Raider Press Box

TOGETHER INVINCIBLE

Take an unstoppable offense, a dominating defense, elite special teams together with dedicated coaches and you have the number one high school football team in the country - the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders -  in a special season that started in Cincinnati and ended perfectly in Orlando.

Aquinas scored early and often in their state final jumping out to a 28-0 first quarter lead against the Lakeland Deadnaughts (14-1).  On a perfect evening at the Orlando Citrus Bowl, the Raiders (15-0) completed an undefeated season as they won their fifth state championship under the direction of head coach George Smith.  The 56-7 victory gave the Raiders their first victory in five state final match ups against the 'Naughts.  The running-clock ''mercy rule'' was in effect in the fourth quarter.

Aquinas alumnus Michael Irvin, winner in three Super Bowls, attended the game and was astounded.

"You just don't expect to see a score like this," said Irvin, who flew in from Dallas for the game.  "The family-style unity - that's the difference.  Great teams will never reach greatness unless each guy is playing for his brother."

Although the nationally-ranked St. Thomas squad was clearly focused on the Class 5A state title, the win vaulted "Team Invincible" into a consensus number one ranking in all national polls.   

QB Ryan Becker continued to rock the Raider record books in his final game.  The two-year starter moved ahead of Wesley Carroll's 2005 season "touchdown passes in a season" record.  Becker threw three TDs to Gabe Holmes, Dwayne Difton and Duron Carter; giving Becks 30 touchdown passes on the season.  He tied Carroll's "touchdown passes in a career" at 53.

Finishing his Raider career with back-to-back state championships, Becker also passed Carroll in "pass completions in a career" with 231.

The Aquinas offensive line of Kevin O'Connell, Ryan Mousley, Tommy Pizzurro, Ben Young and Brandon Linder opened huge holes for the Raider rushing attack.  Running for touchdowns were James White. Ryan Becker, Beau Bucci and Ronnie Kennedy while totaling 288 rushing yards.

Co-captain Conor O'Neill lead the Aquinas defense with 8 tackles, 2 assists and an interception return for a touchdown.  LBs John Baglia  (5 tackles, a sack, and a pass break up) and Vinnie Mauro (3 tackles, 2 assists)along with DB Brian Robinson (4 tackles, 2 for loss and a sack) helped stifle the Lakeland offense.

Junior kicker Michael Palardy added 8 PATs giving him 38 straight to finish the season.  Palardy also handled the kickoff duties kicking 7 touchbacks to hold the Lakeland kick returners to zero return yards.

An article published by the News-Press (Fort Myers) in December 2000 might have said it best when referring to the Raiders as follows: 

 

"They're bigger, they're stronger and there are more of them.

 

Their gold pants seem shinier than most; their blue jerseys seem deeper, too.

 

St. Thomas Aquinas is the team you love to hate, because it always beats you when the losses hurt most.  But the Raiders are also the team you can't help but admire, because deep down you want to be just like them.

 

They are the enemy.  They are the measuring stick."

 

Head Coach George Smith and staff are perfectionists.  Coaches who always want the best.  They finally got it.  It was a perfect ending to a perfect season, one that will never be forgotten by Aquinas.

 

Raider Press Box Prediction:  2008, the best-ever season in Raider history

HOLIDAY WISHES

Nationally-ranked, undefeated St. Thomas Aquinas (14-0) gets together with the nationally-ranked, undefeated Lakeland Dreadnaughts (14-0) to once again decide the FHSAA Class 5A State Championship.  Aquinas appears in the title game for the fifth consecutive season.

The Raiders advanced to the title game with a 35-14 victory over the Largo Packers in the state semifinal played at Brian Piccolo Stadium.

Scoring the first 28 points of the game, St. Thomas crushed the Packers playoff hopes for the second straight year.  The high-scoring Raider offense used a combination of the run and pass while the defense provided timely take aways.

Ryan Becker, Raider Senior Quarterback, completed a season high 14 of 21 passes. Becker threw for 148 yards with TD throws to Duron Carter - 21 and 1 yards, and 4 yards to RB James White.  WR Dwayne Difton caught four passes for 59 yards.

Becks set two school records in the win.  He now holds the top mark for career passing yards surpassing Wesley Carroll's 3,567 yards, with 3,621 yards and one more game to play.  The highly-efficient signal caller also topped Dan Shula's 2001 season record of 1,893 yards.  Becker has totaled 1,927 so far in 2008.

Junior running back, Giovanni Bernard, netted 171 rushing yards which included a 54-yard sweep left for the touchdown to extend the Raider lead to 28-0.

Michael Palardy extended his consecutive points after streak to 30, going 5 for 5.

Co-captain Conor O'Neill recorded 10.5 tackles, DB Brian Robinson added 7 tackles and defensive end Dylan Drake chipped in with 6 tackles and an interception.

The Raider defensive play of the night occurred when Cody Riggs intercepted his 8th pass of the season in the end zone stopping any early momentum by Largo.

Lakeland presents a huge hurdle for the Raiders as the Dreadnaughts hold a lopsided 5 wins to 1 loss advantage in the all-time series between the two state powers.

