DarterBlue2
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Posts posted by DarterBlue2
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Unless Apopka has some serious players that recently transferred in, I just don't them that high. If they are that good next to the listed teams above they are a top National 50 team. Period.
We don't have any serious transfers in. What we have are players that will bring a season or more's experience to the table; that and no real weakness except, possibly, at Quarterback. I expect this year's Apopka team to be one of their best ever, right up there with 2001 and 2012, and would be disappointed if they don't make a deep, December run.
The only thing I see stopping this is if they don't gel as a team. If they do, the talent is there to win the State title. We have our best secondary since 2001, a solid replacement for Martez Ivey on the offensive line; good, experienced line backers and a solid defensive front. On the skill side of the offense, we have a stable of backs that should pile on the yards and a few kids that can catch it. I really feel good about Apopka's chances this year, and am glad that we are not highly touted entering the season.
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Does apopka still runs that funny offense?
This year, Apopka's offense will look more like 2012 than 2013-2015. Yes, the Single Wing will still be a part of their package. But you will also see a spread package and possibly some power I. Apopka's chief weakness, as far as I can tell, is that we won't have a true Quarterback ready from day one. With that said, I think Burch's arm is going to be better and there are two kids in reserve that have good potential.
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Sorry to say this, but Columbia is going to have a long drive up the Turnpike and I-75. No hatin, but unless they are championship caliber they are going to get blown out!
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I heard Apopka is still not sniffing their 2014 State Chapmionship form.
Apopka is better than 2014. This Apopka team is as good, potentially, as both 2012 and 2001. If there is any weakness it is at the QB position. But I expect them to throw it better than last year.
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1. St. Thomas Aquinas
2. Miami Central
3. Apopka
4. Mainland
5. American Heritage Plantation
6. Take your pick!
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I Would Have To Go STA 35-21 but in all honestly I want to see this Matchup in The Regular Season Where it Counts Soooooo Bad.
STA & Mia Central needs To stop playing With these patty Cake schools who they know there Going to beat by 40 & schedule Each Other. & a Few others as Well lol
It depends when they meet. I could see a different result for an early season game versus a mid-season or end of season game. In any case, it would be a good match-up. I would be tempted to drive from Orlando to see it.
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8A?
in The Huddle
.... It's all on the kids and parents .... Darter what's up my ute? Lol (I know you got me in age but I just love saying my ute to my bedrens)
I wish! Last time dem call mi a yute was back in the early 1980s. But i appreciate it! An a can still perform betta than some a dem yute, if you know wa me mean.
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8A?
in The Huddle
I agree with some of this DarterBlue2 but I do not see the unfair advantage other than loads of transfers. Considering STA has struggled (and loses several games in recent years) against 8A SFL teams in recent years it may be fair to say they may get knocked off every other year in SFL 8A postseason. Line up something like Miramar, Deerfield Beach, Flanagan and Columbus every year and I doubt they are beating those teams consecutively year in and year out. The facts are outside of Dwyer and Lakeland in recent years, 8A SFL top teams have been the most competitive versus STA. That said STA is somewhat at a disadvantage in their path to states versus Apopka because they generally would be playing slightly better teams than what Apopka plays to get there.
And I agree, to a point, with what you say above. STA has had issues with Deerfield Beach and Miramar in the regular season. And, I daresay if they ever lined up against Apopka, Darlington would have a game plan and would not just roll over. With that said, they do have a manifest advantage over all the public high schools they would run into. Short of getting an all star team from your area, you are just not going to put as much talent on the field on a regular basis. With at least Deerfield, I think their success against STA is as much psychologically driven as anything else. The kids from DB know they have had success and do not go in intimidated. So yes, certainly, STA can be beat. However, I still don't like the inherent advantage they enter the game with. I can deal with a Central, Northwestern or some other public power having a five year run against me. For I know, sooner or later, some of their talent will be going somewhere else. I just have an issue trying to beat a team year in and year out that comes to the game already on second base each year.
I would love to see STA line up against Apopka say mid season in the regular season this year. However, I am not sure I would want Apopka to be playing them in December.
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8A?
in The Huddle
I would never want STA to be in the same class as Apopka. They have a manifestly unfair advantage. I feel less strongly about Central. For while they are dominant now, as a public school the tide will shift to another school in due course.
