All of Hernando County's teams were back in action last week, as district play and postseason contenders are starting to emerge from the pack. With meaningful games being played out of Class 6A, District 6 and Class 5A, District 7, we take a look at last week's slate of games that took place.
Hernando 49, Weeki Wachee 7
Nature Coast senior running back DeShawn Smith, who led the nation in both rushing yards and touchdowns last fall, was arrested on Wednesday and charged with burglary.
According to the arrest report filed by the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office, Smith, 18, and three juveniles were involved in a break-in at a residence located at 11260 Claymore St. in Spring Hill on Tuesday afternoon.
Nature Coast Technical High School's Senior running back DeShawn Smith has been named the 2015 Florida Dairy Farmers Mr. Football. Smith has already been selected Class 5A Player of the Year.
DeShawn Smith has a simple explanation for his unprecedented success this season. He repeats it like a mantra, game after game; no matter how many rushing yards he piles up, no matter how many touchdowns he scores.
The Nature Coast senior running back has a deal with his offensive line. They block, he scores. That’s it. “A running back’s nothing without his O-linemen,” Smith said. “Every time I score, I run to them first. … They block, they get it open for me, and then I do the rest. So it’s a 50-50 thing.”
No two siblings are alike, some are best friends, some have years between them and others have different interests and goals. Different interests and goals is not the case with the Stone Brothers. They have been side by side throughout their growing life and now shoulder to shoulder in the sport that continues to drive their brotherly bond.
The Central Bears got back to business on Wednesday. But it couldn’t possibly be business as usual. Their season, their lives have been irrevocably changed following a motorcycle accident Tuesday morning that left starting quarterback Sebastian Rivera, 16, in critical condition.
Coltin Siuzdak felt the tug to get back into football. The Spring Hill Christian Academy team is glad he did. The 5-foot-10, 140-pound junior has emerged as a playmaker, along with quarterback/running back Michael Hemstreet, in the early eight-man season for the Wildcats. “Coltin is just a lot of team speed that we have,” SHCA head coach Shawn Fisher said. “He’s very fast and just like Mike he’s a pretty good student of the game, and once we get the ball in either of their hands good things happen.”
Friday night in Hernando County, it was good to be a running back named Smith. A debate could probably go on for days over just who had the superior performance: Nature Coast’s DeShawn Smith or Central’s De’Vonta Smith.
Two weeks into the prep football season, one thing has already become apparent. DeShawn Smith came ready to play. In Friday night’s 46-21 win at Hudson, Smith needed just 13 carries to accumulate 224 yards and four touchdowns.
For Springstead and Weeki Wachee, the second week of regular-season prep football contests offered a welcome change. Central and Hernando likely didn’t feel the same. Both the Eagles and Hornets bounced back from grueling losses in Week 1 with home victories on Friday night.
