St. Petersburg     14

SCORE BY QUARTER

Countryside      35

Boca Ciega         17

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SCORE BY QUARTER

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For three consecutive seasons, BocaCiega and Countryside have produced one of the most entertaining games on the regular-season slate.

In all three, Countryside staked itself to a lead only to watch  as the Pirates rallied  in the fourth quarter.

The past two years, Boca Ciegahad the ball with a chance to tie or win on the game’s last possession but fell short.

This year’s opener nearly reached that point. Boca Ciegalanded a few haymakers  in the fourth quarter, but the Cougars had the knockout blow in a 35-17 season-opening victory.

“We finished,” Countryside coach Jared Davis said. “…I’m proud of them for finishing the game and, really, excelling in the fourth quarter.”

Countryside  entered the last quarter with a 21-10 lead, but Boca Ciegaclimbed within a possession after an 11-play, 59-yard drive capped by a 3-yard run on fourth and goal by Denzal Dillard. That drive was aided by a roughing-the-kicker call on Countryside after the Cougars had stopped the Pirates three and out.

On the first play of the ensuing possession, Countryside’s Diomi Roberts fumbled, handing the ball back to the Pirates on their 47-yard line with six minutes remaining. Boca Ciega took the ball to the Countryside 41, but a 9-yard tackle for loss by the Cougars’ Mike Love snuffed out that scoring chance. On fourth down, a blocked punt gave Countryside possession near midfield.

“The second half, it was kind of tough for us to establish drives,” first-year Boca Ciega coach Antez Brinson said.

Countryside took the clock down to three minutes, then on fourth and 1, fullback Ryan Yates  raced off left tackle 36 yards for the game-sealing touchdown.

“It was a game-changing play. It was fourth down,” Yates said. “If we didn’t get it, they could have won. I wasn’t going to let that happen.”

Boca Ciega quarterback Bobby Runcie was intercepted on the next drive by Shyzzam Shackleford, who returned the ball to the Pirates’ 4-yard line. Roberts carried in on the next play to put the Cougars up 35-17.

“When the game’s on the line … our defense wants to be on the field,” Davis said. “They want the game on their backs.”

After a scoreless first quarter, Countryside’s Gray Crow hit Marrieo Taylor for a 69-yard scoring strike. Yates had a 4-yard touchdown run to make it 14-0 and added a 55-yard catch-and-score in the third quarter.

Fortune Gamble had a 1-yard touchdown run, and Omar Tovar hit a 25-yard field goal in the second quarter for Boca Ciega.

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Story and Photo by tampabay.com/hometeam

Album Name: “Darkness in the Light”

Band: “Unearth”

Review: This is a heavy metal band that has a melodic feel to it but is more Americanized by having understandable lyrics that are not screamed throughout parts of the album andhaving a more familiar sound. The lyrics that are screamed can barely be understood if at all, but the instrumentals during the vocal pauses more than make up for that in most cases. This band is not very popular, but may soon have a radio- ready presence, giving them a well- needed push into the spotlight. Based on what I’ve heard from “Darkness in the Light” I really wish Unearth the best in getting the popularity that every band strives for.

Favorite Song: Shadows in the Light

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Parker Andersen – Paw Print Newspaper Staff

Matt Ellis with his gold medal for winning the 50 yard free during finals of FHSAA 3A state swimming and diving.

Matt Ellis’ first championship race was the usual explosion of froth and flailing. There was no conservation of energy and hardly any breathing.

The Countryside High junior’s only strategy Saturday in the 50-yard freestyle was to go out as fast as he could. Ellis got the best start. Others were close. They all reached the finish as if carried by one large wave.

Ellis, his chest still heaving from an all-out sprint, looked at the wall at the far end of the Central Florida YMCA to see the results. Then the realization hit. He won the Class 3A state title with a time of 20.58 seconds, shaving nearly half a second off his personal best. It was his first state title. Ellis, who moved to the area from Texas before the season, finished fifth in the 100 fly in his home state a year ago.

