Time of Possession)–20:16 in the 2nd Half
Tampa Catholic 45 plays, 13:30 (Time of Possession)–3:02 in the 2nd Half
Chris Schwarz (RR) 42 carries, 310 yards, TD
Devan Barrett (TC) 12 carries, 37 yards, TD –2 sacks, forced fumble
Nate Craig-Myers (TC) 2 carries 103 yards, TD –2 receptions, 27 yards
Second Half Total Plays: River Ridge 37, Tampa Catholic 9
What a difference a year makes…
Tampa Catholic went 3-7 last season and had to endure the season without the services of Nate Craig-Myers. This Spring, the impact is already being felt as he delivered an absolute groin punch to River Ridge after the Knights had possession for over 10 minutes to start the third quarter, but missed a field goal and gave up the ball at the Tampa Catholic 20. Craig-Myers took the hand off from Kevin Knox around the right side and applied the rocket boosters down the TC sidelines for the score to push their lead to 20-7. That score looked terribly important for the Crusaders as the Knights answered immediately on the next drive. The resiliency that TC showed on the evening was impressive. The Crusaders had enough talent last season that they would have been just as competitive versus this same River Ridge team, the biggest difference is not just Craig-Myers, but the entire team appears to have put last season in the rear view mirror and finished the game no matter how “ugly” it might have been. Doesn’t matter how they come for TC. This was great experience they will undoubtedly be able to draw upon for the entire Fall.
You know exactly what’s coming, and you ain’t doin’ nothin’ about it…
Is it really possible? Nah, can it? We don’t really want to take it there, well FINE we ail take it there and throw this out there. Some of the teams on River Ridge’s schedule are gonna give up some yardage even if they can trade punches with the Knights, but what that means from an individual standpoint could mean something even more astonishing for RB Chris Schwarz. The young man rushed for 2,689 yards last season which is nationally-ranked. Last night he rushed 42 times for 310 yards and a touchdown against a Crusaders team plus entire stands worth of people that KNEW what was coming and he still went for 3-bills. Is this season going to be one that we see a multiple 400-yard performance or, GASP…a 3,000 yard season? Keep in mind there is the predictability factor that we have spoken of with River Ridge, but we’re just saying. You probably need to see this kid for yourself before you get all worked up about it and have to admit we were right in the first place. Chris Schwarz IS an elite running back.
These boys are more like Tonka trucks…
That game had all the feeling from the hitting to the intensity along with the wear-and-tear of a late-October contest for the district championship. These boys were getting after it to say the least. Schwarz was abruptly stopped and sent to the ground hard by a gang of TC tacklers which ultimately led to Schwarz being off the field for the final play of the game. The hit was legal, but Shcwarz went down and stayed down…something he NEVER does and appeared to have been knocked out. The collective silence could’ve drowned out a Led Zeppelin concert, but Schwarz bounced back up claiming he had simply lost his breath. On that same drive, OL Sean White re-dislocated his right shoulder (Editor’s Note: a pain that can be shared with this young man) during a play and less than two minutes on the clock was back in the game. Schwarz isn’t the only ironman on the squad, rather he is the face of what that team is all about from top to bottom.
Can we just skip to August 28th?
So, we may be getting ahead of ourselves since Tampa Catholic will face Gaither in their Fall Classic and River Ridge will face King in theirs, but both these squads have absolute barn-burners their opening weekends. Tampa Catholic will host Indian Rocks Christian while River Ridge will host Mitchell. The Knights beat the Mustangs 17-6 last season, and with both offenses already clicking on all cylinders, this one should be what a neighborhood rivalry is all about. The Crusaders were mauled by IRC 56-21 as the Eagles were in full juggernaut mode at that point in the season the two teams met. Needless to say we expect the results of this one to be slightly cozier than what was posted last season. It’s also not out of the realm of possibility or go out on a limb to expect both these teams to be 7-8 win minimum squads and legit contenders for their district titles.