In the grand scheme of things, the Durant-Strawberry Crest football rivalry isn’t the most celebrated in the area. Both schools are fairly new and have little history against each other.
But that doesn’t give local fans the right to sleep on this week’s matchup. After last week’s action, it’s fair to say that this year’s Cougars-Chargers bout could fall under a classification that underdogs love and top dogs hate: trap game.
It’s not being thrown around lightly.
A NEW ERA
Many Charger fans didn’t know what to expect when head coach John Kelly was replaced last week, following a rough stretch of 0-5 football with four blowout losses. Jim Peaden was promoted from within to run the team in the interim and was immediately presented with a big test: facing an undefeated Lennard team on the road.
The team may have fallen to 0-6 after it was all said and done, but a look at the box score says that Peaden did pretty well: Crest did the unthinkable and held a 21-14 lead at the end of the first half, after leading 21-7 at one point.
It was a good evening for running back Bryce Blackmon, who scored twice in his best offensive output of the season. The senior struck first and last for Crest, with the second touchdown coming from a 25-yard Tate Whatley-to-Tyler Hood hookup. The Chargers have looked to establish their running game all season and finally showed what it can do if it can help Blackmon get going.
On defense, Crest held Longhorns quarterback Devin Black to 121 passing yards and seven completions on 16 attempts. Black was also picked off by Gunner Thomas and threw no touchdowns.
Longhorns coach Keith Chattin, when speaking with the Tampa Bay Times, chalked up the first-half performance to overconfidence. Chattin said that his team figured the win would come easy and played accordingly.
That excludes running back Jahryn Bailey, who is the one Longhorn that really does make football look easy. He continued his red-hot season with 220 rushing yards and four touchdowns — one in each quarter — to put the Longhorns ahead and seal the deal.
But, even in defeat, Peaden and the Chargers sent a message to the rest of the opponents on their 2015 schedule: Don’t let us catch you sleeping.
GETTING BACK ON TRACK
Lennard’s win complicated things for Durant, not only ending the Cougars’ unbeaten streak but also handing them their first district loss. That now puts Durant in a tie for third place with the Tampa Bay Tech Titans, who most recently went to Plant City and were clamped.
With the Raiders and Longhorns solely owning the first and second-place positions, Durant needs a lot of wins and a lot of help to get into the playoffs again — even with last week’s 26-14 win against Bloomingdale.
It was a good-looking win for the Cougars.
Kameron Joyce scored after an 80-yard opening drive and featured two interceptions (including a one-handed snatch by Austin Resendez), a safety, three sacks and a 145-yard, two-touchdown performance by quarterback Carlton Potter on 10-for-15 passing.
With three district games left on the schedule, it was precisely the kind of win that the Cougars needed to get their confidence back after the double-overtime loss to Lennard.
Gottman has always liked to pound the rock more often than other coaches in the area, and there’s no reason to think he won’t be looking to his running back corps to control the pacing. And it also helps that he has the most efficient passer in the district in his arsenal.
WHAT COULD HAPPEN
Durant will most likely commit to the run game, where it has arguably the most depth in the area. Potter probably won’t be asked to throw too much, but it’s reasonable to think that most of his attempts will be completions.
Crest proved that, even if it gives up over 200 yards to one or two players, it can still hang in there. Lennard only won by one touchdown and the defense allowed just seven points in each quarter. More quarters like the Chargers’ 14-point first quarter can make up for allowing one touchdown per frame.
Crest proved that it isn’t time to count the team out before its games start. Maybe there’s more to this team than many have thought, after all.
Can the Chargers push their trends upward, and bump Durant’s downward?
Contact Justin Kline at jkline@plantcityobserver.com.
OTHER AREA ACTION
PLANT CITY
As good as the Raiders (5-1; 3-0 district) have proven to be, many thought that Tampa Bay Tech (3-3; 2-1 district) would push them to the limit. As one can tell by the 19-3 final score, that simply wasn’t the case.
Plant City’s defense completely dominated the Titans’ offense, which had entered the game on a two-game hot streak with over 35 points scored per game. The Raiders’ offense was serviceable, though quarterback Corey King and running back Markese Hargrove did combine to put up two touchdowns and 294 yards on the ground.
This week, they travel to Bloomingdale to take on the reeling Bulls (0-5; 0-2 district). As long as the Raiders don’t fall asleep, there’s a good chance that they will leave Valrico with yet another win.
WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 9
WHERE: 1700 Bloomingdale Ave., Valrico.