Preps

Armwood 26, Jefferson 9

Senior Eric Smith plays several positions and makes key moves to keep Armwood unbeaten.

By JOE SMITH, Times Staff Writer
Published September 29, 2007

TAMPA - Armwood senior Eric Smith was the Hawks' Mr. Versatility on Friday night.

The 6-foot, 225-pound bruiser lined up as tailback, fullback and slot receiver in the Hawks' 26-9 win over Jefferson. He even made his debut as punter (filling in for injured Wesley Skiffington).

And for one critical play, Smith played head coach.

He called a fake punt late in the third quarter, scampering for 17 yards down the right sideline to set up one of his two second-half touchdowns in a game closer than the score indicated.

Smith's last score - a 1-yard rumble - came with 13 seconds left. Every one of his 101 yards was hard-earned against a Dragons defense that finally found its swagger.

"We were tired of getting beat," said Jefferson linebacker Gorby Loreus, who had 20 tackles for the second straight game. "We played with a chip on our shoulder. We wanted to send a message to let Armwood know that they're beatable."

Not if the Hawks' (5-0) dominating defense has anything to say about it. Armwood held Jefferson (1-3 for the first time since 1998) to 70 yards of total offense (minus-24 on the ground).

The Dragons' lone touchdown came early in the fourth on a botched punt by Smith near his goal line. Jefferson's Jamil Crews recovered to cut the lead to 19-9.

After that, the Hawks defense stole the show. The linebacking core - Petey Smith, Casey Callahan and Chris Greene - have been their biggest game-changers, along with defensive end Ryne Giddins, who picked up his ninth sack in five games.

The Hawks head into district play - they travel to Tampa Bay Tech (4-1) next week - having given up 280 yards of total offense in their past four games.

"We want to be better than the 2000 (Armwood defense)," Petey Smith said. "They gave up 215 yards rushing all season. We want to top it."

And how did Petey's brother, Eric, top his night of versatility?

Rumor has it, he drove the team bus home.

Armwood 26 Jefferson 9

[Last modified September 29, 2007, 01:16:07]