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South Florida Football Mid-Season Report
By Rudy Rodriguez-Chomat
October 14, 2003
Dade and Broward have had it all this season as we hit the mid-season report.
While the regular world-beaters are riding high with Carol City, Northwestern, St. Thomas, Ely and Plantation rolling along, there are some teams that are trying to join the aforementioned in upper echelon.
Carol City was projected to be the best team on the planet this year, but the play of the Chiefs has been less than extraordinary, as Carol City has consistently played down to the levels of its opponents. They Chiefs are so talented, and on paper, you could crown them state champs now, but if they have a day where they play down to opponents like they did against Dr. Krop a couple of weeks ago, Northwestern would give them the beating of their lives. I don’t believe they would play like that, but it is difficult to just turn it on and off like the Chiefs have done all year.
Northwestern, on the other hand, while the Bulls were expected to be a good team, I surely did not expect them to be routing opponents week in and week out as they have done throughout this season. Terry Perry has been the best running back in Dade County this season by far. Yes, he has a massive offensive line that can create huge holes, but Perry is a dynamite back. He is lightning quick and very strong. Simply stated, he is a playmaker. The Bulls defense has also been incredible this year.
St. Thomas started off in an embarrassing fashion getting smashed by Plantation 21-3 in the opener. Apparently that thrashing woke the Raiders up just like the Houston Texans beating the Miami Dolphins woke the fish up. Since then, the Raiders have dispatched of every opponent with virtual ease, including a 41-20 smashing of Ely, heading into district battle against Dillard, which is having for all intents and purposes, the worst season ever in school history.
Dillard brought over a few transfers that were supposed to help make the Panthers contenders again. The Panthers were supposed to have one of the better defenses in Broward County, but instead have found ways to not just lose games, but get throttled in games. While they stepped up and gave Carol City a headache, the Panthers lost in embarrassing fashion to Northeast.
One of the biggest mistakes was the idea that taking on a schedule that includes some of the best teams in the state would actually make Dillard better. I said from Day 1 that the schedule they took on was insane. Every team needs to play games against lesser opponents for the simple reason of gaining confidence and learning how to win.
The scheduling has hurt them because there is absolutely no confidence on that team now. After beating Miramar to open the season, Deerfield Beach shut them out, Carol City beat them, Northeast knocked them off and Plantation squished them. They barely got past Boyd Anderson in a 4th quarter comeback.
Ahead for the Panthers are games against St. Thomas, Glades Central and Ely. They also take on Stranahan. Dillard is looking at a 3-7 record this season. A season with so much promise has turned into the ultimate disaster.
Another big time disappointment has been at South Dade. The Bucs were looking at a senior season come-out show for star running back Charlie Jones. Unfortunately for Jones, he suffered an ankle injury in the opener and was unable to contribute for a few weeks. The Bucs suffered some bad losses, including beatings by Palmetto and Columbus. The Bucs still have a chance to make the playoffs, but would need to beat Homestead, Southridge, and Coral Reef to close the season. Without a healthy and productive Jones, the odds of that happening are slim to none, and even if he is productive, quarterback Jerry Mingo has not stepped up as expected. With no passing game at all, it will be real tough.
With that said, we will break down a few more teams and give out In the Zone's mid-season awards:
Miami-Dade County
Shockers
Palmetto 5-1
They are sitting pretty at 5-1, but still have three district games left, including Homestead, South Dade and Coral Reef, but the way this defense has played with the exception of a 24-6 loss to Southridge, has been phenomenal. We are talking about a team that has given up 12 points through five games, excluding the Southridge loss.
Southridge 5-1
Did anyone really expect Southridge to be back with a vengeance like this? I surely did not, but it is definitely nice to see the Spartans playing old school Spartans football. After an early loss to Edison when Southridge blew a 20-0 lead in the second quarter, the Spartans have reeled off three straight wins over Coral Reef, Palmetto and Killian. Southridge is definitely the favorite down south.
Mild Surprises
Miami Beach 5-1 The Hi-Tides were rolling at 4-0 when they met up with Edison. The reality check came with a 55-7 destruction at the hands of the Red Raiders. Sure Beach started off 4-0, but it was against team that it should have won. Then Edison came calling and it was not even close. The Hi-Tides followed that with an embarrassing loss to Dr. Krop. So what do we make of Beach? This is a mild surprise simply because Beach still has not beaten anyone it was not supposed to beat. All the wins have come against teams that Beach is simply better than. Beach still has to play Norland and Jackson in key district games. Beach could actually go 7-3 and not make the playoffs with a loss to Norland this Thursday. Norland is a must-win situation. If Beach can knock off the Vikings and Generals, then we can really say Beach High is one of the shockers of the season.
Varela 5-1
The Vipers were considered mosquitoes by my friend, Manny Navarro, from The Miami Herald. I told him they were not mosquitoes. I told him this team would go 7-3 and finish second in the district behind Killian. Well, they are right on pace. Some would consider this a shock, but I do not because I said they would be 7-3. Varela is a hard-nosed team that simply has a lot of desire and capitalizes on the mistakes of its opponents. The Vipers still have Southridge and Killian on the schedule, so we will know how good they really are after those games.