But no such restraint on future dominance exists where Aquinas is concerned. They have the philosophy and the financial resources to dominate year after year, in any class they compete in. At the very best, an Apopka, with its talent base, would be able to compete against them maybe once every twenty seasons.
The elite privates, STA, IMG, etc. should have their own league much as the do in New Jersey, Ohio and certain other states. Or like IMG currently does, they should play a national schedule and not play in the regular playoff system for the rest of us. Either that, or totally open up recruiting which is the direction we seem to be going in anyway. But if that is the route we take, it won't help the public schools from smaller cities and rural areas as much as in most years they would not be able to assemble the talent to compete against an STA type program anyway.
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It started with the death of Christina Friday night and ended in the wee hours of Sunday morning with the horrific deaths of 50+ individuals.
This is a far cry from the sleepy city I came to live in 25 years ago. May those that suffered loss take comfort in the passage of time. May we as a people take time to be introspective about life and its meaning ...
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Congratulations! Hope your relationship with the young lady is a long and happy one.
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Had to say a few words on this. My first consciousness of Ali was on the February night in 1964 when he won the Heavyweight title for the first time. I was in a bus in Kingston, Jamaica that night when a loud cheer erupted from some of the passengers. You see, ever since Joe Louis was champion, Jamaicans would listen to all the major fights in the USA on the radio. Being just 8 years old at the time, I had no earthly idea what all the noise and excitement was about. Little did I know that it was the beginning of one of the greatest reigns in professional sports.
Not only was Ali a great champion in his chosen sport, but his actions outside the ring, whether you agree with them or not, were a hallmark in personal conviction and courage. I know, some have attacked him as a draft dodger. I believe they miss the point. For certainly, had he done a tour of duty he would have never seen combat action. No, he would have been used as a "marketing tool" in support of a war that he thought was unjust. Whatever your view on this matter, one thing is certain. The man had the strength to walk away from financial gain in support of what he believed. To me, that more than any of his ring exploits, defines the man, Muhammad Ali.
RIP Champ. I did not always agree with you, but I will forever respect you.
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Sounds like we will have a massive challenge when we have to travel to Apopka for kickoff classic
Apopka looked in mid-September form in their Spring games. Now that may mean little or it may mean a lot. If the latter, any team short of a Nationally ranked top 25 one will have a challenge. The thing is, with its blend of youth and experience, they should get quite a bit better if they don't get plagued with injuries. I realize that Orange City University will be a challenge, but at this stage, I would make the Darters favorite to win the Northernmost bracket of 8A and face an Osceola/Manatee/Dr. Phillips/Vero Beach in the North semi-final.
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Well spring is over. I will go on record as not having seen many teams live. The only games I went to were: Boone/St. Cloud, Colonial/Evans, Apopka Blue and White game, and Apopka/Osceola/Lake Gibson jamboree.
1. Boone/St. Cloud - this game was called at the half with Boone leading 21 to 0. The game was actually closer than that but St. Cloud shot themselves in the foot by turning the ball over when they were driving well, and giving up a couple big plays. I could see both teams being above .500 but doubt they will have good post seasons unless they make rapid improvement. St. Cloud has some good athletes but seem to need an identity.
2. Evans/Colonial - Colonial has been a perennial Cinderella with only one winning season in the past 17 or so years. Evans was once a Central Florida power but has spent the past decade plus mostly in the cellar (there have been a couple good seasons). This was actually an interesting, entertaining game. While it is clear that neither team is devoid of talent, it was hard to determine whether it was interesting because they were both pedestrian or whether they could both make a little noise. Evans has a decent quarterback and a good kicker. Colonial has a talented tailback and a decent secondary. Beyond that, I guess as the season plays out, we will see whether either or both have turned the corner.
