By J. Daniel Pearson
For the News-Gazette

Gateway High School continued its march towards its best football season in school history, dominating Cypress Creek, 28-0, on Friday at the David Ridenour Athletic Complex.

“We really came into the game not knowing what to expect,”  Panther Head Coach Marlin Roberts said.  “Although Cypress Creek is rebuilding and came in at 1-5, they play a lot of tough Metro schools and frankly they looked pretty good on tape.  I was really proud of how our guys played hard for four quarters.”

Gateway, 6-1, used a terrific running attack to dominate the game.  Senior Zachary Smith rushed for 192 yards and a pair of touchdowns.  Overall, the Panthers outgained Cypress Creek on the ground, 262-49.

“It’s frustrating to me that I’m having a hard time getting college scouts to look at Zachary,” Roberts said.  “I think he’s the top running back in the county and I know he could play somewhere at the next level.  He’s a great player, a great back and a great person.”

The game started off slowly for Gateway.  After playing to a scoreless tie in the first quarter, the Panthers finally got on the board midway through the second quarter, taking a 7-0 lead on Smith’s 10-yard touchdown run.  The drive covered seven plays and 53 yards, with Smith picking up 33 yards on five carries and Isaiah Wharton adding 20 yards on a pair of carries.

Gateway missed a chance to take a two score lead on its next possession.  Following a missed field goal, Panthers quarterback Anthony Rodriguez  hit Smith on a 46-yard touchdown pass, only to have the play negated by an illegal formation penalty.  But the Panther defense forced a quick three and out to get the ball back at midfield with less than two minutes to go.  After Rodriguez picked up 12  yards on a scramble, Cypress Creek was called for a late hit, setting up the Panthers at the Cypress Creek 23.  Rodriguez  found Brandon Lakins on a pass play to make it 14-0 at the half.

Cypress Creek tried to make a game of it in the second half when Arthur Jordan returned the opening kickoff to midfield and the Bears  put together their most impressive drive of the game by picking up three first downs to the Panthers 18-yard line.  But the Panther defense held on downs to end the threat.

Gateway used two quick-strike touchdowns to put the game away.  Taking over at the GHS 35 after a punt, Smith took a direct snap out of the wildcat formation, faked a handoff to Wharton and blasted off the left side for a 65-yard touchdown run.

The Panthers would need just one play on their next possession to make it 28-0.  After recovering a fumble on the Cypress Creek 24, Rodriguez  hit a streaking Louis Rodriguez down the left side for his second touchdown pass of the game.

Gateway’s defense limited Cypress Creek to just 140 yards of total offense, while forcing a turnover and recording five sacks.  Of Cypress Creek’s offensive total, 88 of those 140 yards came on three pass completions from quarterback Carl Bronislawski to wide receiver Isaac Cenescar.

The Panthers matched their six-win total from 2004, when the team played in the Osceola Scholarship Bowl. Before that, the team last had a winning record in 1988.

The Bears fell to 1-6 after the non-conference tilt.

“I can’t lie and say I’m not happy about where we are right now as a team,” Roberts said.  “We have some excitement among our student body and within the community.  The important thing is for us to keep pushing forward.”

The Panthers host winless Celebration (0-7) Thursday in a 7A District 6 game. 

“We’re going to hammer into our kids that it doesn’t matter who we are playing next week and we can’t afford to overlook anyone,” Roberts said.  “We have six wins now but a district opponent is standing in the way next week of a seventh win.”