By Kyle LoJacono
The 2010 Wiregrass Ranch football team set new standards by winning the first district championship in program history and earning its first playoff berth.
The Bulls lose 25 seniors, four who have signed to play in college, from that roster, but the players and coaches see no reason they cannot make it two titles in as many years.
“We want to reload, not rebuild,” said Wiregrass Ranch coach Jeremy Shobe. “We have high expectations here. We’re district champs and we’re coming into this season looking to repeat. We appreciate everything the departing seniors did for us. They set the bar for us. We still have a good bunch of talented kids, so we need to get ready to play football.”
The Bulls will need to find replacements at most of the offensive skills positions. One of the biggest voids is left by quarterback James Tringali graduating. The signal caller, who has signed with St. Norbert College, has started since the end of his freshman season and posted 1,400 passing yards and 12 touchdowns in 2010.
The only other quarterback to attempt a pass for the Bulls last year was sophomore Jake Day.
“Jake is emerging as a great runner and he makes good decisions,” Shobe said. “He was our backup last year and right now he’s doing really well. Everybody is competing for the job right now and they’re all getting reps.”
Day has been running the first team offense in practice and hopes they will soon have a lot of chemistry.
“I obviously have big shoes to fill,” Day said. “James has all the records for a quarterback here and started a lot of games. All I can do is work hard every day on the field, in the weight room and in the classroom.”
Shobe will also need to find some new playmakers this year. The Bulls lose leading rusher Nick Lomba, who gained 670 yards and scored 11 touchdowns as a senior, plus their top four receivers to graduation.
“We know we have the guys to fill in,” Shobe said. “Jamel Nunéz, Jamie Barone, Tyre Creary, James Jackson, Ryan Shea can all do great things with the ball. We’re not short on playmakers.”
Nunéz, a junior running back and defensive back, had 307 rushing yards and four touchdowns last year and hopes to become more of a leader in 2011.
“It feels kind of weird to not have those seniors anymore,” Nunéz said. “You’re so used to having them around to lead. Now I feel I have to become a leader. I have to step into their shoes and become a better player.”
Creary is a freshman and played on the junior varsity squad in 2010. He is amazed at the commitment he has seen at spring practice.
“We’re trying to build a team that is tough and always out here working hard,” Creary said. “I mean we have 70 or so guys in spring practice. It shows a lot of dedication for the program to keep pushing and to be better.”
There are also holes to fill on the defense. Seniors Dwayne Houston, Noah Ravenna and Matt Terry combined for 12 of the Bulls 13 sacks last year.
Wiregrass Ranch does return linebacker Aaron Silcott and his team-high 65 tackles. He will also see some time at fullback in 2011 and Shobe said he is counting on Silcott to help motivate the young squad.
“It all comes down to how much effort we’re willing to put in,” Silcott said. “We’re only as good as our weakest man. Our team is everybody. It’s not just the first 11 guys. It’s everyone. The way to improve is getting everyone out here working every day. The more effort you put in, the better we’re going to do in the district.”
The district will present its own challenges for the Bulls, which move into Class 7A-District 7 with five Hillsborough County teams — Chamberlain, Freedom, Gaither, Steinbrenner and Tampa Bay Tech. Wiregrass Ranch has yet to play any of those programs, but that does not deter the Bulls.
“We’re excited to play those new teams,” Shobe said. “It’s a challenge for us to not only represent our program, but represent Pasco County. We’ll play tough competition week in and week out. It seems like every year people look past us, but we’re excited for the challenge.”
The Bulls will play at Land O’ Lakes on Thursday, May 26 at 7 p.m. for their spring game.
–All stats as recorded to Maxpreps.com by coaches.
