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Quarterbacks beware: Sack masters at play

 
Clearwater Central Catholic’s Logan Miller is a veteran presence on a line with many new faces.
Clearwater Central Catholic’s Logan Miller is a veteran presence on a line with many new faces.
Published Nov. 27, 2015

The deeper teams get into the playoffs, the more they tend to match up with elite quarterbacks. But those guys under center might want to look out for these sack masters in the next round:

Plant City's prowess

After Plant City's 35-15 region semifinal victory against Tampa Bay Tech, there's now a video on YouTube entitled "How to Blitz." That's because, in Raiders coach Greg Meyer's summation, his senior linebacker Cory Cotnoir took everybody to school.

"He absolutely ran through an offensive lineman. And when I say ran through, I mean he got him on his (butt) and did not break stride," Meyer said. "Cotnoir has really come into his own with the pressure he's been bringing lately, and he's really done a phenomenal job."

But Cotnoir, who leads the team with 136 tackles, isn't the only Raider putting quarterbacks on the ground. As a team, Plant City has 57 sacks this season, with 14 Raiders having at least one and five with at least six.

Meyer said a lot of the sacks have been good matchups with his defender and the opponent. Sophomore linebacker Cody Cribbs had three of his team-leading nine sacks in a game against Strawberry Crest, and senior linebacker Josh Crowell had three in the win against Tampa Bay Tech last week, the Raiders' first region semifinal victory in school history.

The fact that he can move guys around in system and not be so predictable with where the blitzes are coming from, Meyer said, makes them all the more successful.

But when it comes down to it, the first-year head coach added, the Raiders' sacking prowess can ultimately be attributed to one thing: keeping it simple.

"It may look like we're doing some big thing to people who haven't followed us, but the roles and the concepts within our defense, we're a one-gap defense," Meyer said. "When a kid has an assignment, it's a single responsibility and allows them to attack it."

Quilty bulks up

By his own admission, Zack Quilty was a scrawny 180-pound reserve defensive lineman when he finished his junior year at Jesuit. College football coaches do not look at scrawny defensive linemen. Quilty, who has a 4.16 grade-point average, was smart enough to figure that out.

So during the summer he joined a Tampa gym called Cooper Speed Strength School. He worked out just about every day and was put on a 5,000-calories-per-day diet.

"Eating 5,000 calories per day is hard," Quilty said.

He started to put on weight and added muscle. By the time preseason practices started, Quilty was a 6-foot-4, 210-pound muscle-bound senior. He was ready to start on varsity for the first time in his career.

The offseason work paid off. He leads the Tigers with 12 sacks and has 80 total tackles. Quilty has started to get interest from schools like Harvard, Princeton, Stanford and the Naval Academy.

"Going from 180 to 210, I actually become a viable football player," Quilty said. "It's put me on the radar for the schools I'm looking at. I'm really interested in getting into an academic school. Football can help me get into a school like that, so it's the best of both worlds."

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Quilty said he plans to study engineering at whatever school he selects. Until then, he is focused on keeping Jesuit's unbeaten season (12-0) alive. Adding to his sack total against Fort Myers Dunbar on Friday night would help.

"I like getting through the line and getting to the quarterback," Quilty said. "Most of the time that quarterback is sitting back there throwing those long bombs. It's a lot of fun to get back there and hit him every once in a while."

Craving contact

Cambridge Christian's Richard Gouraige already has received plenty of accolades — and offers — as an offensive lineman.

The sophomore is rated by 247Sports as the nation's No. 6 offensive tackle in the 2018 class. He recently picked up offers from Kentucky and North Carolina to play the position.

But Gouraige also is a good defensive lineman. He plays on both sides of the line because he is too talented to take a seat in games.

For him, it's hard to pick a favorite position.

"I like playing offensive line because I get to pancake people and for defense I like getting to the quarterback and getting the sack," Gouraige said.

Gouraige said being an offensive lineman has helped him become better on the defensive side, especially with his technique. This season, he has 45 tackles and is tied for the team lead in sacks with 5.5.

He is also getting offers for his defensive play. Georgia extended one to Gouraige to play on both sides of the ball.

No matter where Gouraige lines up, there will be plenty of contact involved.

"I try to destroy anyone that gets in front of me," he said. "Like coaches say, 'Be the hammer instead of the nail.' I love the contact at my positions. I get to hit somebody every single play."

Leader of a revamped line

At the start of the season, Clearwater Central Catholic's defensive line was dealing with an overwhelming sense of loss.

Graduation took away nearly everyone. The only returning starter was Logan Miller.

Miller, a senior, has anchored the Marauders up front with his performance at practice and in games. He took it upon himself to be the leader on a group with plenty of new faces.

"I took a good amount of the leadership responsibilities being the only starter to come back from last year's defensive line, but when it comes to the quarterbacking of the defense as a whole we leave that to Max (Kligman)," Miller said. "I always try to be the leader when it comes to drills and the defensive line as a whole."

The stats are not flashy. No one is racking up a dizzying amount of sacks. But the line has been effective. Its ability to occupy blockers allows the linebackers and secondary to come up with most of the noticeable plays.

The line does get opportunities to get to the quarterback. With an explosive offense, CCC can pile on points and get big leads. That forces opposing teams to throw more often.

When the Marauders do get in the backfield, they can create havoc. Miller is tied with John Chiaramonte and Jerquan Newton for the team lead in sacks with six. Chiaramonte also has 25 QB hurries, while Miller and Newton have 22 each.

"I feel that we played really good as a group; we made a lot of plays this year and always kept pressure on the quarterback," Miller said. "As a whole, I think our defensive line played great for having all the new pieces."