One starting running back went down for the season with an injury during the summer, while the other scored three touchdowns against Wesley Chapel and got hurt the next week. Then, the quarterback, two offensive lineman, two defensive ends, one wide receiver, and a linebacker soon were hobbling off as well.
By the time the third week of the season was over for the District 7A-8 Wiregrass Ranch High (WRH) football team, head coach Mark Kantor’s depth chart was seemingly held together by scotch tape and glue and a batch of young sophomores who were called on to mature quickly.
Replacement QB Jacob Hill stepped in at a position he had never played before, to beat Leto. New RB Christian Borak has become one of the team’s top rushers. Defensive backs Shamaur McDowell and Alquonne Brown all stood tall in their new roles, and playmaker Jordan Miner (who was injured for a few games himself) provided some electricity on offense and special teams.
“Well, I haven’t hung myself, that’s always a good thing,” says Kantor, who is in his first season at WRH after turning around the Hudson program. “The rope hasn’t come out. The huge upscale surge of the younger kids taking on bigger roles and handling those roles, if they can handle those roles now, they can handle those roles next year and for the years to come, which is exciting.”
Despite early season wins over rival Wesley Chapel High (46-3 on Sept. 4) and Leto (29-20 on Sept. 25) that left them at 2-3, the Bulls knew they would be facing a tough second half as the injury list grew longer. The Bulls are now 2-6 following last week’s 52-18 loss to Mitchell, which is 6-1.
What kind of a year has it been for the Bulls, who had an abundance of quarterbacks and running backs in the spring?
In the win over Leto, Hill, who didn’t play football until the seventh grade, started at quarterback threw for 76 yards and a touchdown to Borak, who was called up that week from junior varsity and rushed for a team-high 65 yards. The leading receiver that game was McDowell, another sophomore.
“It’s actually kind of hard, the first time ever being a quarterback, but it’s kind of nice being called to step up,’’ said Hill, a varsity wrestler and junior varsity baseball player as a freshman last year. “I didn’t even think I was going to play this year. It’s sort of unreal.”
Hill said the experience has been overwhelming, especially playing behind a beat-up offensive line that has left him open for some big hits.
“My dad is proud of me, my mom is like ‘Oh God,’” Hill said, chuckling.
Miner, who had a fractured fibula, returned for the 17-6 loss against District rival Freedom. Brown, one of the team’s top athletes, started his first game at QB in the 44-0 loss to Wharton on Oct. 9, throwing for 105 yards and ran for a team-best 35 yards on five carries. And, some juniors, like linebackers Ryan Scamardo (team-high 16 tackles last week) and Jason Winston, have also impressed in expanded roles.
“The kids have been great,’’ said Kantor, whose Bulls sit at 2-6. 1-3. “They are still coming to practice, still trying to work, still trying to get better. That’s a testament to these kids. They could have just folded and blew this season off.”
Instead, Kantor adds, they are using it as a launching pad to next year, when the injured players return and the experience gained in 2015 pays off.
“We’re just trying to get better every week,’’ Miner says. “Next year, we’re gonna be a team to be reckoned with.”
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