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GREG AUMANPasco's win over Tampa in a summer game is source of inspiration, but tonight counts.
DADE CITY - For one team it will be a source of inspiration, for the other an irrelevant piece of information with no impact on tonight's playoff game.
But when Pasco travels to Tampa for a first-round showdown with No. 8 Jefferson, the Pirates will be buoyed by confidence from a 23-17 victory in July against the Dragons in a 7-on-7 summer passing league.
"I don't think it helps us from a playoff standpoint, but from a psychological perspective it's been enormous," first-year Pirates coach Dale Caparaso said. "Our kids know that we can run with these guys. Yes, they've got athletes, but we do, too."
Jefferson coach Mike Simmonds, whose team made it to the state championship game last year, puts as much stock on the passing league outcome as one might on losing a pie-eating contest.
"In my opinion, being a former lineman, 7-on-7 is no different from sandlot football," Simmonds said. "It's not an indication of football as a whole, because the linemen aren't involved." Simmonds is impressed with the Pirates, who seek their first playoff win in five years after running out to an 8-2 record in Caparaso's first season. He faced Pasco as a district rival in 1999 and 2000, winning easily both times, but said much has changed in three years.
"It's a lot different Pasco team than what we faced a few years ago," he said. "Their head coach does a great job of getting those kids ready to play. They're very diverse in their schemes, clean and crisp in their blocking and they run a high-pressure defense with a lot of blitzing."
Caparaso scheduled tougher opponents with his open weeks, bringing in Jacksonville Trinity Christian, ranked No. 1 in Class A, and playing a South Sumter team in the preseason. Jefferson has a dangerous back in junior Alex Suber, but Caparaso said the Pirates have faced a similar back all season in practice in Pasco's own Donte O'Neal, another dual threat to run and catch. More importantly, the Pirates have two players they didn't have at the end of last week's win against River Ridge: quarterback Cory Filley, who was feared lost to a torn knee ligament, and receiver Johnny Peyton, who was suspended from the game by Caparaso.
Filley's injury turned out to be a bone bruise, meaning the prolific passer - and starting linebacker - will play tonight, as will his favorite target, Peyton, who caught 11 touchdown passes.
"Peyton is a real special player," Simmonds said. "When I see him I see a player who has a lot of potential, who will have an outstanding career in college with his height, size and speed." Jefferson has high expectations for the postseason after coming one win short of a state title last season. Simmonds said his team won't feel any extra pressure because of their recent postseason success, though.
"The pressure is always there in a game like this," he said. "If you lose, you pack up your equipment and start Christmas shopping."
Caparaso's team has won three straight since a 33-14 loss to Wesley Chapel. "They feel very confident about our chances. You will not see a Wesley Chapel debacle again," he said.