3. Apopka Blue and White game. This game had a great turnout considering it was an inter-squad scrimmage. There were north of 500 individuals at the Pop Warner fields at the North Recreation athletic complex fields. Considering that the venue is well north of Apopka's main population center and it was just a scrimmage, the turnout exemplified what I truly like about Apopka football: it is well supported by the community. I meant to comment on this game earlier, but held off, as while I thought it was entertaining, very competitive and played at a high level, I felt I should see them against external competition before saying what I think the season holds for the 2016 Blue Darters. The final score was Blue 21 white 6. Which leads me to,
4. Osceola/Lake Gibson/Apopka. This jamboree was played at Osceola's Kowboy stadium and was originally meant to be just Apopka vs Osceola. Lake Gibson joined the festivities when their spring game fell through and the staffs at Apopka and Osceola agreed to having them participate. Prior to last year, Apopka had had a great run of three consecutive state finals winning two. By those standards 2015 was disappointing with an exit in the second round of the playoffs. Osceola made it to the state final last year losing a fairly competitive game, while despite falling off a little the past few years, Lake Gibson has generally been a quality, playoff team which has had the misfortune in the past 15 years of dealing with teams such as Armwood and Lakeland standing in the way of a title. So, the match-ups were attractive. The format for the jamboree was: three halves of play as follows: First, Osceola vs Lake Gibson; second, Lake Gibson vs Apopka; and, finally, Apopka vs Osceola. The results were: Lake Gibson 13, Osceola 0; Apopka 28, Lake Gibson 6; and, Apopka 14, Osceola 3.
Osceola/Lake Gibson - This game was more competitive than the final score. Both teams moved the ball well on offense at times and both defenses made some quality plays at times. Osceola at this stage is not the team they were last year. Still the Kowboys look the part physically and have a good, stable coaching staff. So a good season is not out of the question. Both Lake Gibson touchdowns were on big plays: a 60 yard pass down to the 8 followed by a QB keeper for the score, and about a 50 yard run on the last play of the game. This is the first time in several years I have seen LG play, but I think they have a decent shot of at least being a playoff team.
Apopka/Lake Gibson - Lake Gibson had never seen Apopka's offense before and it showed. Apopka raced to a 28-0 lead before the middle of the second quarter, brought in its back-ups and gave up a late touchdown. The first touchdown was set up by an interception near mid-field. Apopka quickly drove downfield and scored easily. The second touchdown was off a blocked LG punt that Apopka recovered in the end zone. The final two touchdowns were scored off impressive drives by Apopka as Lake Gibson had a lot of trouble with Apopka's misdirection offense and team speed.
Apopka/Osceola - Apopka quickly raced to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. Osceola scored a field goal early in the second after being first and goal inside the 3 yard line early in the second following a long run that got them deep into Apopka territory. Apopka's defense stiffened and Osceola had to settle for a field goal after being pushed back to the 19. The rest of the quarter was mostly a defensive affair but at the end Apopka ran out the clock, taking a knee inside the Osceola 6 yard line, following a long drive.
Observations - This is a very promising Apopka team with a good blend of offensive and defensive strengths. While it may not be chock full of D1 studs, it has more than its fair share of talent. The backfield is loaded, the offensive line is solid and they have a few guys that can actually catch the ball. And, glory be, they actually throw it more than the customary two time per game. On defense, the line is solid, the line backers are good and they probably have their best secondary since 2001 when Brandon Meriweather anchored it. If there is any defensive hole it is that the short pass in the flats will always be there due to the aggressiveness of the linebacker corps. But that is just they way Apopka plays its defense and I feel this issue will be offset by most quarterbacks being pretty hurried against the aggressiveness of the defense.
Needless to say, I quite optimistic about the prospects for this Blue Darter team. Unlike last year when I was a skeptic from the beginning, I am cautiously optimistic that if this team does not suffer many injuries, and if it bonds together, it should make a deep playoff run and at least get to the semi-final game and probably beyond.
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Well, Evans fell hard last evening, losing to Olympia 6-2 in the District final. This gives them a road game against a decent Lake Mary team. In two meetings with Olympia, the results have been lopsided both times, with Evans winning the first 6-3 and losing the second 6-2. The truth is that both teams are a lot more equal than either score suggests. Both games reflected runaway momentum in the second half. In the first Evans came back from a 3-0 deficit to score 6 unanswered goals. In the second, after a 1-1 score at the half, Olympia blew away Evans 5-1 in the second half. It is likely both will meet again in the District semi-final, as I think Olympia takes Lake Brantley easily next week and Evans has a good chance of beating Lake Mary on the road.
The third meeting, if it occurs, will hopefully better reflect the relative strengths of both teams.
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Soccer fell 2-1 in district semi-finals to lose out on a playoff spot
Sorry to hear that. Oak Ridge got shocked by Timber Creek, a team they beat 6-3 in the regular season. So they are done. Evens is in the District Final tomorrow and makes the Regional tournament regardless of the outcome.
