High Flying Falcons Swoop Into Bears' Den

Next Friday's regular season opener at Tom Fisher Memorial Stadium against host Hernando initiates Central High's 20th varsity gridiron season.

The final tune-up for Class 4A-8 CHS takes place at 7:30 p.m. tonight at the Bears' Den against the highly touted Class 5A-9 Dunedin Falcons.

The Pinellas County squad dominated last fall's Kickoff Classic at home behind a 28-point second half, 35-7.

Last season, the Falcons finished 7-5 overall, capturing their second straight district title. DHS downed Gibbs in the opening round of the state playoffs, 31-17, before being eliminated by Largo, 31-0.

Bellamy's back

Central's defense permitted an uncharacteristic 416 yards total offense against the Falcons including a whopping 369 yards on the ground on 29 attempts. That's almost 13 yards per carry.

Running back Adarius Bellamy tallied two of the Falcons' five rushing touchdowns.

Bellamy, who has verbally committed to USF, returns for his senior season after accumulating 1,900 yards last fall.

"It's not so much about the opponent," explained third-year Central Head Coach Cliff Lohrey on his team's approach against the talented Falcons. "It's more about getting the kids to play fundamental football. We want to see who wants to play by getting after it."

What about Bellamy?

"They've got a kid in the backfield (Bellamy) who can go to the house," described Lohrey, the county's defending two-time Coach of the Year. "What we have to remember is we're playing Dunedin High School, and not just (Adarius) Bellamy."

On the plus side

On the positive side, Central returns a county-best four starters in the trenches along its offensive line and four defensive line starters.

The bad news?

Central's skill positions were ravaged by graduation losses. In fact, 93 percent of last year's offensive production is gone including 2 1/2-year starting quarterback Chase Walker.

Eight of Bears 10 All-County All-Stars packed up after commencement exercises.

Untested and unproven players stretch from quarterback, wide receiver, running back, slot back, the linebacking corps and secondary.

For instance, senior quarterback Dallas Waugh has been in the CHS system for three seasons, but he's never made a varsity start until tonight.

Plus, the county leader the past few seasons in special teams retains only its long snapper (Jesse Flowers) but needs to replace its punter, place kicker, holder and Special Team's Player of the Year, Jeff Wright, who scored four times.

Outlook?

What does Coach Lohrey expect in the glorified scrimmage?

"We're definitely looking for our defensive unit to step up as a whole," shared Lohrey. "As a team, we need to hit somebody else. It's a different feeling when you're lining up against another team. We need this (exposure)."

Depth-wise?

"We've got some depth at some positions," added Lohrey. "But we don't have depth at every position."

Look for the varsity players to square off for the first three quarters before the junior varsity kids take over in the fourth quarter.

What's the mood of the club?

"We're like everybody else," Lohrey said. "Last week's inclement weather cost us two days of practice. But we told the kids we can't dwell on what we can't control. I am confident that we will be ready to play for Hernando. This whole week is not about Dunedin, it's about (preparing) for Hernando."