Osceola literally played with one arm behind its back Friday, took it on the chin, and lost, 24-7, at Lake Mary.
Senior running back and UCF commit Taevion Swint took a helmet to the shoulder on his first carry of the night and wasn't the same, and Kowboys coaches shut him down after just a quarter when he gained one yard on four carries.
"When the focal point of your offense for that night goes down, and you have to rely on young guys who are in that spot for the first time," OHS Coach Eric Pinellas said.
While its junior quarterback and Notre Dame commit Noah Grubbs you come to see at Lake Mary, it was the Rams defense that put on a show Friday. Lake Mary kept the Kowboys from picking up a first down until midway through the fourth quarter, and OHS gained just 28 yards on 25 snaps through the third quarter.
“Our defense definitely rose to the challenge,” Rams coach Scott Perry said. “Their defense is on everybody’s radar, but we showed we’ve got a pretty good front as well.”
And that Osceola defense came to play as well. While Grubbs put up his numbers -- 18-of-31 passing, 203 yards and a touchdown, those were all off of his career averages, and linebacker Elijah Melendez picked him off in the first quarter. Rams running back Isaiah Thomas had just 4 yards on his first eight carries, and this was just a 3-0 game at halftime, with Osceola needing just one big play to get back in it.
But the big play didn't arrive until the Rams scored on their first three second-half possessions to take a 24-0 lead. Osceola broke up the shutout on its final drive of the game. Quarterback Camren West went 5-for-6 passing on the drive, hitting Alijah Jenkins, Zavon Gooden and Bralin Ware for first downs. After West converted a third down with his legs down to the 3, Jeff Sinophat scored from the 2 with 31 seconds left.
Pinellas said Friday was merely a setback in what he plans to be a long season -- with a playoff run. The Kowboys look to regroup next week at home against South Dade.
"Our defense played their butts off, I'm happy about that, and we'll be fine," Pinellas said.