There wasn’t much time to celebrate. Ellis, still dripping, accepted his gold medal then marched to the finals of his next race, the 100 butterfly. Throwing his arms forward before moving them back into the water, Ellis seemed to skip across the pool as he moved into striking distance in the final lap. In a rush to the wall, Ellis touched first to win his second medal in 49.26 seconds, beating Fleming Island’s Kyle Casias by 0. 32 seconds.

Matt Ellis Swimming for the gold in his 100 yard butterfly.

“I was happy with how everything went in my individual races,” Ellis said. “I was hoping for a little better time in the 100 fly, but I had to really dig deep in that one to come back and win. Two state titles in individual races is a pretty big accomplishment.”

Ellis added a third gold when he swam the anchor leg to help the Cougars’ 200 free relay team win in 1:25.47. Richard Willsey, John Kelly and Jon Witkowski swam the first three legs and put Countryside in position to win. Ellis sealed it with a strong finish to overtake Winter Park, capping the best state finish by a county boy in decades.

“We couldn’t be happier with how we did,” Witkowski said. “This is something we thought we could win since the beginning of the season.”

In his fourth event of the night, Ellis was unable to add a fourth gold medal as Countryside’s 400 free relay finished second in 3:06.87. Ellis swam the first leg, followed by Willsey, Gary Lush and Kelly. They were out-touched at the wall by Hagerty, which won in 3:06.54.
Palm Harbor University’s boys, which had hopes of winning their second team title in three seasons, finished second with 184.5 points.

The Hurricanes took the lead in the team standings after the 100 free, thanks to a second-place finish by Ryan McRae (46.38) and fourth-place finish by Jason Williams (46.66).

Matt Ellis Swimming for the gold in his 100 yard butterfly.

PHU had a 16.5-point lead heading into the final event, then the Hurricanes watched it disappear because they did not have a team in the 400 free relay.

PHU’s David Morgan was third in the 100 breast (57.54) and teammate Williams third in the 50 free (21.27). The Hurricanes’ 200 free relay of McRae, Zach Perrotti, Morgan and Williams also took third in 1:26. 61.

Nick Alexiou of Clearwater was the runnerup in the 200 free in 1:37.66.
Seminole’s Matt Thompson was third in the 200 individual medley (1:50.16) and fourth in the 500 free (4:27.90).

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tbo.com    Hometeam

A few problems on todays show, hopefully they’ll get fixed really soon.

And some more.

And some more.

But never once, despite a cavalcade of mad scrambles by Boca Ciega quarterback Shaquille Bradford, did the Countryside defensive backs ever let a wide receiver get behind them.

Well, none that Bradford could see, anyway.

In the end, it was Bradford scrambling one last time, and getting taken to the ground as his options — and his team’s chances for a huge opening-night win — withered.

Countryside’s mighty pass defenders — Alex Dixon, Cody Chmelik, Tyler Serpo and Denzel Thompson — gave up nothing, and gave the Cougars a 21-20 victory Friday night.

“That was pretty impressive,” said Countryside’s Jared Davis, a winner in his head coaching debut after an uneven spring and fall that had some folks — myself included — doubting the Cougars.

The victory doesn’t erase those doubts. The passing game still isn’t clicking, despite one 52-yard touchdown. The pass rush was non-existent. Special teams was uncharacteristically frightening.

But here’s what Countryside does have — an offensive line good enough to sustain drives, two terrific linebackers in Adam Vinson and Terry Johnson, and arguably the best defensive backfield in the county.

“Defense will carry us early,” Davis said. “The offense will come along.”

After Bradford ran in a score on the Pirates’ first drive, the Cougars defense bent, but broke the error-prone Pirates.

Bogie got two more scores, on a kickoff return and a 2-yard run set up by a bad punt snap, but Bradford was never able to find as talented a group of wide receivers as the county has.

