Palmetto jumped to early two-touchdown lead. Then reality set in against Venice
Palmetto High’s Anthony Marino looked to his left and ripped a pass off toward Eddravian Butler.
Venice’s defense read the play, breaking up the pass and forcing the Tigers into a turnover on downs.
The play was symbolic of a second half in which Venice was a step better offensively, defensively and on special teams en route to a 56-28 victory Friday night at Harllee Stadium that clinched the Indians’ third straight Class 7A-District 11 title.
“I’m just happy for the kids,” Venice coach John Peacock said. “There’s a lot of work behind the scenes that nobody sees that goes into winning a district championship in a real, real tough district not just a normal district.”
Venice held a seven-point halftime lead before scoring on back-to-back possessions to stretch the lead to 21 points before getting the fourth down stop on Palmetto.
The second half saw both teams turn the ball over with interceptions before Venice found the end zone twice in a quick span. The Indians made it three straight drives with a touchdown to close out the quarter.
Then they kicked an onside kick, recovered it and scored six plays later to open the fourth quarter and enact the mercy-rule running clock.
“The second half, we weren’t ready mentally,” Palmetto coach Dave Marino said. “Those ebbs and flows, those momentum changes and the adversity that we faced, and how to handle that.”
Prior to Venice taking over in the second half, the showdown was a back-and-forth contest. The difference was the Indians’ conversion rate on fourth down when they needed it most.
Palmetto held a 14-0 lead late in the first quarter when Venice faced a fourth-and-3 from its 33-yard line. Nicco DallaCosta picked up the first down up with a 9-yard run.
“We ran the same play the play before,” Peacock said. “I just thought that it was still there, and I felt like at the time we needed to move the ball a little bit and get the defense off the field. Because I felt like if we didn’t get it there, I felt like we were intentionally putting ourselves 21-0 there.”
The Indians later cut the deficit in half with a Brandon Gregory 2-yard touchdown run.
“They’re a champion,” Marino said. “Unfortunately, our kids learned that lesson. That’s part of it. We’re in the business of educating kids. We have to learn how to deal with adversity and how to fight back from adversity. It’s a process. Our kids haven’t learned that process yet.”
Gregory finished with 178 rushing yards and five touchdowns.
“Big,” Peacock said of Gregory’s performance. “Great job. He’s an awesome kid, hard worker. He’s a reliable guy that we can kind of trust.”
Mike Trapani added 120 rushing yards as the Indians finished with 380 rushing yards.
Palmetto’s running game was led by Johnnie Jones, who finished with 92 yards. Anthony Marino added 172 passing yards and 65 rushing yards.
The loss means the Tigers likely will need a victory at 6A power Punta Gorda Charlotte to secure an at-large playoff berth for a second straight season.
“It’s a life lesson,” Dave Marino said. “That’s why football is such a great sport. It’s going to be a test of our character. We got knocked down. We either get up and fight back ... or we don’t and we pack it in. That’s it in a nutshell.”