By: Ross Van De Griek
WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla.- The Tampa Bay area game of the week will hit the Suncoast area for the first time this season, as the Nature Coast Tech Sharks (1-2) visit Wiregrass Ranch & take on the 3-0 Bulls.
Nature Coast Tech is coming off a 30-19 loss vs Springstead last week, where penalties & bad drives continued to haunt the Sharks all night long. Nature Coast is led by senior quarterback & play maker Fabian Burnett. Another player to watch for Nature Coast will be senior running back Lenkel Smith, who is the younger brother of former Nature Coast running back Deshawn Smith, who is now at Florida A&M. Another name to keep note of is junior wide receiver Dedric Hall, who is leading the team in receptions & receiving yards. The Sharks are looking to avoid something that hasn't been done since 2013 & that is to have a 3 game losing streak at some point in a season.
The host Wiregrass Ranch Bulls are coming off a 43-7 win vs St. Petersburg last week, where sophomore quarterback Rocco Becht went 14/23, for 213 passing yards & had 3 touchdown passes. Becht, is the son of former NFL tight end Anthony Becht who played for the Jets, Buccaneers, Rams, Cardinals & Chiefs from 2000-2009 & 2011. The Bulls are also led by senior linebacker Dylan Ridolph, who currently holds the Pasco county record for most sacks in a season with 22.5 set in 2018. Wiregrass Ranch also will rely on sophomore running back Corneil McCray who comes as the team's leading rusher, with 272 rushing yards on the season.
Score prediction: Wiregrass Ranch 28, Nature Coast 13
Tags: Nature Coast, Wiregrass Ranch, football, Dylan Ridolph, Fabian Burnett, Corneil McCray, Lenkel Smith, Dedric Hall