Make no mistake, Bradford’s feet are much too happy, and he’d be better served looking quickly for his fleet of tall, physical wide receivers on shorter routes, but he ran for more than 100 yards (if you don’t count the 438 he had scrambling behind the line of scrimmage).

Still, if the Pirates are going to win this year they will be better off with 200 yards passing from their quarterback, not 100 yards rushing.

It’s stunning, really, that the Pirates didn’t turn one, just one,  of his scrambles into a long touchdown pass. At the high school level, a quarterback who can scramble has an advantage over defensive backs forced to cover wide receivers for 15-20 seconds at a time.

But not Friday.

“We knew he was going to do that,” Dixon said. “We played him last year and he did the same thing.”

That many times? For that long?

“Well, we work on scramble drills, but not for quite that long,” Davis said.

Pinned on its 1 to start the second quarter, Countryside managed one important, potentially game-saving drive: 16 plays, 57 yards, 9:41 off the clock after a few series of putrid offense to start the game.

It settled down a team that already seemed to be circling the drain, one quarter into the 2010 season.

“We didn’t score, but that felt like a victory,” Davis said. “The guys came off and felt like they had just picked up a victory.”
Or picked one off. Three plays later, Dixon had an interception, followed by a long touchdown pass to tie the game.

Two plays later, Johnson picked off a short slant and returned it for a 14-7 halftime lead.

“That was big,” Dixon said. “That changed things.”

Thompson’s interception near the end zone killed off another Bogie scoring try in the third quarter following some more quarterback improvisation.

Bogie made it a game, and even recovered a fumble in the final minute to add a little extra drama, but it was Dixon, Serpo, Chmelik and Thompson snuffing the Pirates one last time, after two more agonizing, and ill-fated, scrambles.

“As long as the defensive line and linebackers kept after him,” Dixon said, “we had the rest covered.”

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tampabay.com    Home Team

“The traction was a little tough, and it was a mess out there,” Countryside offensive tackle Tyler Moore said. “It was kind of nasty and not all that much fun to play in.”

The Cougars lost the game, but Moore won his own personal battle in the trenches. On every snap, he urgently plowed toward the end zone as if a buffet line awaited every score.

Moore was lined up against Plant linebacker James Wilder Jr.,  considered one of the nation’s top recruits. On a few plays, Wilder was left overturned, on his back, in what is known as a pancake block.

“(Wilder) didn’t talk to me too much during the game,” Moore said. “But I saw him a few months after that at a combine, and he said that is the most he’s ever been manhandled in a game.”

Last season, the Cougars, who reached the region final for just the second time in school history, built momentum largely on the sturdy back of Moore and his fellow offensive linemen. Running back Alton Taylor set a school record with more than 1,900 yards rushing and a county record with 30 touchdowns.

“The offensive line is the most important part of the football team,” Moore said. “You need to be able to run the ball and you need to be able to protect the quarterback.

“It all starts up front.”

No part of a football team is designed to work in such synchronicity as the offensive line, and nearly every team’s fortunes are dependent on how well that unit is put together. Of the county teams that made deep runs into the playoffs last year, nearly all of them had one thing in common, a solid offensive line that had been together for at least a year, an eternity for such a unit.

“A good offensive line is absolutely essential, especially at this level because the running game is so important,” Countryside coach Jared Davis said.

If offensive linemen had a say, they would run the ball, again and again, and then run it some more. It is difficult, if not impossible, to find an offensive lineman who would rather pass block than run block. If allowed to call the plays, every snap would be followed by a grunting forward surge.

But great offenses do not just run the ball. They throw it, too. To create that balance, a team needs a dependable left tackle.
The Cougars have it with Moore, who is considered one of the best in the country. The 6-foot-6, 280-pound senior had offers from nearly every major Division-I program before committing to Nebraska last fall.

“I feel pretty fortunate that I come into my first year as a coach and I get to work with probably the best offensive lineman I’m ever going to have,” Davis said. “Tyler’s not just about putting his hand on the ground and moving people. He’s a great person with a strong work ethic. He’s the total package.”