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Great write up of your trip!
I found the food part most interesting (not just because I like food), because of both the rice and seasoning parts. Very interesting tidbits on both.
Thanks. China is a very interesting place. I would highly recommend a visit to anyone with the time and resources to make the trip. If the union produces children, that will probably be my next visit.
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thats some good insight there darter, keep us up to date how they do in playoffs, columbia soccer started and appeared that they would overacheive and at one point beat leon out of tallahassee which routinely has very good soccer programs, but second haft of season we fell apart and i beilive our season ended if i remember correctly but going from losing record last year to plus .500 a huge step, hopefully they continue to get better
Actually, the way it works in soccer you will still get a chance to play in the district tournament. However, you are probably a low seed with the losses. So the chance to come out of it and into the regional tournament is probably slim as you will have to beat the number one or two seed in the district to get to the semi final and finals.
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For the first time since I have lived in Central Florida, the only unbeaten men's soccer teams in the area heading into the District tournaments which take place this week are: Oak Ridge and Evans, both of which are 17-0-2. Both Oak Ridge and Evans are what you would consider "inner city" schools (although neither started out that way), comparable in many respects to: Central, MNW, Ely and Dillard in South Florida. Historically, both have sucked at soccer, where the dominant teams in Orlando have been either suburban: e.g. Winter Park, Lake Mary, etc. or largely Hispanic: e.g. Cypress Creek or University. In recent years, West Orange, a middle to lower middle/working class school has also made some noise on the pitch. Nowhere to be found would have been Evans or Oak Ridge which routinely had losing records.
I often wondered why both did not make some noise as a fairly large percentage of the kids from these two schools have Caribbean roots (Haiti, Jamaica, etc.), as well as a decent Hispanic presence. Well after both doing decently last year, this year they have risen to the top, at least through regular season play. It is interesting to note that Oak Ridge's head coach, Kenneth Courtain is actually a South Florida guy who was a member of the Green Bay Packers team in the early 2000s. (That's right, the American brand of football.) I am not sure how he ended up coaching soccer but he has done a heck of a job, and having watched them twice, I would say they are the most explosive team in the area (picture some of the better Central athletes taking to the game). Evans on the other hand, is coached by the due of Bornacelli (a member of staff) and Claude Davis, a volunteer who spent about nine years in the English Premier league. Last year they were coached by an alum Eli Jean who took them from a cellar dweller to a contender in the course of three years. Evans's style is slightly less physical than Oak Ridge and relies a bit more on finesse, coupled with overall team speed.
Both teams are dangerous and if they come out of the district competition as I expect them to, could go very deep in the playoffs. By some quirk, being in Regions I and II, respectively, they could in theory, meet in the state championship game based on how the state series is set up.
I realize that one of the reasons for their success is the fact that some of the better kids at the traditional powerful schools have given up high school for club soccer. Neither the Evans nor Oak Ridge kids have that luxury, as there is no one to pay for them to play. Still, credit must be given to the staffs at both schools for the great job they have done this year.
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Welcome Back Darter! Glad to see you back home and joining us once again! Feel free to see what has been going on with football as well!
It is good to be back. Although I have been back four days now, some of the effects of jet lag are still with me. If you ever get the chance, China is certainly worth a visit. I really enjoyed the trip.
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In case any of you have wondered, I have been absent from this board due to being out of the country for most of the last four weeks. Over two of those weeks were spent in mainland China, where my younger son lives and works. So no, I have not abandoned the board due to the end of football season, though I fully admit I have way less to contribute with respect to basketball. However, I do plan to post my comments and observations on basketball, and other off season sports from a Central Florida perspective over the next several weeks. I will begin my reemergence, though, with a brief description of my trip to foreign shores.
For the past five and a half years, my younger son has lived in the far east, first in Thailand and now in mainland China. He went to Thailand to to satisfy his curiosity of things Asian and pursue graduate studies. From Thailand he moved to China to pursue a woman whom he believes to be the love of his life. I shall let time decide the wisdom of his move, but for now China is his home. As a parent it is with mixed feelings that you view your child ending up on the other side of the earth: On the one hand you want him or her to be happy; on the other, you realize that if they are you will be forever be separated by more than 10,000 miles. And, even in this highly technological age, that distance has its effects on even the strongest relationships. Anyway, this post is about observations gleaned from the trip which I lay out below.
