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Land O'Lakes facing tall order
By JAMAL THALJI, Times Staff Writer
LAND O'LAKES -- Gio Benedetto will get his wish Friday night. "We're going to meet Joe Cohen," the Land O'Lakes safety said after his Gators' 20-14 region semifinal playoff win. Yes, they will get to meet the 6-foot-2, 240-pound Cohen, one of the nation's most highly-touted football recruits and ranked 10th nationally by Rivals.com. They'll also get to meet 6-foot, 175-pound safety Reggie Nelson, ranked No. 43 by Rivals.com. And all of the other highly recruited, explosive athletes that make up Melbourne Palm Bay's roster. For in the biggest game in Land O'Lakes football history, the Gators may face the toughest challenge in the state playoffs: A dominant, speed-rich Palm Bay team was once ranked No. 2 in the nation by USA Today. "They might be the fastest overall high school football team that I've ever seen," said Mitchell coach Scott Schmitz, whose Mustangs lost 47-14 to the Pirates in the opening round of the 4A playoffs. "Film doesn't do justice to them. When you looked at the film the first thing that jumps out is their skill people, and how fast they are. But they seemed a lot quicker than that when we played them." But Schmitz said Land O'Lakes may have one advantage: a superior line. He called Gators coach John Benedetto on Monday to talk strategy with the coach. "They are very athletic," Benedetto said. "But we really feel as though we are as good, maybe a little better, on the line of scrimmage. We'll have to contain their speed, though, they have big playmakers." Said Schmitz: "I always believe you stop speed by controlling the line of scrimmage. I think Land O'Lakes matches up very well with them up front. I really do. I think Land O'Lakes is just as good as their people are up front." But if those speed athletes get loose, watch out. Cohen has rushed for 949 yard and 14 touchdowns this season, averaging 9.8 yards a carry -- more than a yard shy of his 11 yards per carry average as a junior. Then there's Nelson, who leads the team with 152 tackles, 42 assists and seven sacks. He has 214 yards rushing and four touchdowns. Which isn't to say that Palm Bay, ranked No. 6 in the state 4A poll, is unbeatable. The Pirates started the season 0-2, losing 17-10 in overtime to Edgewater and 20-19 to Miami Carol City. But both those foes are Class 6A powers. Edgewater scored first in overtime, then dropped Nelson on a 1-yard run to win it. Against Carol City, Cohen fell 6 inches shy of the goal-line on a two-point conversion attempt with 30 seconds left. And the Edgewater loss dropped Palm Bay out of USA Today's national prep poll. Since that 0-2 start, the Pirates have won 10 straight to reach the Class 4A, Region 2 final, averaging 44.5 points a game and scoring more than 40 points five times and more than 60 twice. Palm Bay has given up an average of 6.4 points a game while notching four shutouts. And they like to talk smack. So do their fans. The trash talk has already begun on Internet message boards, courtesy of Pirates' boosters.
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