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THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH ANTHONY GAMBARDELLA Senior offensive lineman/ middle linebacker 2010 stats: 17 tackles (11 solo), 2 sacks, 1 fumble recovery in 8 games. Coach Kevin Wald: “He’s a guy who’s worked hard in the weight room. He’s improved his speed and strength, and he’s a very competitive young man.” AUKEEMIAN MILLS Senior wide receiver/ free safety 2010 stats: 27 receptions for 291 yards, 1 touchdown, 4 interceptions Coach Kevin Wald: “He’s a very smooth wide receiver who has great hands and runs smooth, crisp routes.” PIERCE HALLERAN Sophomore receiver/ defensive back 2010 stats: 26 tackles (15 solo) in eight games Coach Kevin Wald: “He’s another good athlete who can play multiple positions. He can play quarterback, receiver, safety, spur, corner or outside linebacker.” FRIDAY NIGHT MOMENT 2003 NO PERFECTION ALLOWED What happened: Fourth-ranked Class 2B John Carroll defeated fourth-ranked Class 4A St. Lucie West Centennial, 13-10, denying the Eagles a 10-0 regular season. Why it mattered: The win capped a 9-1 regular season for John Carroll, which clinched the District 5-2B championship. The Rams went on to win two playoff games for the first time before losing 26-7 to Pahokee in the Class 2B semifinals. Key players: Kevin O’Brien passed for 167 yards, including a 33-yard touchdown pass to Cedric Wilson with 10:29 left that capped the Golden Rams’ rally from a 10-0 halftime deficit. Mackey Davis turned a short pass into a 34-yard TD play for Carroll’s other TD. Nose tackle Gary Anthony recovered a fumbled snap at the Rams’ 29 with 22 seconds left to end a late Centennial drive. STRENGTHS John Carroll returns five starters on defense and five on offense — not the best case scenario, but not the worst, either. Better still, the team features athleticism in wide receiver Keenan Dixon and transfer Aukeemian Mills. The Golden Rams will try to get those two isolated in mismatches in their new spread offense, get them the ball from one of the young quarterbacks and try to make things happen from there. John Carroll’s schedule also features seven home games. WEAKNESSES While athletic, John Carroll is also very young; sophomores make up nine of the 22 starting positions. Coach Kevin Wald has ditched the option for the spread, and a bigger premium than ever will be placed on consistent quarterback play. One of the three quarterbacks — two sophomores and a junior — will have to step up and distribute the ball to the receivers. The kicking game also must improve to win the tight games. KEY GAME SEPT. 9: THE FIRST ACADEMY While the game against arch-rival Melbourne Central Catholic always is circled on the calendar by the folks in blue and gold, the first district game of the season may be the most important. If John Carroll could come out of that game against The First Academy with a win, it would be 1-0 in district play and possibly off to a 2-0 start. A loss and 0-1 in the district and it’s all uphill from there in regards to postseason aspirations. PREDICTION 4-6, 2-3 DISTRICT 4-3A John Carroll is helped by a favorable schedule with seven home games, but will have the burden of adjusting to Wald’s new system quickly — and beating Berea Christian in the first game would help. The team lost a couple of playmakers, but brought in one, so whoever the full-time quarterback is — and he will be a first-time starter — must get the ball to the four or five wide receivers in the formation. The young squad must also play better defense and kick well, too, if it wants to beat the likes of MCC. SEASON OF MEMORIES 1967 (9-0-1) Why it was special: The Golden Rams produced their first unbeaten regular season and earned a share of their third consecutive Caloosa Conference champion. By the numbers: John Carroll outscored opponents 375-32, had a school-record seven shutouts and scored at least 50 points four times. SCHEDULE September 3 Berean Christian 7 9 The First Academy 7 16 St. Andrew’s 7 23 Orangewood Christian 7 30 at Lakeland Christian Sch. 7 October 7 at Holy Trinity 7 21 at Melbourne Cent. Cath. 7 28 Port St. Lucie 7 November 4 Trinity Prep 7 10 St. Edward’s 7 ROSTER OFFENSE Pos Name No Cl Ht Wt WR Aukeemian Mills 1 Sr. 6-1 182 WR Keenan Dixon 2 Sr. 5-7 150 WR Daniel Culumber 3 So. 5-9 155 WR Pierce Halleran 22 So. 5-11 160 OL Trent Cox 62 Jr. 6-2 290 OL Nicholas Woodward 75 So. 6-0 240 OL A. Gambardella 53 Sr. 6-3 220 OL Thomas Plummer 72 Sr. 6-2 280 OL Anthony Jennings 64 Jr 6-0 200 QB Matt Celidonio 10 So. 6-0 190 RB Conor Flaherty 9 So. 5-8 155 K Evan Percoco 28 So. 5-5 135 DEFENSE Pos Name No Cl Ht Wt DT Michael Clark 31 Sr. 5-8 200 DT James Maynard 88 Sr. 6-0 205 NT Josh Ayala 74 So. 5-11 260 LB Jeremy Miret 7 So. 5-11 160 LB Pierce Halleran 22 So. 5-11 160 LB Chris Vallee 52 Jr. 5-10 205 LB A. Gambardella 53 Sr. 6-3 220 LB Ryan Caddell 4 Sr. 5-8 150 CB