The purpose of the trip was to attend my son's wedding ceremony.
The trip from Central Florida to China spans 13 time zones and, depending on the route taken, involves anything from 17 to 23 hours of flight. This is by far the longest trip I have ever taken in my life. My time in China was mostly spent in the east central city of Wuxi (pronounced Wu Shee). Wuxi, despite being largely unknown in the west, is a large city by any standards with approximately 6.4 million people. We embarked from Orlando and arrived in Shanghai, via San Francisco. Pu dong airport in Shanghai, despite being quite old, is very modern and very large. My first observation there was the extreme efficiency with which passengers on my flight were whisked through immigration and customs. the authorities there do an excellent job of staffing up/down depending on traffic volume.
After clearing immigration/customs, I am very impressed with the overall layout of the airport itself. I am also relived that all signs are in both Mandarin (the country's official language; there are many languages and dialects in China) and English. After retrieving our checked baggage, we were met by my son, together with old friends who made the trip from Jamaica. The drive from Shanghai to Wuxi was approximately 2.25 hours, most of which were on a six lane highway. The road conditions were quite good; however, as it was past dusk I did not form an impression on the surrounding countryside.
We stayed at a Ramada in Wuxi. In the states, the Ramada brand name is in the same range as the Best Westerns of the world (mid to lower end, sometime decent, sometimes not, hotels). Apparently in the far east, the chain has a more upscale status, more akin to a Hilton or Marriott property. The check in process went smoothly; however, I found the mattresses to be much harder than they are here in America. The following day we go out and about and I find a bustling city with Dade County traffic volume. Two striking observations relate to: 1. The number of motor bikes and bicycles on the road (much more than in any urban US city I have ever been to); 2. The overall lack of respect for following the traffic laws. Thus, even when on the sidewalk, I quickly determined that you have to be very careful as bikes and motorbikes routinely use them to circumvent traffic jams and occasionally cars choose to drive on them in the quest to find scarce parking.
Wuxi, unlike Shanghai, does not have much western presence. Therefore, I quickly learned what it must feel like to be a functionally illiterate adult. You see signs and from looking you have an idea what they mean; however, you really don't know for sure,as you do not read the language. To compound the problem, I was also dumb as I had little facility with the spoken language. Fortunately, my son has learnt a lot in the time he has lived there and found the time to make several trip with us.
The food: The Chinese seem to eat anything that walks or grows. The food there is not for the squeamish. It bears little resemblance to either the Chinese food I have eaten in the USA or Jamaica. In fact, in a strange sense, some of it resembles more mainstay Jamaican food: chicken feet, fish soup, dasheens, cocoas, sugar cane, etc. Although rice is a staple, when you are a guest, the host does not serve it unless it is specifically requested. The reason has to do with the fact it is cheap; so it is considered an insult to serve it to your guests. In terms of taste, the food is well seasoned. So you need to like hot, salt and sweet or you are in trouble. At the dinner table, you are not served an individual meal. Rather, several dishes with meats/fish, vegetables, fruits, ground provisions (potatoes, yams, etc.), pastries, soups, nuts, etc. are served and each person takes what they want (usually via the use of chopsticks). Not only does this tend to make one overeat, but it also creates a bit of a hygiene issue as for seconds, used chopsticks are inserted into the dishes. Overall, eating with my Chinese hosts was a very interesting adventure.
The culture: China seems to be a rough place. It is not for the faint of heart. Provisions for the very young, old and the disabled largely don't exist. Thus, it was not unusual to see children riding in the front of bikes with their parent navigating rush hour traffic. And for the old and disabled, they need help from family members, friends or good Samaritans or they cannot cross the streets or get up multiple flights of stairs. Individuals will just walk through you as if you don't exist if you are walking too slowly or are talking in public space. Another strange thing I noted was the proliferation of ads for "adult services", despite their illegality with some of these ads placed within 100 feet of a police station. Which leads me to another comment. While the communist party dominates the country, it largely seems to leave individuals alone in their personal lives. at least to the extent they are not deemed subversive. Thus, in some respects on an individual level, the common person there enjoys a degree of individual freedom that in the west would be subservient to the concerns of others. Smoking is largely tolerated in most social settings and even where banned, many individuals seem to ignore the law. Along the issue of law abidance, at the Airport waiting to return to the USA, we were approached by a number of (shall we call them vendors), trying to sell us everything from various high end electronics to perfume to accessories. One particularly persistent "vendor" handed me a note in perfect English indicating he had: stolen the items from immigration. Too funny! This has never happened to me in any airport anywhere I have traveled before.
