Sunday morning quarterback

By BOB PUTNAM and BRANDON WRIGHT
Published September 9, 2007

Defensive player of the week

Brian Ackerman, Clearwater Central Catholic

Bobby Lyons hooked up with David Graziose for the winning score, but it was Ackerman who turned the tide. With CCC trailing 14-0 in the fourth quarter, Ackerman stepped in front of a pass and took it back 85 yards for a touchdown. The score breathed life into the Marauders and keyed their 15-point quarter.

Offensive player of the week

Brynn Harvey, Largo

Somewhere inside the mind of every running back, there's a game like the one Harvey had against Palm Harbor University. Behind his hard-nosed running, Harvey led the Packers to victory, rushing for 264 yards and five touchdowns.

It's been two weeks of football games, and Northeast's Jeff Brinson and Largo's Brynn Harvey continue to dominate the county - both scored five touchdowns in their respective teams' wins. Not to mention, there are nine Pinellas teams still undefeated. Join us to see what else happened Friday night.

Other Week 2 notables

Tarvin Jones, Keswick Chr.: Jones scored twice, returning a kickoff 83 yards and hauling in a 38-yard reception.

Daniel Speake, Northside Chr.: Speake reached the end zone on runs of 59, 18 and 74 yards.

Ethan Englebert: Englebert had a 8-yard TD run, a 35-yard field goal and converted 5 of 5 extra points.

Josh Burch, Admiral Farragut: Like Jones, Burch scored on a kickoff return (82 yards) and a reception (8).

Kevonta Brown, Gibbs: The senior tailback not only returned a fumble 53 yards for a touchdown, but also rushed for 101 yards.

Josh Brown, Dixie Hollins: The elusive quarterback ran for a score and threw for two more in a loss to Northeast.

Jack Shroeder, Shorecrest: He had a hand in all three of the Chargers' touchdowns, scoring twice on receptions and once on a run.

Luke Loucks, Clearwater: The senior quarterback threw for 423 yards and two touchdowns against Seminole.

Adaris Bellamy, Dunedin: He shined with 149 yards rushing and three touchdowns against Seminole.

In a rush

After two games, Northeast's Jeff Brinson and Largo's Brynn Harvey are on track to break Dexter McCluster's county record of 2,490 yards in a season. Here are there totals after two games.

Brinson

Week 1 385 yards 6 TDs

Week 2 316 yards 5 TDs

Total 701 yards 11 TDs

Harvey

Week 1 246 yards 1 TD

Week 2 264 yards 5 TDs

Total 510 yards 6 TDs

McCluster

Week 1 222 yards 4 TDs

Week 2 292 yards 3 TDs

Total 514 yards 7 TDs

By the numbers

4 County teams that were shut out Friday night.

3 Running backs who scored three or more touchdowns.

5 Defensive touchdowns scored.

8 County teams that scored 30 or more points.

9 County teams still undefeated.

Five things to watch

1 Who will win?

Pinellas Park and Seminole have struggled this year. Both teams play each other Friday for a chance to get that elusive victory

Stretch run

This is the final week before district games begin. Some of the big matchups are Gibbs-Northeast, Tarpon Springs-East Lake and Shorecrest-Keswick Christian.

Special teams

Each week, coaches preach the football aphorism that special teams can make the difference in games. It did Friday for plenty of teams There were four kickoffs returned for touchdowns, two punt returns for touchdowns and another score off a blocked punt.

4 Passing fancy

Most of the buzz so far has been with the rushing performances of Northeast's Jeff Brinson and Largo's Brynn Harvey. Lost in the mix is Clearwater quarterback Luke Loucks, who already has thrown for than 600 yards and four touchdowns in two weeks.

5 Coaching debuts

Of the county's four new coaches, Northeast's Jay Austin and Gibbs' Yusuf Shakir have had the best results. Both are undefeated and face each this week. The other two coaches, St. Petersburg Catholic's Tod Creneti and Canterbury's Steve Dudley, are searching for their first wins.

[Last modified September 8, 2007, 23:22:06]