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Chiles, Rickards beat Leon
By Mary Beth Bishop
DEMOCRAT STAFF WRITER Three Tallahassee teams battled cramps as much as each other, as Chiles and Rickards posted victories over Leon in a high-school football jamboree at Cox Stadium on Friday night.
The teams each played two halves, with the first match between the Timberwolves and Raiders ending in a 6-6 stalemate.
Both teams showed promising passing games, with Rickards quarterback Verterris Bryant throwing a 22-yard touchdown pass to running back Rudell Crim.
The Timberwolves' John Moore nailed a 22-yard pass to Alex Corder, but it was senior running back Bryan Hartsfield who put Chiles on the board with an 80-yard touchdown run.
Chiles head coach Jodie Sprenkle was pleased with the intensity in his players.
“It's so hard to get these kids to kind of turn the switch on and play football, we've been playing against each other for so long,” he said.
The Raiders were plagued by cramps in their second half of the night, but that didn't stop their late rally against Leon. Seth Walker kicked a field goal with seconds to go as Rickards claim a 10-7 win.
“We had (cramps) early on in camp and we started pumping bananas and Gatorade, and I think we just need to go back and do it again this week,” Rickards head coach Everett Blakely said.
Leon quarterback Spencer Godfrey dove into the end zone to score the Lions' only touchdown, while Sam Bradley and Josh Olmann led the Lions' defense.
“We've got to work on some things,” Olmann said. “We're going to come out to practice on Monday and work out hard.”
Rickards' Donte Payne scored for the Raiders with minutes to go, while Crim and Deronte Burgess also showed a strong running game.
“Tonight was a good blueprint to show us what to work on,” Blakely said.
The final match of the night between Leon and Chiles resulted in cramps for the Lions and a 9-6 win for the Timberwolves.
Chiles quarterback John Moore tossed a 37-yard touchdown pass to receiver Melvin Ray midway through the first quarter to put the Timberwolves ahead. Chiles later capitalized off a bad snap by the Lions, adding a safety to make it 9-0.
With seconds to go in the second quarter, Leon's Godfrey threw a pass to tight end DeJuante Collins for a touchdown, but the extra-point attempt was blocked.
“The thing I liked is I thought our kids fought the fight,” Leon head coach Wade Rollinson said. “I thought they fought hard and I didn't think they gave up on each other.”
