MANATEE HURRICANES
Head Coach: John Booth
District: 8A-6
2015 Record: 9-3
Offensive Formation: Spread
Defensive Formation: 3-4, with multiple fronts
RETURNING ATHLETES
Name, Height, Weight, Year, Info & 2015 Stats in parenthesis
• QB, AJ Colagiovanni, 6-0, 200, Sr. (2,500 yards passing, 21 TDs, 7 TDs; 457 yards rushing, 11 TDs; Class 8A FHSF 1st team All-State Elite Team)
• WR Tarique Milton, 5-11, 165, Sr. (50 catches for 855 yards, 8 TDs; 3rd team FHSF Class 8A All-State Elite Team)
• OL/DL Seth Walter, 6-4, 230, Sr. (2nd team All-Area Bradenton Herald)
• LB Garrett Ware, 6-1, 212, Sr. (55 tackles, 8 TFL, 1 INT, 5 PD, 1 FR, 1FF; HM FHSF Class 8A All-State Elite Team)
• DB Sir Williams, 5-9, 165, Jr. (21 tackles, 6 PD)
• DB Jacob Main, 5-6, 180, Sr. (48 tackles, 1 INT return for TD, 5 PD)
NEWCOMERS ON THE FIELD
Name, Height, Weight, Year, Additional Info in parenthesis
• RB Josh Booker, 5-11, 215, Jr. (1,132 yards rushing, 11 TDs at Sarasota in 2015; HM FHSF Class 7A All-State Elite Team)
• WR Shane Hooks, 6-3, 170, Jr.
• RB/WR Keyon Fordham, 5-9, 165, So.
• DL Keyvus Kendrick, 6-3, 200, Sr.
• CB Cedrick Waters, 5-9, 155, Jr.
• FS Jaylen Striker, 6-3, 190, Jr. (Transferred from Tampa Alonso)
• K Brandon Sweeney, 5-11, 150, Jr.
2016 SCHEDULE
* – denotes district game
• Aug 26 at Hewitt-Trussville, Ala., 7 CDT
• Sept. 2 vs. Palmetto, 7:30
• Sept. 9 at Venice, 7:30
• Sept. 16 vs. Alonso, 7:30*
• Sept. 23 BYE WEEK
• Sept. 30 vs. Steinbrenner, 7:30*
• Oct. 7 at Palm Harbor University, 7:30*
• Oct. 14 vs. Sarasota Riverview, 7:30*
• Oct. 21 at Riverview, 7:30*
• Oct. 28 at Newsome, 7:30*
• Nov. 4 at Southeast, 7:30
STORYLINES TO FOLLOW
• What will year three look like under John Booth? With the majority of players who played under legendary head coach John Kinnan having now graduated, the team is mostly built now around players who are used to Coach Booth’s style. With the goal for Booth keep the winning tradition going that was made famous under Kinnan, which he has done successfully so far, and given the talent surrounding both sides of the ball, things likely won’t change too much, if any at all, for Booth.
• How potent could the offense be? Highly potent could be a safe answer. With QB A.J. Colagiovanni back under center with a strong target in WR Tarique Milton that would be enough to say the offense will be potent. However, throw in Josh Booker who transferred in from Sarasota during the off season, the combination of plays to have be ran on any given Friday night, highly increases Manatee’s chances of scoring more touchdowns when they have the ball on offense this season. And it wouldn’t be surprising to see Colagiovanni throw for more than 2,500 yards again this season, while Milton and Booker both each top 1,000 yards at their positions.
• Get your pencils, er, pads ready, it is test time: Coach Booth’s ability to get his guys tested earlier on carries on the Manatee tradition and this year will be no different coming out of the gate. Armwood will be first up with the kickoff classic which will be at Joe Kinnan Field at Hawkins Stadium on August 19. The challenge of facing one of Class 6A’s (and 2015 state runner-up) perennial powers should give a good gauge of how well Manatee will be prepared to take on what could be one of the top teams in Alabama in Hewitt-Trussville for the Week 1 opener. The results of these two games will set the tempo that the Hurricanes will follow the rest of the season.
KEY NON-DISTRICT GAME TO WATCH
• Aug. 26 at Hewitt-Trussville, Ala. – Like we said in the storylines, Hewitt-Trussville is going to be one of the games that sets the tempo early for the Hurricanes. Given that this is a road trip going to into a neighboring state, this is not a game to write off even if the records the last few years show Hewitt-Trussville as a middle of the road team.
KEY DISTRICT GAME TO WATCH
• Sept. 30 Steinbrenner – This is really a toss-up given how volatile the district is looking past the Hurricanes. However, this might be the only team that could give the Hurricanes a run for the storm shelter, but it will all depend what Steinbrenner shows in the first five weeks prior or this could be another game that Manatee smashes through en route to another district championship.
THE OUTLOOK
The Hurricanes walloped Clearwater Countryside 56-17 during their spring classic at home, where they allowed all 17 points to come in the first quarter. However, in typical Manatee fashion they turned on the jets and never looked back. Colagiovanni was 10 of 14 passing for 144 yards and 2 TDs, while Booker finished with 181 yards on 15 carries with 3 TDs during the game, according to stats from Big County Preps.
Some notable losses, though for the Hurricanes include kicker Nickolas Null who was also handled punting duties last year for the team as well receiver Kavious Price who had nearly 900 total years last year, with 843 of those yards coming from the receiving end of things. However, those losses are off set with Milton being back and Brandon Sweeney taking over with the kicking duties for the Hurricanes.
Now given the success of the spring, there shouldn’t be much downside for Manatee this year despite Coach Booth telling us that the biggest weakness for the Hurricanes will be having to start some underclassmen who will need to gain experience. This is not alarming at all to us given how many times Manatee has started underclassmen with not much experience only to see them become leaders of the team.
Looking at the strengths Manatee will have great team speed on both side, with a strong outlook from the special teams unit. Overall, with the key positions having solid returners and the team having great leadership from the upperclassmen there is nothing for us to believe that Manatee won’t win another Class 8A-District 6 championship this year with a potential for a deep playoff run that is part of the Manatee way.
