The American Heritage has played a challenging schedule against a bunch of opponents from outside of Broward County this season. It will be no different on Friday night as they head north to face the Lake Wales Highlanders in a Class 5A state semifinal. The victor will play the Lakewood-Clay winner next Friday afternoon for the state championship at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando.
With the exception of an opening week loss at home to Miami Central, American Heritage(12-1) comes into this game on a 12-game win streak. The Patriots have scored at least 33 points in their last seven games along with a margin of victory by at least 15 points. They knocked off Lely 51-13 in the regional quarterfinal, escaped from Immakolee 25-23 in the regional semifinal and ate up Hardee 41-7 in the regional final.
The Patriots have one of the most known running backs in Florida with Sony Michel in the backfield. He will get the bulk of the carries and receive screen passes from quarterback Torrance Gibson, who can also execute the run out of the option. Look for Gibson to connect with wide receivers Isaiah McKenzie and Brandon Johnson on deep passes down the field.
Lake Wales(9-4), who were eliminated in the regional final last year, has to prove that the game is not played on paper. The Highlanders enter this contest on a six-game winning streak after they began the regular season with a record of 2-3. They blanked Spoto 28-0 in the regional quarterfinal, defeated Jesuit 20-9 in the regional semifinal and got by Merritt Island 34-23 in the regional final.
The key for the Highlanders offense is their backfield. They have Raliond Garrett at quarterback and Justin Henderson as their main running back for most of their rushes. Ernest Hamilton and Eddie Joseph will get an occasional handoff. Wide receivers Dedric Brinson and Marcus Walker are expected to get open for receptions.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment