ANALYSIS: Broward County has the defending National Champion St. Thomas Aquinas. They are the favorite once again in the 5A classification. Miramar made a run to the State Semi-finals in 6A and programs like Plantation, Deerfield Beach, Ely, and Dillard are always dangerous.
TOP 5 TEAMS
1. ST. THOMAS AQUINAS: After some disappointing State Title games with Lakeland, the Raiders got over the hump by throttling the Dreadnaughts in the State Championship game. They are now two time defending champs and the odds on favorite in 2009 to make it a three-peat. They lost plenty of talent, but this program re-loads every year.
Offensively you won't find a better 1-2 punch at RB than Gio Bernard and James White in the nation. Bernard is a pure RB with vision, quickness, size, and speed and is one of the top recruits in the country. White has more power and is a better receiver out of the backfield. He has plenty of juice. After graduating WR's Duron Carter(Ohio State), Dwayne Difton(UCONN), and TE Gabe Holmes(Purdue), there will be new weapons catching passes. Heralded Southwest Miami transfer and national recruit Lamarcus Joyner will join junior transfer Rashad Greene(Georgia), Phillip Dorsett, and James Dolan to form another outstanding receiving core. Joyner is one of the top athletes in the country and has terrific speed.
The OL is always one of the best in the state and 2009 will be no different. Brandon Linder is another national recruit and has the versatility to play anywhere on the line. OT Jermaine Barton has high expectations and is considered a D-1 recruit even though he did not start as a junior. Austin Barron is another player with upside. Replacing Ryan Becker will not be an easy task, he was a tremendous game manager and extremely accurate. Senior Turner Baty and junior Jacob Rudock are vying for the starting role. Youngster Austin Whipple is the son of Miami OC Mark Whipple.
The defense is led by perhaps the top secondary in the state. CB's Cody Riggs and Keion Payne have their choice of college destinations. Payne, a Dillard transfer, is the more physical, while Riggs has more speed. They return both starting safeties in Brian Robinson and Reynaldo Kirton. Robinson has been steady and is a two year starter. Joyner is being recruited for defense and will make an impact here as well. MLB Vinnie Mauro is expected to clean up inside. If there is a question mark it is along the DL where much is expected of junior Ken Hankerson. Frederick Sutton and Matt Stokes will also be in the mix.
Oh, btw they have special teams covered as well with one of the top kickers in the country in Michael Palardy and LS Danny Adams.
It is hard to imagine this team not back in Orlando. Locally a very talented Boyd Anderson team might have the horses to compete and down the road perhaps Venice or Manatee could challenge.
2. BOYD ANDERSON: The Cobra's have been a consistent playoff team, but have yet to take the next step and make a run in the playoffs, 2009 might be the year.
A pair of outstanding WR's highlight the offense. Steven Green and Jesse York are D-1 calibur play-makers with Green having outstanding quickness. York is just a junior, but has high expectations. Versatile UF commit Demar Dorsey could factor in here as well, although defense is his future. Rutgers commit Marcus Thompson is a bruising back who should beat on defenses, he can also play LB. Dillard transfer Craig Weaver brings a steady, experienced signal caller into the mix at QB.
Defensively the Cobra secondary is one of only a handful of teams that can match-up with St. Thomas, it is hard to believe they are in the same county. DB's Cliff Coleman, Steven Clark, Harmon Brown, Anderson Roberson, and Brandon Butler will join Dorsey for an extremely deep unit. Thompson, Shaun Ward, and Kent Turene are a solid LB unit. Linval Williams headlines a strong DL and should live in the backfield. Matthew Grant is another name to keep an eye on.
Boyd Anderson will know where they are at with a week 2 match-up at St. Thomas. This team is very, very talented and is capable of pulling a surprise or two. Should they get better every week and gain confidence, they just might be ready in the playoffs for the Raiders.
3. PLANTATION: Plantation always has talent and 2009 will be no different. Even though they lost 3 D-1 DB's to graduation in 2008, they have successfully re-loaded.