Linemen are a largely anonymous group. Taylor, for example, was candidate for county player of the year honors.

But Moore has made a name for himself, due in large part to his size — and performance. He will be counted on to keep the Cougars in playoff contention after they lost three linemen and Taylor to graduation. Moore and fellow tackle Tyler Pierson are the only returning starters on the line.

“I worked really hard in the weight room, the field, everywhere to get ready for this season and prepare for college,” Moore said. “We don’t want any drop-off, and we want to go as far as we did last year.”

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tampabay.com     Home Team

If the Cougars hope to duplicate that success, however, they’ll have to do so with a virtually brand new cast of characters.

Nowhere is that more evident than at the top, where Jared Davis takes over as head coach for former coach John Davis, who left for Clearwater Central Catholic after eight seasons at the Cougars’ helm. Jared Davis, a 2002 graduate of Countryside, worked as a Cougars assistant coach from 2002-04, was a graduate assistant at USF for four seasons and spent last year as the defensive coordinator at Gibbs. This is his first head coaching job.

“It’s officially started, so that part of it is pretty neat,” Jared Davis said. “It’s pretty special, there’s no question about it.”

Countryside spent the first 15 minutes of practice stretching before breaking down into groups for specialized work. New starting quarterback Gray Crowshowed why he’s one of the more highly-touted signal callers in the area this year, displaying zip on his short passes and touch on the longer throws.

After about 45 minutes, thunderstorms forced Countryside to move its practice indoors, but while on the field, the theme for the day (and the rest of fall, according to Davis) was tempo.

“When I worked at college practices, it was always bam, bam, bam. Everybody was moving, everybody was doing something at all times,” Davis said. “That’s something that I really wanted to try and establish here. We’re trying to move through practice and use it sort of as a conditioning thing.”

Countryside will have to replace 32 seniors who graduated from last year’s team. Especially hard hit was the offensive side of the ball, where three big-time playmakers — quarterback Jimbo Chmelik, running back Alton Taylorand receiver Todd Shorter — have all departed.

“There are still some unknowns that we won’t know about even until we start playing,” Davis said. “We’re trying to piece everything together. We don’t have a whole lot of depth at some positions; some guys are going to have to play a lot of football. That’s just the nature of the beast.”

Davis was pleased with the Cougars’ work ethic throughout the summer and felt his team was in good physical shape heading into his maiden voyage on the sidelines.

“We do have a good core group of guys that played a lot of football last year,” Davis said. “Unfortunately, there’s a lot of inexperience too, guys that didn’t play a whole lot, that are going to be thrown in the fire. We’re going to have to have them perform too, but the early returns have been encouraging.”

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tampabay.com   Home Team

Graphics- This game is possibly the first to ever stray from the mainstream high definition, realistic graphics. Instead, they put a certain shadow emphasis on inanimate objects and made muscles and body parts sort of pop. It seems as if the developers decided to skip a step in editing the graphics purposely to make this game unique. The character you play as, as well as your friends character, is very limited in customization. You can change colors  of clothing but that’s all. Also, you can only choose from 6- 10 colors depending on what article of clothing you are editing. Depending on how you feel about the graphics, good or bad, can effect whether or not you will like this game. Personally, I enjoyed the games uniqueness, so I played it through for a bit.

Buy, Rent, Pass- Rent. I can’t really say whether or not certain people will like this game because it is a new series without any background (game, movie, book, etc.). I can say that if you need a change of pace from “Left for Dead 2″, “Modern Warfare 2″, or any newly released game, then you probably should rent this one. Chances are that you will not beat this game in the time that you are able to rent it unless you don’t need to sleep or eat to function. If after you return the game from renting and you want to buy it, then go ahead. This game may or may not be worth the $60 to every gamer, I would wait for a price drop or buy it used if considering to buy this rpg/shooter.

You may like this if you also like…
Role Playing Games
First Person Shooters
or Fallout 3

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Parker Anderson

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VIDEO CLIP FROM UPC LAST YEAR.