LAND O'LAKES - Defensive coordinator Al Claggett sat on the Land O'Lakes bench, taking a few moments to relish Friday's playoff win.
Claggett's face creased into a wide grin when defensive captain Scott Mays strolled past.
"Great game, son. Great game," Claggett said.
A similar scene played out in the waning minutes of the region semifinal. Greeting Mays on the sidelines after the defense held on Forest's fourth-down attempt was volunteer assistant Jason Carpenter, a 2001 Land O'Lakes graduate who, like Mays, played inside linebacker and fullback - and wore a blue-and-gold No. 40.
"He wears the number well," Carpenter said of Mays, adding, "he runs the defense. It's Drew's offense and it's Scott's defense."
There is no question Florida State signee Drew Weatherford directs the Land O'Lakes offense, just as there is no doubt about the Gators' defensive leader.
Against Forest, Mays had two tackles in the backfield, a handful of takedowns near the line of scrimmage and defended the middle on pass plays. But Mays, who had six touchdowns during the regular season, also helped alter the course of the game with two scoring runs.
"He's become a great offensive player for us," Claggett said.
In between keying a stalwart defensive effort that held Forest to back-to-back three-and-out sequences early in the third quarter, Mays ran for a 10-yard touchdown. That was the first of two touchdown runs, his 53-yard scoring run later capping an 11-carry, 81-yard effort.
"I didn't even get touched on the long (touchdown) run," Mays said. "I've never seen a bigger hole. I could have stopped, had a cup of coffee and run through. Our offensive line was spectacular."
While Mays' first touchdown run gave the Gators a lead they would not relinquish, and his long scoring run accounted for the final margin, the 5-foot-10 junior said the turning point was the defense forcing Forest to punt twice on its first two series of the second half.
While Claggett relays defensive signals into Mays during the game, he gives Mays leeway to tweak alignments. Against Forest, Mays noticed something Claggett missed.
"When they were going in an unbalanced set earlier in the game I didn't even know it, but he knew," Claggett said. "Scott saw it and got us in the right shift. That was a big thing."
That included limiting Roosevelt Ross, who rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown, to three yards rushing in the second half.
"Having a linebacker like Scott Mays, it's hard for someone to just take over the game," Weatherford said.
Another former Land O'Lakes linebacker watching from the sidelines Friday shook his head when asked about Mays' play.
"You know, Scott's going to be the all-American next year," said 2003 graduate Adam Denicourt.
