Sports

Preps

North Suncoast: Sunday morning quarterback

By IZZY GOULD AND DAVID MURPHY
Published October 21, 2007

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Mitchell, Wesley Chapel and Central are out of the playoffs. Ridgewood, Land O'Lakes and Nature Coast are on the doorstep. Everything else is up in the air. From injuries (Tevin Drake, Tate Humphrey), to illness (Travis Tindell), to single-season records (David Williams, Byronell Arline, Sean Scott), Week 8 had a little bit of everything. Here's a brief synopsis

Our predictions

Each Friday, staff writers Izzy Gould, David Murphy and a guest "celebrity" predict the outcomes of each game on the North Suncoast. Each Sunday, they'll look back at just how poorly they did.

Izzy Gould

This week: 11-1

Season: 60-17

Best pick: Zephyrhills to thrash Wiregrass Ranch 35-7, with Chris Henry running wild. The Bulldogs won 35-14, and Henry rushed for 156 yards and a touchdown.

Worst pick: Lecanto to beat Hernando 28-21. Not even close. The Leopards pulled it out 8-7 after trailing 7-5. The difference? Kicker Josh Harvey's 25-yard kick in the fourth quarter. He's 7-for-7 on the season.

David Murphy

This week: 10-2

Season: 57-20

Best pick: Murphy dropped some Hernando County knowledge, picking Nature Coast to upend Citrus 24-10. The final was 26-14, and the Sharks feasted on the run with 397 yards and four rushing touchdowns.

Worst pick: Gulf to win 35-28 over Hudson. Sorry, but riding the David Williams train will only get you so far. Try the Sean Scott bandwagon next time for 282 yards and three touchdowns.

John C. Cotey

Occupation: Times columnist

This week: 11-1

Celebrity pickers' season: 52-25

Best pick: Pasco to beat Sunlake 35-0. Cotey was dead on with the shutout, though the final was 42-0. But four of the Seahawks' seven losses have been shutouts, so it was by no means a stretch.

Worst pick: He called it an "upset special," with Mitchell taking down Wharton 29-26. We'll bet Cotey's the one who's upset this morning with the Wildcats keeping him from a perfect picks week.

Notable players 

Sean Scott
RB, Hudson
The gritty senior had his most carries (22) since Week 2, and responded with a season-high 282 yards and three touchdowns.

Hunter Newton
WR/LB, Hudson
Newton had a huge tackle of Gulf RB David Williams on the last play of the first half that prevented a touchdown and changed the face of the game.

Frankie Downey
S, Ridgewood
One of the more unheralded players on the Ridgewood defense, Downey's alert interception late in the game against Tarpon Springs lifted the Rams to a 34-28 win.

Chris Henry
RB, Zephyrhills
Henry ran for 156 yards and a touchdown in a 35-14 win against Wiregrass Ranch.

Blake Spinks
QB, River Ridge
Spinks threw for 202 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-21 loss at Springstead.

Mike Greco
RB, Springstead
Greco ran for 248 yards and caught a touchdown pass in win against the Royal Knights. 

Land O'Lakes' defense
Held Central to 115 yards (29 rushing yards) and collected five sacks in a 14-7 win while shutting out the offense.

Nature Coast's running game
Three running backs and a quarterback combined for 397 yards and four touchdowns. Eric Williams' 136 yards and a touchdown led the way.

[Last modified October 21, 2007, 00:38:07]

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