CRYSTAL RIVER - Pirates quarterback Kyle Daquanna still wasn't sure if he wanted to quit the football team when he left for school on Tuesday. Daquanna was still debating during third period when he replayed the past two years in his mind.
The issues:
A concussion that left Daquanna staggering Friday in a 41-10 loss to Dunnellon. Making tackles as a safety. A 63-0 opening loss to Belleview (after a 34-18 preseason loss to Williston). A shoulder that won't stop hurting. The possibility of getting hitting so hard it stops his ability to be a pitcher in baseball.
It all rolled up into one nagging thought:
"I honestly didn't want to play this year," Daquanna said.
So on Tuesday, he quit.
"We'll deal with it," said Pirates coach Craig Frederick, adding that sophomore Shay Newcomer will now be their starter. "There's nothing you can do about it you just have to move on. It's his choice, we'd like to have him, but we'll still play without him."
Last spring Daquanna said he wasn't going to return, but his father (Patrick) and Frederick convinced him otherwise. He thought this team would be different from last year's 2-8 squad which was outscored 234-72 after adding the option to its offense.
But it wasn't.
"It's not the team," Daquanna said. "It's not the hit. It's not any of that, Losing was a factor but it wasn't the main reason. I just really don't want to play anymore. I'm not having fun. I don't have the desire and when you start getting like that you start doing things that aren't going to help anyone."
Frederick said he gave Daquanna the choice of just playing one position, instead of on special teams, at safety and quarterback.
"I didn't want to do that because I know if I want to play one position, I want to do it all," Daquanna said. "And I want to win."
Daquanna called the Belleview game the worst of his life, and the last three his longest. All weekend long he debated his options.
"I couldn't even pick up my shoulder up at all," the senior said. "All I could think is I don't want to be out there, and what if I finish out the season, and my shoulder shatters, then I've ruined baseball too."
Daquanna's father said he didn't take his son to the hospital Friday but did wake him up every two hours to make sure he was okay. While Pat Daquanna would rather have his son play football, he said he knows his son needs to protect himself.
"It's sad, because these kids do try hard," Kyle Daquanna said, later adding, "I've never quit a sport before. I don't think of this as quitting, I'm just stopping. I hate to do it, but in this situation I think it's better."
