Manatee (FL) ready to return to winning ways on the football field

BRADENTON, FL – The last time Manatee won 10-plus games in a football season was back in 2014 when the Hurricanes went 12-2 under John Booth.

Getting back to winning football games is something the Hurricanes football program wants to do under head coach Jacquez Green, who took over as the lead man in 2020. Green’s first season was 8-2 but the team dropped off in the win-loss column last fall, slipping to 2-7.

The Hurricanes, which have won five state championships, play within one of the tougher regions in the state and have their work cut out for them starting August 26th versus Wiregrass Ranch. Though many games were close scores for the most part, it’s getting back to winning and being physical for Manatee that will make the difference.

“I wanted to be physical on both sides of the football up front,” Green said. “I thought we ran the ball good and stopped the run for the most part during the spring game. Especially, considering we had a couple guys in there for our normal starters and our starting running back was held out the spring game. We didn’t do anything special, just lined up and see who we could count on when games start in the fall.”

Manatee will rely on a strong junior class and on offense they’ll be led by running back Cory Sanders, who rushed for a team-high 510 yards on 95 attempts and four touchdowns. The team’s top two receivers from a year ago have graduated, but they do return Boshavior Bean Jr., who had 154 yards receiving in 2021.

“I will have a strong junior class with kids spread out at every position, Green said. “They are probably the core of our team. I would be disappointed if our defensive line is not the strength of the defense. Right now, we appear to have more play-makers at the skill positions, something we have lacked since I’ve been here.”

Last season was an anomaly for the Hurricanes’ football, as the below .500 campaign was the first time a Manatee didn’t finish with a playoff winning record since 2004 (4-6). Now the program feels it has a good group of kids working hard to get back to the rich running tradition the school has always displayed.

“Can’t get no worse than last year, but I feel we will have a good year,” Green said. “I like this group of kids, they work hard, and I have good leadership this season. Our coaching staff is much improved, and the kids have a firm grasp of our scheme. We have a few kids that have transferred over, but I fully believe in developing our own kids. That’s the fun part in coaching.“

Andy Villamarzo can be reached at andyvillamarzo@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Villamarzo.