The Plant City Raiders made their way to Polk County last Friday for a preseason contest against the Lake Gibson Braves, ultimately falling short in a 31-21 final.
As former defensive coordinator Terrence Hicks led Plant City out for his first fall game as head coach, the Raiders would start the game on defense as Lake Gibson fell back to field the opening kickoff. A huge opening return from Lake Gibson set the Braves just past midfield to begin their first drive, starting the series with a short completion, a short run up the middle and a quarterback keeper up to the Plant City 37-yard line for a first down. A pair of runs on first and second down left the Braves facing a third-and-three but an offside penalty on the Raiders’ defensive front moved the chains for Lake Gibson, putting the ball inside the Plant City red zone at the 19. Another quarterback run set the Braves up with a second-and-five at the 14 but a high snap over the quarterback’s head provided Plant City with a massive break as it pushed Lake Gibson all the way back to the Raiders’ 36-yard line. A sack from Plant City’s sophomore defensive lineman Temarce Miller brought an end to the Braves’ drive but a stellar punt left the Raiders’ starting their first possession backed up all the way to their own one-yard line.
On the first drive with new quarterback Chris Denson at the helm, a junior transfer from Mulberry High School, the Raiders’ moved right down the field. Following an incompletion on the option pass, Denson found running back C.J. McClain on a swing pass up the right side for a 15-yard gain up to the 16 and a first down. The next series started with a carry from another new addition to this year’s Plant City’s squad in Tony Marshall, a junior transfer from Tampa Bay Tech, good for three yards. Denson rolled out to his right on second and seven – taking off for a two-yard gain – and Marshall broke free up the middle for a 14-yard gain on third-and-five to give the Raiders another first down. After an incompletion on first, Marshall wasted no time moving the chains with another strong run up to midfield. A sack on the ensuing first down and a one-yard run left Plant City backed up on the next series, facing a third-and-11, but Denson showed off his athleticism as he escaped pressure in the pocket and scrambled for a first down at the 39. And on the very next play Marshall struck again with a wild run, breaking tackles and making men miss as he took the Raiders all the way down to the eight-yard line, but they were unable to cash in for six as they settled for a field goal attempt that was ultimately blocked – forcing senior kicker Bach Tran to jump on the loose ball and give possession back to Lake Gibson all the way back at the Plant City 38.
After a long Plant City drive, Lake Gibson opened their second offensive opportunity with an incompletion and the Raiders looked to blow up the Braves’ drive quickly with a huge sack from junior defensive end Donta Jenkins, but a facemask penalty ultimately wiped out the impact play as the ball moved up to the 40. Lake Gibson nearly moved the chains with a four-yard completion on third-and-five and the offense stayed on the field for fourth-and-one where a quarterback run got the Braves the distance needed, but a forced fumble recovered by defensive back Maurian Hugee turned the ball back over to Plant City at the Lake Gibson 47.
A first down run from Denson moved the Raiders right up to the 39 and a personal foul for a late hit on the Braves gave Plant City an extra 15 yards, setting them up right outside of the red zone at the 24. A completion to sophomore receiver Haven Pierce moved the Raiders up to the 14 and a completion over the middle to senior Zykee Joyce put Plant City on the board as they took a 7-0 lead with just seconds remaining in the first quarter.
But just as quickly as the Raiders could take the lead, Lake Gibson punched right back. Following a kickoff return to the 28, a first down run went for no gain before the Braves unleashed a huge 72-yard touchdown pass over the middle to knot the game up at 7-7 just 12 seconds into the second quarter.
The rest of the half remained scoreless as both teams were unable to find pay dirt on their remaining pair of drives in the second quarter, sending the game into halftime still tied at 7-7.
Plant City returned the second half’s opening kickoff to the 25 but were unable to move the chains as they punted back to Lake Gibson on fourth-and-eight just three plays later, and the Braves immediately broke off a huge return to set them up inside Raiders territory at the 30 – moved up inside the red zone with an extra 15 tacked on to the end of the play due to a personal foul. With excellent starting position, the Braves wasted no time cashing in for their first lead of the game as a bubble screen moved them inside the 10 to the seven-yard line and a carry up the middle scored for six as Lake Gibson took a 14-7 lead with 10:02 in the third.
Plant City returned the ensuing kickoff to the 30-yard line but things quickly went from bad to worse as Lake Gibson’s defensive back jumped the first down pass and took it to the house for a pick-six, extending the Braves’ lead to 21-7 in an instant.
Plant City opened their next drive at the 41 and a pair of carries from Marshall left the Raiders with a third-and-five, picked up with a completion across midfield from Denson to wide receiver Josh Gueh. Backed up to second-and-15 on a false start following the first down incompletion, Plant City once again couldn’t overcome the setback as they punted back to Lake Gibson two plays later.
And on the ensuing drive, starting at their own 38, Lake Gibson marched down the field. Making their way down inside the five-yard line to the three, the Raiders’ defense stood strong at the goal line and forced a field goal as the Braves lead crept out to 24-7 with 1:25 left in the third quarter.
Both offenses were quiet for much of the fourth quarter, up until Lake Gibson broke free for another explosive play as they extended their lead to 31-14 on a huge 73-yard rushing touchdown with 5:34 left in the contest. But Plant City would keep fighting. With less than a minute left in the game the Raiders worked their way up to the Lake Gibson 25-yard line, facing a second and eight when Denson lofted a 50-50 ball up for one final score — hauled in and narrowing what would eventually mark the final score to 31-21 with six seconds remaining.
“The offense moved the ball well, we just couldn’t capitalize in the red zone at times,” Hicks said after the game. “But the quarterback and the offensive line showed very good flashes. I liked the play calling from the offense, we just have to finish drives.”
Despite the loss, the outcome means nothing in the long run and served as valuable experience for both a first-time head coach in Hicks and a roster that will deploy some new faces in crucial offensive roles — most notably in Denson at quarterback, Marshall at starting running back and junior transfer Josh Gueh at receiver.
“I saw exactly what I expected from those guys, contributing,” Hicks said. “We’re not even gelling all the way yet so it’s only going to get better.”
Despite several years of experience on the sideline as both a player and a coach, Friday’s contest was Hicks’ first opportunity as head coach for a full fall football game. He spoke about the experience and what that moment was like.
“It was more controlling emotions than anything else,” Hicks said. “We have to control our emotions. When the emotions are high the undisciplined side of kids comes out, so it’s hard coaching sometimes while also dealing with that, so we just have to continue building our team culture.”
Plant City will open their regular season this Friday at home against Newsome before making their way to Wharton in Week 2, Hicks’ alma mater and his final coaching stop before joining Plant City’s staff last year.
Across town, both Strawberry Crest and Durant came away with shutout victories in their preseason games as the Chargers beat Brandon 27-0 and the Cougars thrashed Freedom 42-0. Crest will open their regular season on the road against Spoto on Friday while Durant will unveil their brand new turf field and several additions to their athletic facility while also honoring the school’s 2003 Regional Championship football team as they begin their season at home against Chamberlain.