By Tamas Mondovics
As students settle into their 2014-2015 school year schedule, student-athletes are also gearing up to show off their skills and measure up their talents.
While the fall athletic season includes a number of sports, it is football that continues to top the list.
Considered by many as one the of season’s most competitive leagues, the Class 8A District 6 lineup is promising a great fall competition with a truck load of talented returning players. District 6 includes Bloomingdale, Newsome, Wharton, Riverview, Plant and Alonso.
While Plant hasn’t lost a single district matchup or a district crown in nearly a decade, the program had a few close calls last season including a shootout with Bloomingdale.
The Bulls completed its second winning season in school history last year and are once again expected to become tough contenders even as program Head Coach John Booth, who has coached the team for the past five seasons, has left the program at the end of the school year to become the Manatee Hurricanes new head football coach.
Booth replaces Joe Kinnan, who helped lead the Hurricanes to five state titles and coached Booth when he played for Manatee.
Booth is replaced by 1996 Bloomingdale graduate Brian Surcy as program head coach. Surcy has spent the past two seasons as a running back coach on Booth’s staff.
Bulls athletic director Donny Peek told reporters that he picked Surcy out of nearly two dozen applicants, after narrowing the names down to three top choices and said that Surcy’s love for the game and the school helped with, and contributed to the final decision.
Shaping the outcome of the new season will also have a lot to do with Newsome. The Wolves are in a rebuilding year following a 5-5 record last year. The team beat Alonso but lost to district runner up Wharton. The Wolves are ready and hoping for another strong season as they are returning a solid lineup of players and a powerful offensive crew.
Riverview may have been in the shadows for the past few seasons, but with senior quarterback Keisean Young, the condenses are that the Sharks hope to shake things up a bit and are eager to get back in the competition.
When all is said and done, the two particular games to look for may very well be later this month by means of a rematch between Plant at Bloomingdale and Alonso at Newsome. Both games are scheduled for Friday, September 19. Last year, Plant beat Bloomingdale 50-40, while Newsome toppled Alonso 38-26.
For more information, visit www.maxpreps.com.
