- April 18, 2024
-
-
Loading
Loading
The Sandcrabs are an experienced team, but at the same time they also lack depth.
BY MATT MENCARINI | STAFF WRITER
The Seabreeze High School football team has a situation that’s not common. While the Sandcrabs are experienced, they’re also young and don’t quite have the depth that Head Coach Marc Beach would like.
“We have a lot of guys that got to play last year,” Beach said of his 2012 unit that returns 17 starters from a year ago.
But despite having a lot of current players log plays last year, Beach said he only has a few senior starters on offense and defense.
One of the few new starters is junior quarterback Connor Blair, who Beach says has benefited from having the experience around him.
“Connor played well,” Beach said of his quarterback’s performance in the Sandcrabs’ 48-13 win over Spruce Creek in the season opener. “We played well. We moved the ball very well.”
Blair was 12-for-15 for 187 yards and threw for one score, while running back Trey Rodriguez had 20 carries for 205 yards and two touchdowns.
Defensively, Beach was pleased with his team’s performance, but was quick to point out that there is always work to be done.
“(We) gave up three big plays,” Beach said. “(We) need to do a better job of not giving up big plays. Coverage needs to improve and they need to tackle better.”
Stopping big plays and tackling are likely issues Beach will want to address and correct quickly, as the Sandcrabs will be on the road playing Flagler Palm Coast on Friday, a team that put up 42 points in its rout of Matanzas last week.
“We're just going to work and play polished,” Beach said. “FPC has a lot of speed and can make big plays. (But) we're just going to do what we do.”
Beach’s 3-4 defense may have its work cut out for it trying to slow down running backs Jimmie Robinson and Devonti Emanuel, who lead the way for FPC’s speedy offense. Robinson and Emanuel ran for two touchdowns apiece last week.
Offseason Focus
Beach said that while his team had a short offseason — he estimated only 24 workouts over the summer — he had his team in the weightroom four days a week instead of the usual three.
The focus of those summer lifting sessions was to make sure the players didn’t lose any of the strength they gained in the spring.
“It was more to maintain,” Beach said. “With 24 workouts or so, you may go up a little, but not much from June to August.”
Beach also said his team continued with its usual 7-on-7 tournament s over the summer, where his players could focus on the passing game.
