20 GAMES TO WATCH: Madison County at Tampa Catholic

20 Games To Watch – Week 1

WHO: Madison County Cowboys at Tampa
WHEN: Friday, 7:00 PM
WHERE: Crusader Stadium, Tampa
RECORDS (FROM 2012): Madison County, 12-2; Tampa Catholic, 8-4

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Madison County: OL Vincent Dimenna, Sr., LB Brice Hamilton, Sr., QB Akevius Williams, Jr., RB Jamond Bruton, Sr.
Tampa Catholic: OL Corey Martinez, Sr., LB Tre Watson, Sr.,  WR/DB Justin Motlow, Sr., QB Kyle Ploucher, Sr., RB Kenny Bryant Sr., RB/LB T.J. Harrell, Sr.

QUICK HITS

Madison County: The Cowboys struggled last week against a surging Suwannee team during their preseason opener, but manage to pull of the win. In all reality this group of Cowboys is younger than last years team that lost a big offensive lineman, Ira Denson to graduation. Now the younger players must step up to the plate and fill in the holes. However, with the way Coach Mike Coe has led his team over the last few seasons the Cowboys should be looking like a state championship caliber team by the end of the season.

Tampa Catholic: Tampa Catholic posses three highly talented Division I players that have offers already, but more could emerge during the season. New Head Coach Mike Gregory is no stranger to the program and he is getting this team to prepare for a possible state title run in 2013. Overall, for this game Tampa Catholic has the advantage with the level of talent it has on its roster.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

1 – The number of classifications Tampa Catholic is playing down. Tampa Catholic’s enrollment during reclassification matched Class 4A enrollments, but geographical isolation kept them in Class 3A.

9 – The combined number of state finals appearances Madison County and Tampa Catholic have made.

108 – The average amount of yards Tampa Catholic QB Kyle Ploucher threw per game last season.

THE RANKINGS

Madison County is ranked #3 in the Class 4A Super 6 while Tampa Catholic is ranked #4 in the Class 3A Super 6 to start the season. Both teams are ranked in the Florida HS Football Media Poll – Small Schools Division to start the season with Madison County at #3 and Tampa Catholic at #18.

WHAT COULD HAPPEN

This game could go either way, but then maybe not. Looking at Tampa Catholic, the talent level is a lot better on paper, but Madison County has been known to beat great teams with far more talent than they have. However, with that said with Madison County having a younger roster, the clear advantage swings towards Tampa Catholic in this game.

ADVANTAGE: Tampa Catholic