Citrus sidelines

Compiled by GREG AUMAN, CAREY FREEMAN and KEITH NIEBUHR

© St. Petersburg Times, published October 20, 2000

Trenary gets looks from the big boys

Crystal River quarterback Clayton Trenary is getting a decent amount of attention from some of college football's most storied programs.

Miami, Michigan and Michigan State are among the schools that have shown interest.

Trenary and his father, Bo, recently attended the Florida State-Miami game courtesy of the Hurricanes.

Bo, who played football at Southwest Miami High School in the late 1970s, is a lifelong Hurricanes fan.

"I asked around and nobody could get me tickets," Bo said. "A couple of people told me they could get them, but they wanted $50 and we didn't know where the seats were.

"I was like, "We're not doing that,' " he said. "And then we got a letter (from Miami) that said "Come on down.' "

At the game, Clayton and Bo ran into Hernando running back Dee Brown, who was a Miami guest.

Brown's father, the late Jerome Brown, was a standout defensive lineman for for Hurricanes in the 1980s.

Clayton Trenary, a 6-foot-1 190-pound junior, likely will be an NCAA Div. I-A recruit next year.

It wasn't the time for a running clock

With Hernando trailing South Sumter 33-0 last week, officials asked Leopards head coach Bill Browning if he wanted to use a running clock for the game's final eight minutes.

His response may not have the historical resonance of Gen. Anthony Clement McAuliffe's "Nuts!" reply to a German request for surrender at the World War II Battle of the Bulge, but it was important for Hernando.

"I thought it was extremely important," Browning said.

"They asked me if we wanted to go with a running clock and I said, "Absolutely not.' I thought we needed to poke one over on a good defense -- just for a confidence boost," Browning said.

The Leopards lost 33-6, but their late score ended an eight-quarter touchdown drought and a 19-quarter shutout streak by South Sumter.

"I had a determination in my mind," Hernando quarterback Ozzie Whitten said. "I was going to stop that little streak."

Whitten's 11-yard TD pass to Chase Copeland in the final minute did just that.

Wentworth showing them in the Show-Me state

Former Crystal River standout Justin Wentworth, a sophomore at Missouri Valley College in Marshall, Mo., is making quite an impression.

Wentworth, who started at middle linebacker from 1996-98 at Crystal River and now plays outside linebacker, leads MVC's Vikings with 48 total tackles, 26 unassisted tackles and 5 tackles for loss.

Plus, he has a fumble recovery, 2 quarterback pressures and 1 pass breakup.

Missouri Valley (3-3) is tied for fourth in the Heart of America Athletic Conference, a 10-team league whose members compete in the NAIA.

"Justin is doing an excellent job at outside linebacker in our 4-3 defense," Vikings coach Dan Stanley said.

"Justin knows football, and he knows everything we are trying to do. His technique is probably the best on the team," Stanley said. "He is also a very coachable kid that knows how to play team football."

5 squads among nation's elite

Five Florida teams are ranked nationally in the FOX Fab 50.

The highest-ranked of the group is Lakeland, which checked in at No. 7 in this week's poll.

The Dreadnaughts, last year's Class 5A champions, have won 52 consecutive regular-season games.

Tallahassee Lincoln (No. 17), Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas (No. 26), Fort Lauderdale Dillard (No. 38) and Belle Glade Glades Central (No. 49) are the state's other teams in the poll.

Lincoln (6A), St. Thomas (4A) and Glades Central (3A) are the defending champions in their respective classifications.

Fort Lauderdale is one of three cities to have two ranked teams. The others are Tulsa, Okla., and Warner Robins, Ga.

The predictions by Times writers

GREG AUMAN: Crystal River 49-6; Central 31-13; Hernando 24-13.

CAREY FREEMAN: Crystal River 35-6; Central 28-13; Hernando 28-6.

BRANT JAMES: Crystal River 40-0; Central 38-0; Hernando 39-0.

KEITH NIEBUHR: Crystal River 35-7; Citrus 21-20; Hernando 30-6.

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