Northwestern 6-0
See above
Disappointments
Norland 2-4
The defending Class 6A state champions were headed towards disaster until they knocked off Jackson and American the past 2 weeks. They are now 2-4 with a chance to clinch a playoff berth with a win over Beach High on Friday. The Vikings are still more than likely headed to the worst record for a state champion the year after winning the title, but if they make the playoffs it would sure be a feel good story. However, if they lose to Beach this weekend, you can look to drop them into the disaster zone. Losing 37 seniors or not, a defending state champ is not supposed to have a 3-7 record the year after.
Homestead 3-3
Why would the Broncos be a major disappointment at 3-3? Considering they opened the season at 3-0 with convincing wins over Central, Booker T. Washington and Jackson, heading into a match up with Killian, one might have thought this was the season for Homestead to show what it is about. Well, Killian stopped that with a 28-14 humbling of the Broncos. It was followed by a loss to Coral Reef by a point and then by a shut out to Edison. The Broncos face Southridge Friday. Unless they pull a major turnaround, the Broncos are headed to a 4-6 season, possibly 3-7. Right now, Homestead is a disappointment after the good start. Finish 4-6 or 3-7 and you are talking total disaster.
Disasters
Jackson 1-5
Is this really Jackson? It can’t be. This is borderline embarrassing for the Generals. Their only win was a 32-6 win over Hialeah, but with games against Edison, Booker T., Northwestern and Miami Beach, Jackson is staring down the barrel of a 1-9 season. There are no good points about this season for Jackson. It has simply been a disaster and is not going to get any better.
Broward County
Shockers
Chaminade 6-0
I know Chaminade is a great team, but for the Lions to be 6-0 at this point is absolutely incredible. They started the season off playing 5 of their first 6 on the road, including thumpings of Class 6A Vero Beach at Vero. Remember, Vero was 12-1 last season and winning at Vero is not an easy thing to do, let alone for a team that lost a load of players from last season's Class 2A Runner-Up squad. Not to mention that the Lions are still only a Class 2A team. They also knocked of Fort Myers Bishop Verot, Bradenton Manatee and Clewiston on the road. Chaminade still has 5-1 Edison (# 4 in 5A) and 6-0 Daytona Beach Mainland, the # 1 team in Class 5A.
St. Thomas 5-1
See above
Piper 5-1
Plantation walked in undefeated and left with a 39-35 loss to Piper. After starting off with a bad loss to Coral Springs, Piper has totally turned it around. The schedule is very favorable for Piper as they battle South Plantation for the district title this week, but beyond that, there is not much to worry about. They have their destiny in their own hands. Plain and simple. Beat S. Plantation and Boyd Anderson and Piper equals winning the district. Lose to S. Plantation and things become interesting.
South Plantation 5-1
Where did these guys come from? They are sitting at 5-1 with their destiny in their hands. The Paladins battle with Piper this week, but S. Plantation still has not taken on Plantation yet, their rival. The reality check will come this week against Piper, but a 5-1 start could turn ugly rather quickly to the point where they do not even secure a wild card. I just do not see them beating Piper or Plantation, but if they do, you are talking a serious Cinderella story.
Mild Surprises
Ely 5-1
Sure, I expected the Tigers to be good, but they lost a lot from last season’s team. The win over Deerfield Beach was expected because it was personal from last season and a revenge of sorts, but getting demolished by St. Thomas exposed the Tigers. They can definitely be beaten, but the only battle on their hands was from Deerfield Beach. They should now win the district, but I saw Deerfield winning it this year. Could still happen, but the schedule looks good for the Tigers, as it is pretty weak overall.
Disappointments
Deerfield Beach 5-1
This was the Bucks season to do it. They will be 8-2 or 9-1 at the end of the season, but the disappointment in not winning the district is there. Otherwise, it’s been a great season. But when you are 8-2 or 9-1 and do not win your district, it has to feel absolutely awful because now you travel to your playoff games. However, they have a huge game against St. Thomas in two weeks. Truth be told, Deerfield has not beaten anyone worth anything yet, so a win over the Raiders would be a huge for confidence heading into the playoffs.
Disasters
Dillard 2-4
Who knows if this is a shocker or a disaster, but to keep with the program of great seasons going with shockers and disasters going with bad seasons, this is where Dillard goes. Enough was said about the Panthers above, so there is no need to beat a dead horse, but a 2-8 season for Dillard is quite possible. The Panthers will not make the playoffs unless they beat Stranahan and Northeast somehow loses to a pretty bad Stranahan team that is 1-5 already. I don’t expect that to happen which means that Dillard will be sitting at home after talking a lot of smack on many different message boards in the summer and preseason. All the talent in the world, but they just can’t put it together. The football coaching jobs at Dillard cannot possibly be secure. This just is not Dillard football.
Mid-Season Awards
In the Zone’s Mid-Season Offensive MVP: Dimitri Linton, RB, Northeast
In the Zone’s Mid-Season Defensive MVP: Richard Clebert, DT, Edison