QB Immonni Carswell will be expected to provide a steadying force to a young offense. Hallandale transfer Michael Anderson will finally get his chance to shine and it is expected that he will compete for the county rushing title. Michael Edwards is another option at RB. Rodin Francis is an outside play-maker.
The defense will be led by a pair of terrific athletes in Deven Drane and Gilbert St. Louis. St. Louis has outstanding potential. Anderson could see some time here as well with Ravelto Robinson. LB Daniel Holland is the anchor of the defense, consistency is his game. Junior Jerome Howard should join him. The DL is deep and talented, it is headlined by Sammie Brown, Octavious Harris, and Charles Smith.
Plantation is 6A, which means Central and Northwestern lurk....but not until the State semi-finals. This team should be stout defensively, so it is up to Carswell and Anderson to carry them. They should be a lot better in November than September.
4. NORTHEAST New coach Donnell Bennett takes over a program with a lot of talent, his discipline approach has already paid off. 2008 saw a great defense, but this team lacked offense, the defense will be even better in 2009. An improved OL will determine how far this team can go.
Audrey Woodson was forced into QB duties in 2008 and he performed admirably. He will have the opportunity to the take his elite quickness to RB where he is much tougher than his size. He is a big play waiting to happen. Four QB's are vying for the starting job, with two sophomores holding a slight edge. Whoever wins that battle will have to compete daily and should improve every game. There is plenty of young talent at WR, the only issue being too much, six players have flashed starting potential. The OL is the key here, they have to give the young QB's time.
The defensive line has the makings of something special. Junior DE Bryant Dubose has all the tools to be an elite player down the road. Senior DT Xavier Cunigan is unblockable in practice and poised for a huge senior year. At 6'0 and 290 pounds he is the anchor that every defense covets. D.J. Francis may take his play-making abilities over to the S spot as a senior, he should have more of an impact there. Greg Williams, Dennis Aaron, and Santiago Pierre also will patrol the secondary. The LB's will be amongst the fastest in the county.
It will be a simple formula for the Hurricanes in 2009, rely on a stiff defense for field position, and hope to get enough plays offensively to win games. This team figures to improve weekly and just might be clicking on all cylinders in the playoffs.
5. MIRAMAR A playoff run ended in the state semi-finals when the Patriots lost to Northwestern. The loss of QB Eugene Smith hurt, but this team gained valuable experience.
American Heritage QB Ryan Williams will take over at QB and he has one of the state's elite weapons in WR Ivan McCartney to work with. The silky smooth McCartney has elite hands and is a tremendous route runner. More speed is supplied by Dante Chambers who should see his opportunities rise with the departure of Stedmon Bailey and Terrance Gourdine. They need to get tougher up front.
The Patriots were inconsistent defensively and they will need to turn it up a notch, the offense can't be expected to put up as many points. A trio of LB's is a good place to start with Jamaal Bass, Dominick Bryan, and Donald Jackson. Jaquis Tauriac is a player to watch in the defensive backfield. The defensive line is the question mark.
Miramar has been winning 7on7 tournies this off-season which bodes well for the offense. While they might not be as good as last year, they should score plenty of points. The defense is the key and that will determine how far they go.
TEAMS TO WATCH: Cardinal Gibbons, Hollywood Hills, Everglades, Cypress Bay, Dillard, Ely, Deerfield Beach, North Broward Prep
ALL AREA PRESEASON:
QB Brandon Doughty, RB Gio Bernard, RB Devon Wright, WR Ivan McCartney, WR Shawn Corker, WR Lamarcus Joyner, OL Jonathan Feliciano, OL Brandon Linder, OL Joe McNamara, OL Brian Paul, OL Bobby Hart
DE Bryant Dubose, DE Travaughn Faircloth, DT Xavier Cunigan, DL Max Beaulieu, LB Vinnie Mauro, LB Wayne Lyons, CB Tony Grimes, CB Cody Riggs, CB Keion Payne, DB Harmon Brown, S Brian Robinson
GAME OF THE YEAR: September 11. Boyd Anderson at St. Thomas Aquinas