Bayshore’s upset victory is big confidence booster

School wasn’t in session Friday for Bayshore High head coach John Biezuns to gauge the student body’s response to Thursday’s upset victory over district co-favorite Wauchula Hardee.

But teachers reported to work, and Biezuns received some congratulatory remarks on campus.

He also received praise from coaches around the area.

“That’s pretty neat,” Biezuns said. “And then just the outpouring support from alumni, community and then teachers and administrators on campus.”

It can’t be stated enough just how big Bayshore’s 8-7 victory was over Hardee. The Wildcats were a 37-point favorite, according to the Joe Pinkos Forecast on FloridaHSfootball.com, and outscored the Bruins 73-15 in the two previous meetings.

In comparison, Howard knocked off UNLV on the road in a September college football game where UNLV was a 45-point favorite.

Performing the high school equivalent, the Bruins once again relied on a strong defensive effort. Biezuns said getting Jamaal Sanders, who stepped away for a couple years as he coached girls basketball, back on the coaching staff as the defensive coordinator was the hire of the year.

“I couldn’t be happier,” Biezuns said.

The victory also happened with a key decision: going for a two-point conversion after scoring to make it 7-6 in the final minute. The decision was a no-brainer. The Bruins hadn’t won a game since the season finale in 2015 and the offense had sputtered throughout the game.

“I don’t really want to go to overtime with Hardee, I’d like to beat them when they are on their heels,” Biezuns said.

It’s part of Biezun’s three-year rebuilding plan, which he delivered at his previous head coaching stop in Minneapolis. Biezuns won 20 games in three seasons at Southwest High, the best year coming in his last when the Lakers went 8-2.

“It’s night and day compared to what it was last year,” Biezuns said.

With the huge victory, Biezuns said he’s hopeful more kids on campus that aren’t playing football will start showing interest to join the team. On Thursday, the mood on the sideline late in the game was different, Biezuns said. Players and coaches were all into it as they had a chance to win.

And they did, registering, arguably, the biggest upset in the state this week or this season.

Takeaways

1. Turnovers, a short field and missed assignments plagued Manatee in losing to Sarasota Riverview, 42-14, via a running clock. That loss handed the Class 8A-District 6 title to the Rams, who locked up the only automatic playoff berth in the district under the FHSAA’s new playoff format. Manatee’s playoff chances took a hit, but the Hurricanes

2. Bayshore’s upset victory throws a wrinkle into Class 5A-District 11’s title picture. Southeast can inch closer to the championship with a road victory next week at Wauchula Hardee, but what the Bruins win did was keep Sarasota Booker in the discussion. The Tornadoes, who lost their first five games, only have one district loss and meet the Seminoles in the district finale in Week 10.

Game balls

The top offensive performance goes to Saint Stephen’s Fred Billy, who completed 2 of 3 passes for 76 yards and ran for 76 yards on five carries, after an emotional senior night where he tallied his 100th career touchdown a year after his mom passed away. Other offensive stars in Week 8 were: Braden River’s Knowledge McDaniel (six catches for 90 yards, 68 rushing yards, three total TDs), Saint Stephen’s Chase Brown (153 rushing yards, two TDs), IMG Academy White’s Jay Taylor (156 rushing yards, TD), Out-of-Door Academy’s Ethan Bertrand (three catches, 97 yards, two TDs), Southeast’s Alex Taylor.

The top defensive performance goes to Southeast’s Brandon Shannon, who produced 13 tackles, two TFLs, a PBU, and forced a fumble. Other defensive stars in Week 8 were: Bayshore’s Michael Franks (eight tackles, PBU) and De’Anthony Brown (four tackles, TFL, fumble recovery); IMG Academy White’s Alondras Strong (two tackles, one TFL, three INTs); Palmetto’s Andrew Duncan (eight tackles, three TFL, pick six), Brandon Waiters (six tackles, two TFL, forced fumble, fumble recovery); Saint Stephen’s Dylan Davis (five tackles, three TFL), Calvin Sauerbeck (three tackles, TFL, fumble return for a TD); Southeast’s D.J. Bryant (12 tackles, two TFL, forced fumble) and Damon Poole (four tackles, three PBUs).

This story was originally published October 14, 2017 at 5:03 PM with the headline "Bayshore’s upset victory is big confidence booster."