The "Naughts have defeated St. Thomas four times - 1996, 2004, 2005and 2006 (2 overtimes) - in championship games.

The Raiders have kept their focus game-to-game this season while dominating 14 straight opponents.

The stakes are at an all-time high as Aquinas reaches for an historic 15 win season, back-to-back state championships, and an opportunity to finish 2008 as the number 1 ranked team in the nation.

To do all this the Raiders must do something they have never done before -- defeat Lakeland in a state final.

The time is right for St. Thomas to get over the hump.  No overtime needed in Orlando, as Aquinas' holiday wishes come true.

Raider Press Box Prediction: Raiders by 4

ROAD TO ORLANDO

Aquinas (13-0) heads into a rematch of their 2007 season state semifinal against the Largo Packers (12-1) at Brian Piccolo Memorial Stadium in the Florida Class 5A Championship Series.  The winner heads to Orlando for the State Championship Final.

St. Thomas overpowered regional final opponent, South Fork, 56-14 to send the Bulldogs to the sidelines for the 2008 season.

All-purpose Raider senior Ronnie Kennedy scored three touchdowns in three different ways.  He scored on a 3-yard run in the second quarter and then returned an interception 32 yards and a punt 88 yards for scores in the third quarter.

Aquinas held the lead at half time 35-7 as James White scored twice on runs of 15 and 4 yards.  QB Ryan Becker connected on a 10 yard TD pass to Steven Bravo-Brown.  Running back Beau Bucci dashed 65 yards over the left side of the Raider offensive line to give the home team a 28-7 margin before Kennedy added his first touchdown of the night to close the first half.

The Raiders added 3 more TD scores in the third period on a 7 yard run by Giovanni Bernard and Kennedy's interception and punt returns to extend the score to 56 to 7.

Michael Palardy, Raider junior kicker, was a perfect 8 for 8 on points after touchdown extending his consecutive steak to 25 straight. 

The Aquinas defense yielded 233 yards on the ground to South Fork.  This was a game season high in rushing yardage allowed bythe Raider defenders.  Conor O'Neill, a University of Wisconsin commit, led the Raider defense with 8.5 tackles and a pass break up.

In last year's game at Largo's Packer Stadium, Largo led the Raiders at halftime 13-7.  In the second half  a motivated St. Thomas squad scored 28 points while holding the Packer offense to zero.

Final score:  Raiders 35, Packers 13.

Largo enters this week's playoff game on an eight game winning streak after a 59-point performance in their regional final win over Charlotte High School.  Their defense has been solid all season recording 4 shutouts and holding opponents to an average of 8.5 points per game.

This game should come down to defensive strength versus defensive strength.

The Raiders send their season record to 14-0 as they come away with their 23rd consecutive victory and earn their 5th straight appearance in the state final game.

Raider fans, see you in Orlando at the Citrus Bowl!

Raider Press Box Perdiction:  Raiders by 10 

MOVING FORWARD

The Raiders (12-0) continue their march through the Class 5A Championship Series against a surprise visitor to Piccolo Stadium.  The South Fork Bulldogs (9-3) from Stuart are St. Thomas' Round 3 opponent in a regional final contest.

Aquinas feasted on the Dillard Panthers in their regional semifinal match-up on Thanksgiving weekend.  The Raiders whipped the Panthers,49-8.  Dillard had no answer for the St. Thomas defense as the Raiders shut down the Panther's rush offense and ended the season for Dillard.  The victory over Dillard marked the 330th win for Raider Head Coach George Smith.

Dillard's best offense punch came in the fourth quarter when one of their offense lineman connected with a sucker punch to the chin of a Raider defensive linemen.  We look for the FHSAA to administer the appropriate punishment for this uncalled-for assault.

Raider defenders had eight tackles for loss along with 5 sacks.  Dylan Drake recorded three sacks while Vinnie Mauro (5.5 tackles, 2 TFL's), Conor O'Neill (4.5 tackles, 1 TFL) and Brian Robinson (4 tackles, 1TFL) helped hold the visitors to 191 yards total offense.

Unheraled Raider quarterback, Ryan Becker, connected on 4 touchdown passes.  Duron Carter caught two TD passes to raise his season total to 11.  Beau Bucci and Gabe Holmes accounted for the other two.

Giovanni Bernard carried four times for 122 yards with touchdown runs of 65 and 15 yards.

Aquinas Kicker Michael Palardy added seven PAT's, as he has connected on 55 of 57 on the season.

For the first time in their school history, South Fork will play for the regional championship.  South Fork, a district runner-up, has beaten two consecutive undefeated district winners-Melbourne Palm Bay and Delray Atlantic-to advance in the playoffs.  The Bulldogs enter this game on a six game winning streak . 

South Fork has scored over 40 points in only one of the twelve games this season while the Raiders have averaged 45 points per game in their twelve contests.

The clock strikes midnight early for the Cinderella team from Martin County.  On Friday evening the Raiders will stick a fork in the Bulldogs and end the 'dogs' 2008 season.

The Raiders keep their eye on the prize moving forward in the playoffs winning their 22nd straight game and remaining unbeaten this season as Coach Smith wins his 60th all-time playoff game.

Raider Press Box Prediction: Raiders by 17