Manatee offense continues to roll

ST. PETERSBURG — They had just played a role in Manatee’s latest offensive explosion.

Yet neither Quenton Bundrage nor Mike Blakely were giving the performance a perfect grade.

“I wouldn’t say it’s the best we’ve looked all year,” Bundrage said.

“We could have done better in the third quarter,” added Blakely.

It’s a testament to the Hurricanes’ playmaking potential that even after their 52-15 peppering of St. Petersburg Gibbs on Friday in a Class 5A-Region 3 quarterfinal, the players were looking for improvement.

Manatee (10-1) has won three straight games by a combined score of 165-22 and will host a playoff game for the first time since 2006 on Friday when they face St. Petersburg — a 28-21 winner at Venice — in a regional semifinal.

“Offensively, we were clicking on all cylinders,” Canes coach Joe Kinnan said.

Manatee totaled 554 yards of offense, getting contributions from a host of players, including Bundrage (seven catches, 154 yards, two touchdowns) and Blakely (118 rushing yards, 48 receiving yards, 14 passing yards, two rushing TDs).

Ace Sanders (seven catches, 54 yards) threw a touchdown to Bundrage, and quarterback Brion Carnes threw for 214 yards.

“We just ended up playing good — you can see the score,” Blakely said. “They just can’t key on one person.”

Blakely started the scoring with a 3-yard touchdown run less than five minutes into the game.

Gibbs nearly stunted the momentum when Perry Joseph, on the Gladiators’ first play from scrimmage, carried the ball 56 yards to Manatee’s 24. But the Hurricanes defense forced a turnover on downs.

Manatee tacked on 14 points just before halftime on Blakely’s 37-yard touchdown run and Sanders’ 30-yard option pass to a wide-open Bundrage, giving the Hurricanes a 28-3 lead heading into the break.

The Gladiators (5-6) drew to within 31-15 when Gary Simon caught a 31-yard touchdown toss from Josh Rembert with 9:31 remaining in the game. But Manatee iced the game less than a minute later when Carnes rolled to his right and hit a striding Bundrage down the far sideline for a 67-yard score.

“It was a well-designed play,” Bundrage said. “We read the coverage. Brion made a good read and threw me the pass, and I was able to get open and get in the end zone.”

Now Manatee has at least one more game on its schedule, and it comes against the Green Devils (10-1), who upset a Venice team that handed the Hurricanes their only defeat of the season.

“We’re playing pretty good right now,” Kinnan said. “We’re in the playoffs, and we’ve got one more game.”