Keenan Dixon 2 Sr. 5-7 150 CB Conor Flaherty 9 So. 5-8 155 S Aukeemian Mills 1 Sr. 6-1 182 P Evan Percoco 28 So. 5-5 135 RESERVES Emmanuel Ribeiraud (5, Sr., WR/DB), Lavonta Spivey (13, Jr., RB/DB), James Longerbeam (15, Jr., QB/LB), Craig Ronaldson (17, Sr., WR/DB), Chris Buderus (23, Sr., WR/LB), Austin Lasze- wecki (25, So., WR/DB), Cameron Roberts (54, Jr., OL/LB), Hans Kraaz (56, Fr., FB/LB), Matt Carr (58, So., 5-8, 180), Alec Rothman (70, So., OL/DL), Marshall Lacombe (75, Sr., 6-2, 285). COACHING STAFF Coach: Kevin Wald (third year) Record: 8-12 with John Carroll, 8-12 overall 2010: 3-7, 1-4 District 4-1A Assistant coaches: Derek Gibson (offensive coordinator/ running backs), Tony Barnes (wide receivers), Kevin O’Brien (quarterbacks), Andrew Bracken (offensive line), Jeff Lee (defensive coordinator/ linebackers), Danny Thomas (defensive backs), Dave Perry (defensive line), James Cannata (defensive assistant) STADIUM MCGUIRE STADIUM (1,500) Playing surface: Grass Address: 3402 Delaware Ave., Fort Pierce Directions: From I-95, take the Okeechobee Road (SR 70) exit. Go east and veer left to stay on Okeechobee. Take a left on Hartman Road. Turn right onto Delaware Avenue and stadium is on left. Main office: 772-464-5200 On the web: www. johncarrollhigh.com RIVALS ■ The First Academy ■ St. Edward’s ■ Melbourne Central By Bill Whitehead Special to Treasure Coast Newspapers FORT PIERCE — Head coach Kevin Wald has changed his plan of attack at John Carroll. The third-year coach imple- mented an option-oriented offense in his first two seasons at the helm, but the Golden Rams will turn to a more wide-open, quick-strike attack this year. “Our goal is to get the ball in the receivers’ hands quickly and let them get the yards,” Wald said. The Rams will have some new help, too. The team welcomed in a home-run threat in wide receiver Aukeemian Mills, who transferred from Okeechobee for his senior season. In the Brahmans’ 30-12 win over Moore Haven in the spring game, Mills hauled in a pair of touch- downs in the first half. He scored on a 30-yard pass and then on the next possession streaked 70 yards after catching a quick slant, show- ing the kind of big-play capabili- ties Wald needs from his offense. “He has fit right in with the kids. He came right in, introduced himself and they were all shaking hands and joking with each other during the first practice,” Wald said of Mills, who also will play safety. Senior Keenan Dixon returns at another receiver position. He caught five passes for 66 yards in six games last year, but should add more quickness to John Carroll’s new offensive scheme, which will look much different from the ones Wald ran in his first two seasons. “We’re planning on not hud- dling, and we’re getting away from the option. We’ll go to a little more of a spread look. We’ll run shot- gun, four- and five-wide, empty sets, trips. You name it, we’re go- ing to do it,” he said. “We have a lot of smaller, ath- letic kids, and we feel that fits us a little more. I don’t know that we have a true I (formation) tailback or fullback. “In high school football, you’ve got to adjust a little bit more to your talent and not force an of- fense on your team,” Wald said. Two sophomores and one junior are in the mix for the start- ing quarterback position, but after a good week of practice before the kickoff classic, sophomore Matt Celidonio emerged as the leader to start. “Matt has a great arm. He’s got the height and weight (6-foot, 190), but he was always stuck on the offensive line when he was younger. This summer, he heaved a ball about 40 or 50 yards after practice and didn’t really float it, and we’ve been working with him since,” Wald said. Wald added that having Celido- nio at quarterback would benefit the offense, especially consider- ing the value sophomore Pierce Halleran brings at other positions, including quarterback. The Rams will employ a 3-5 defensive scheme, which should allow the squad’s linebackers, led by senior Anthony Gambardella, to make plays. “It caters to our talent here. We have some good linemen, we don’t have a whole lot of them as far as depth and numbers. We have a lot of athletic type bodies, so that fits us more as far as the system goes,” Wald said. Quick moves ERIC HASERT/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS John Carroll High linebacker Anthony Gambardella scrambles during practice at the school as the team trains for the upcoming football season. Athleticism, speed will get John Carroll’s offense and defense to make plays JOHN CARROLL RAMS IG « SCRIPPS TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS « Thursday, September 1, 2011 « 7A ALL THE NEWS, ALL THE CONVENIENCE. Our new iPad e-edition lets you take your news with you wherever you are. Download our e-edition the iPad App Store – FREE for a limited time! Our new iPad e Our new iP O u r n e w i P a d e news w n e w s w Do D App St