Shopping: Everyone in China seems to be a hustler. In all but the most high end retail outlets, everything is negotiable. You would be stupid to pay the asking price unless very pressed for time. There were several instances where my wife, who has much better bargaining skills than me, got stuff at less than 50% of face. At one shopping venue, which consisted of retail space for hundreds of small vendors, we were approached by three young children (two girls and a boy), all under 14 whose parents lease retail space there. These youngsters were very friendly, spoke decent English and were not afraid to accompany strangers. This is so unlike the experience here where all young children are told to be wary of strangers. They were a good resource helping us find what we wanted at some of the cheapest prices in the area.
The wedding ceremony: First let me say they were legally married in November some six weeks before the actual wedding. A traditional Chinese wedding bears no resemblance to its western counterpart. For one, the attire is totally different as both the bride and groom wore mostly red. It works as follows. The groom must leave his parents house (or his place of abode), march to his bride to be parents' house with servants (to carry the bride in a carriage), musicians and entertainers in tow, as well as other participants in the wedding (groomsmen, etc.); at the parents's house, he must knock on the door, answer a series of questions satisfactorily, and then and only then, like his bride out to the carriage; she wears a veil all this time so her face is not exposed. They then march back to the parents house where she serves them tea. From there there is a procession to the wedding feast which is presided over by an MC. There are various contest, singing and a lot of food and drink. The whole process lasted about six hours from around 10 am till 4 pm.
Overall Reflections on China: In many respects China was a combination of a large USA City and my early life in Jamaica. Its infrastructure (roads, bridges, airports, public transportation), is remarkably good. On the other hand, life is hard for many Chinese and they are a tough people. They eat their fish whole with bones and head intact much as is done in many third world countries. Ride in the back of trucks and on the back of bikes without any kind of protection and just do a lot of things for themselves that those in industrial countries no longer do. On both an individual and collective level, I would not take them lightly. Whether they are the country of the 21st century or not remains to be seen. But I certainly respect them as worthy opponents. There is currently a push to become a world soccer power within the next decade and I think they have a chance as they have a systematic plan to do so. Pollution and overall air quality is a big problem in the country, but the government acknowledges this and there are moves being made to address it. I don't know if they are sufficient and in time, but they do acknowledge it.
I found the experience poignant. If things work out for my son and his bride, they will probably make their life there. It is a long way from Orlando, Florida, and I will miss him. However, each of us has one life to live (as far as we know), and must live it as we see fit. That is the essence of what it is to be truly free.
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Elijah Williams, former Head Coach at Oak Ridge, just got the Jones job. Williams did a good job as a coach at Oak Ridge, transforming them into a winning program and playoff threat. A lot of talent at Jones, the trick is to keep it on the field.
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Basically I would love to see more interdistrict match ups from north central and south teams.... Like how Carol city went to Lakeland or how some of the Dade teamed been going up to Jacksonville and vice versa.... It would be good for the State....
Totally love this idea. In 2008/2009 a good Miami Jackson team came to Apopka twice. One game was competitive the other not so much. Since them a couple other Dade teams have made the trip (North Miami Beach, Hialeah Miami Lakes?) but they were down. I would love to see Apopka take on, if not a Central or BTW, at least a Carol City, Norland or Miami Northwestern, or American Heritage again. It could be a home and away to make it fair. This kind of mid season match up would clearly provide a guide as to how competitive each of these teams would be deep in the playoffs and, perhaps, give insight into what needs to be done to be battle ready.
Preseason top 25 large classes (5-8A)
in The Huddle
Posted
Assuming Apopka makes it to the title game would love to see them take on Southridge. That is a team with some history that has not been dominant in awhile. Back in the 1990s Southridge was elite.Does Flanagan still have Bush as HBC? Even if they don't look the part now, I think he is a good coach and I would not be surprised if they had another deep playoff run.