Tough teams make district a tricky one

Playing in a district that is extraordinarily large and extraordinarily competitive makes title shots that much tougher.

By RICK GERSHMAN

© St. Petersburg Times,
published October 26, 2001

Talk about a tough district.

Virtually anywhere else in the state, if a team wins five district games, it probably has already earned the district title. At the very least, it has locked up second place and the playoff spot that comes with it.

Chamberlain, however, still has no guarantees.

The Chiefs, winners of six straight after opening the year 0-2, have a perfect 5-0 record in Class 5A, District 6. They pulled out a tough win against district power King and handled the heavy offensive firepower of defending district champ Gaither. They have done everything coach Billy Turner could ask over the past six weeks.

Yet, they have to do more.

Despite all of their accomplishments, the Chiefs still could miss the playoffs. A win tonight over visiting Hillsborough High assures the Chiefs a district championship and a playoff berth with home-field advantage. A loss puts everything in jeopardy. Blame the district, which is extraordinarily large (seven teams) and extraordinarily competitive.

Chamberlain controls its own destiny, but it has to beat a very tough Terriers team to do so. Last year, Hillsborough rolled over the Chiefs 34-3. Expect tonight's game to be much more competitive, as Chamberlain offers up a host of strong running backs and a defense that has allowed just 22 points over the past five games.

If Hillsborough wins tonight, it will create a three-way tie between Chamberlain, Hillsborough and King. Then, the district title will be determined by a tiebreaker. If the tiebreaker is needed, the three teams reportedly would play it as early as next week. First place means a district title. Second place means a playoff spot. Third place means no post-season. Chamberlain would like to avoid a tiebreaker entirely by taking down the Terriers tonight.

Elsewhere, one North Tampa team got an early start this week: Alonso was scheduled to play King on Thursday night. Results of that game should appear in the main sports section of today's paper.

As for tonight's contests, all games begin at 7:30. Here's the breakdown:

HILLSBOROUGH TERRIERS (7-1 overall, 4-1 in Class 5A, District 8) at CHAMBERLAIN CHIEFS (6-2, 5-0)

LAST YEAR: Hillsborough beat the Chiefs 34-3.

LAST WEEK: Hillsborough routed Leto 42-0; Chamberlain edged King 16-12.

THE LOWDOWN: Everything is on the line for both of these excellent teams, which should make this one of the best games in the state tonight. True, Chamberlain looked somewhat unpolished and shaky last week, likely because King was the first really good team the Chiefs had played in more than a month. Now that the rust is gone, expect a better effort against Hillsborough, which has dangerous speed on both sides of the ball. Chamberlain's defense faces a formidable challenge: The Terriers have scored at least 38 points in each of its seven wins.

THE EDGE: Hillsborough has a hair more talent, but Chamberlain has the emotional edge. The team that guts it out in the fourth quarter will take it.

GAITHER COWBOYS (5-3 overall, 2-3 in 5A-6) at WHARTON WILDCATS (3-5, 1-4)

LAST YEAR: Gaither won 47-14.

LAST WEEK: Gaither defeated Alonso 42-0; Wharton fell to Armwood 35-21.

THE LOWDOWN: After opening the season with two victories, Gaither has alternated between losses and wins each week. The Cowboys are coming off a win, so that means Wharton has good timing, especially to play at home. However, Gaither likely has too many weapons to fall to the Wildcats: Five Cowboys rushed for TDs last week. They should fare well against a Wharton defense that has allowed an average of 375 rushing yards the past two weeks. The Wildcats opened the year on a three-game win streak but have not won since.

THE EDGE: Gaither's backs grind out the yards and grind up the 'Cats.

LETO FALCONS (2-6) at ST. PETERSBURG CATHOLIC BARONS (6-1) LAST YEAR: Did not play.

LAST WEEK: Leto lost to Hillsborough 42-0; Barons routed Berkeley Prep 48-13.

THE LOWDOWN: Can't the Falcons catch a break? Even when there's a tiny private school on the schedule, it turns out to be a fiercely competitive crew whose only loss was to still-undefeated Jesuit. Granted, the Barons haven't played particularly tough teams, but they have won convincingly, scoring 38 or more points in five of their wins. To have a shot, the Falcons need to hold on to the ball: They turned it over six times against Hillsborough.

THE EDGE: The Barons rule this land.

SICKLES GRYPHONS (1-7 overall, 0-4 in 4A-8) at ARMWOOD HAWKS (3-5, 0-4)

LAST YEAR: Did not play.

LAST WEEK: Sickles lost 35-7 to Plant; Armwood beat Wharton 35-21.

THE LOWDOWN: One of these teams will finally win a district game tonight; smart money is on the Hawks. While Armwood has fallen a long way in this rebuilding year, the 2000 state semifinalist retains enough offensive firepower to overcome struggling Sickles. The Hawks' record truly is deceiving: They lost three straight mid-season games by a total of five points. Sickles has been shut out three times and scored more than 14 points only once, against first-year Alonso.

THE EDGE: Armwood makes the most of opportunities like this.

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