Plant City High’s loss to Braden River Friday, Nov. 27, brought an end to the Plant City area’s 2015 prep football season. Area teams went through their share of ups and downs throughout the past four months, hitting both the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. And all three appear to have good things on tap for the 2016 season.
DURANT
The Cougars finished the year with a 6-4 overall record, after being positioned at 6-1 in mid-October.
Durant was, for much of the season, heralded as one of the top football stories in the Tampa Bay area. After graduating much of its starters — including the top quarterback, running back and much of the offensive line — the team entered 2015 play with a lot more questions than answers.
Fortunately for Cougar fans, these questions were answered early on. Those young players stepped up to the plate and, with the defense finally healthy, put together some impressive wins: 16-7 over a highly-favored Hillsborough High team; 16-14 over a Newsome team that had been a thorn in Durant’s side for several years; and 34-14 over East Bay.
Even Durant’s first loss, 27-24 in double overtime at Lennard, didn’t hinder the team.
After their 21-26 loss against Plant City, however, the wheels started to come off. A slew of injuries hit Durant at the worst possible time: a potential play-in game against Tampa Bay Tech.
The Titans erased Durant’s playoff hopes with a 28-0 win, and the Cougars closed the season with a 16-13 overtime loss against King.
The record may be 6-4, but no one in their right mind could consider this a bad season for Durant. Mike Gottman and the coaching staff did what they needed to do in addressing vacant positions before the season. By doing so, staff got its young players a season’s worth of experience to learn from. And, most of the Cougars’ impact players will be coming back in 2016 for at least one more season.
The bottom line is this: all Durant fans should be excited for what this group could do next year.
PLANT CITY
The Raiders began the 2015 season with the most complete roster in the area and the highest expectations.
After the team’s 49-7 loss against Armwood in the season opener, new head coach Greg Meyer and his team were able to bounce back in the best way possible: Plant City won out over the rest of the year, became one of the first teams in the Tampa Bay area to clinch a district title and, for the first time in nearly two decades, got out of the first round of the playoffs.
Eleven Raiders, as well as Meyer, were named county all-stars, and for good reason. While the return of T.J. Chase was a hot topic to begin with, it was the team’s balanced, versatile defense that carried it to such high heights. Even with the loss of defensive back Peyton Collins, the defense played well enough in all areas to shut down several solid squads en route to a regional championship appearance.
The downside to this year is that Plant City is set to lose a huge senior class, featuring numerous key players, to graduation. Meyer and the staff will need to address holes at running back, linebacker, both safety positions, the offensive and defensive line, kicker, punter and wideout. Replacing departed seniors hasn’t been a problem for Plant City in recent years, as the staff always seems to find depth in the roster, but there aren’t many things tougher for a team than having to replace a large senior class.
Expectations in 2016 will, once again, be high for Meyer and the Raiders. But, for now, let the team enjoy the fact that it just put together possibly the best season in school history.
STRAWBERRY CREST
On the flip side, 2015 was a year to forget for the Chargers.
Nothing seemed to go Strawberry Crest’s way this season, as the Chargers failed to win a single game and, in most cases, make more than a dent on the scoreboard.
In the first half of the season, only the game against a 2-8 Middleton squad was close: Crest played well early on, but ended up taking a 14-13 loss at home.
After being outscored, 88-12, by playoff teams Plant City and Tampa Bay Tech, the administration replaced head coach John Kelly with assistant coach Jim Peaden.
The change brought about three games in which the Chargers looked like a team close to turning the corner. Crest played well in losses to Lennard (28-21), Durant (27-14) and East Bay (31-20), and the mood in Dover was more positive than it had been in some time.
But, the Chargers took a 38-2 beating at the hands of Bloomingdale — the Bulls’ only win of the season — and ended 2015 with a 9-0 loss at Gaither.
The good news is that the Chargers have nowhere to go but up. The offense showed flashes of potential at quarterback, wideout and tight end, and all of the key players at those positions were sophomores. Tate Whatley, Chase Lawson, Tyler Hood and Austin Eldridge appear to be the team’s offensive core heading into the future. Their play — especially that of Whatley — is promising.
The Chargers’ offense also got a boost from senior running back Bryce Blackmon, who finished with 763 yards and five touchdowns. And, on defense, senior linebacker Jordan Zilbar recorded a team-leading 90 tackles on the season.
It is not yet known who will coach the Chargers in 2016. The school expects to make a decision around January.
Whoever ends up taking charge will have at least a few solid tools to kickstart the rebuilding process.
Contact Justin Kline at jkline@plantcityobserver.com.