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Wiregrass Ranch pushes for more than just a taste of success

 
Quarterback Grant Sessums returns to compete for a spot on the starting lineup.
Quarterback Grant Sessums returns to compete for a spot on the starting lineup.
Published May 3, 2017

WESLEY CHAPEL — Bettering a best-ever season promises to be difficult for the Wiregrass Ranch High football team.

Stressing how difficult it is may prove to be one of coach Mark Kantor and his staff's, well, most difficult challenges.

"We can't rely on our laurels. That's not good in football. If you rely on your laurels, you'll be 2-8 in no time," he said after an up-and-down spring practice Monday.

Kantor's first Bulls team, after he did a tremendous job at Hudson, went 2-8 in 2015 before going 7-2 last regular season for the school's second-ever playoff trip.

There's too much talent, notably led by top-flight Division I-A prospect Jordan Miner, for the Bulls to trend backward. But Monday's session served as a reminder that better effort is required to build on last year.

Players were instructed to repeat sprints at the end, for not completing them all the way through. Overall the coaches, while stressing the Bulls are now a winning program, drilled the message that half-hearted effort won't be accepted.

"The target's on the back now," Kantor said. "People want to come and get their revenge like we did last year."

It was a year that saw the Bulls stagger Mitchell, which advanced to the second round of the 6A playoffs, by a 45-6 score. Early on Wiregrass took down Zephyrhills. The losses were to Sunlake, in a game where the Bulls couldn't overcome a horrible start, and to eventual state runnerup Plant.

Though they made the playoffs as district runners-up, it was off to another perennial playoff power, Lakeland, and a 43-20 defeat.

Here's where another tricky angle to repeating, or hopefully bettering, last year's success comes in. The Florida High School Athletic Association's new playoff system for football stresses strength of schedule, along with overall record.

So finishing second in Class 7A, District 8 won't be enough. Of the five teams after Plant and Wiregrass, no one else had a winning record last year and opponents' records come into major play with the new system. After the four district champs in Class 7A, Region 2, the other four playoff teams will be determined by points.

A win over an 0-10 team will still count more than a loss to an unbeaten. But there's no use taking the risk of lining up a bunch of cream puffs, so Kantor smartly beefed up the early (non-district) schedule with Zephyrhills, Wesley Chapel and Sunlake.

To round it out, after the six district games Wiregrass Ranch will finish at Auburndale — a game that may boost them into the playoffs.

"With this new system, you have to play guys who are in the playoffs, to be able to get the points," Kantor said.

To get ready, Kantor scheduled Tampa Catholic for the May 19 spring game, and the fall preseason encounter will be against annual state contender Clearwater Central Catholic.

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Biggest issue between now and then? Replacing a mostly departed offensive line — and sorting out the quarterback situation.

Gone is Chris Faddoul, who signed with Florida A&M. Competing for the starting job now are returner Grant Sessums and Carrollwood Day transfer Raymond Woodie.

"Both are gonna see playing time. We might have a rotation," Kantor said. "We're still a multiple I (formation), a little spread, all those things — we'll look the same. We've got two valuable guys and both are gonna see playing time."

Sessums is a traditional dropback passer while Woodie is more of a running threat. Kantor said Woodie has been "very coachable" and is "progressing very well" as they work on his throwing mechanics.

Whoever takes the snaps will be turning around and handing off plenty to Da Da McGee, who ran for more than 1,000 yards as a junior.

"We have to replace a whoooole lot of up front, but we've got great skill guys coming back," Kantor said.

Miner, fellow big-college/defensive back Shamaur McDowell, FB/DT Chase Oliver, C Alex Sherman and new influence WR Jacob Hill form a big core of strong leadership.

And Kantor said Miner, a rising senior who has a dozen big offers including from the likes of Alabama, has been "level-headed" about the whole recruiting process.

Now, back to drilling into his players' heads that getting back to the playoffs won't be easy.

"We gotta get better," Kantor repeats. "Like I said, you can't live on your laurels."