Springstead rules the Ranch

For a team that nobody expected to advance so far, who better to make a major impact than a player nobody would have figured?

Springstead rolled past host Wiregrass Ranch in Friday night's Class 4A, Region II quarterfinal, dominating in every facet en route to 40-8 victory.

The Eagles (6-5) are bound for the regional semifinals for the second time in team history, thanks in large part to running back Jeremy Junod.

Sure, stars Brian Beeker and Devean Huff performed as expected, combining for a startling 303 rushing yards and having a hand in two of the team's touchdowns.

But considering Junod had 12 carries for 30 yards and one score in the regular season, the junior running 14 times for 77 yards and twice reaching the end zone stood out.

"I wouldn't have expected that," Junod said. "I thought I'd come in and set all the blocks for the team, but I got the ball a lot. My line was amazing. They're a great group of guys.

"We wanted to open up the playbook a little more, instead of just always going to the fullback (Huff), and I guess we did that tonight."

In addition to the offense's four touchdowns and two Cody Emmerman field goals (23, 31 yards), the defense had a score of its own while limiting the Bulls (6-5) to minus-3 yards on the ground and 136 yards of total offense.

By comparison, Springstead had 508 yards of offense, 425 of it rushing, and 24 first downs.

"The defensive staff did a tremendous job of being prepared for Wiregrass," Springstead Head Coach Bill Vonada said. "The second week (of preparation thanks to a bye last Friday) helped us.

"Offensively, we were able to get the third head of the monster, Jeremy Junod, involved."

Striking early

On their very first drive, the Eagles set the tone, methodically going downfield. An 11-play, 89-yard possession was capped by Beeker rolling to his right and finding Taylor Minter open for an 11-yard score.

In the second quarter, Emmerman's field goals sandwiched a 69-yard touchdown run by Huff (21 carries, 158 yards), as Springstead scored on 4-of-5 possessions in the first half to lead 19-0.

Junod, who also had a 21-yard reception, truly left his mark in the third quarter, finding the end zone from 18 and two yards out on consecutive drives.

"That was one of the things the bye week helped us out with," Vonada said of Junod's increased role. "Running the option takes time. Having the extra week allowed us to tweak some things, get him more reps and that was the difference."

Beeker complimented Huff and Junod registering 145 yards on 15 carries, and connecting on 6-of-10 passes for 83 yards.

Wiregrass Ranch finally dented the scoreboard in the fourth quarter on a 51-yard pass to Nick Lomba from James Tringali. Antwan Prince hauled in Tringali's toss on the two-point conversion.

Later in the final period, the Eagles actually fumbled the ball away near the Bulls' goal line for their lone turnover of the night.

On the very next play, Tom Hyde forced a Tringali fumble in the end zone that Dylan Gearhart pounced on for the game's final touchdown.

Senior defensive lineman Lou Wendelstedt paced a sterling performance for that unit with four sacks, eliciting chants of "Lou" from the visiting stands.

"It feels amazing," Wendelstedt said. "I never expected us to do this. We just came in knowing what we had a chance to do and we came out here and sure did it.

"We played exactly how we needed to play. Everyone played their roles and that's what we needed to do."

"I think they did a good job of preparing," Wiregrass Ranch Head Coach Jeremy Shobe said. "They had the bye week. They clearly knew a lot of the plays we were running.

"We just weren't disciplined enough to defend their option. We felt like we had a good game plan in place, but once the momentum took off we didn't do enough to change it up."

Next up for Springstead, a semifinal at Gainesville, the team it finished behind in the District 5 standings, next Friday at 7:30 p.m. The Eagles lost at home to the Hurricanes on Oct. 29, 17-7.

In the meantime, the Springstead contingent that was once 0-3 could soak in joining the 2004 club in winning a regional playoff contest.

"I'm so happy for the kids and the coaching staff, because they've put so much work in and fought through so much adversity this year," Vonada said. "I don't know if I've ever had a group that got as much out of its ability as this group did.

"... This game does not define Wiregrass Ranch. We had a couple of advantages. We had the extra week of practice and the fact that we run the option; not many teams do.

"But I did feel like this was as well-prepared a team as I've coached. The kids have done a tremendous job of stepping up as the season has gone on. I didn't think we'd come out and dominate, but I thought we'd do the things we do and if we got a little momentum, we might be able to keep it."

SPRINGSTEAD 40, WIREGRASS RANCH 8

Qtr. Scoring 1 2 3 4
SPG 7 12 14 7 - 40
WGR 0 0 0 8 - 8

Individual Scoring:
SPG - Minter 11 pass from Beeker (Emmerman kick)
SPG - Emmerman 23 field goal
SPG - Huff 69 run (Emmerman kick no good)
SPG - Emmerman 31 field goal
SPG - Junod 18 run (Emmerman kick)
SPG - Junod 2 run (Emmerman kick)
WGR - Lomba 51 pass from Tringali (Prince pass from Tringali)
SPG - Gearhart fumble recovery in end zone (Emmerman kick)

SPG WGR
First Downs 24 7
Atts./Rushing Yds. 58-425 20-(-3)
Comp./Pass Atts./Int. 6-10-0 7-19-1
Passing Yds. 83 139
Total Offense 68-508 39-136
Fumbles Lost 2-1 1-1
Return Yards 3-37 5-77
Punts/Avg. 1-40.0 4-37.5
Penalties 10-50 4-20