First full senior class looks back at their time as Patriots
By Kyle LoJacono
Staff Writer
When Carrollwood Day School (CDS) finished its first football season four years ago many of the players likely did not envision a state championship or college scholarships in their futures.
CDS went 0-10 that first season, but the Patriots rebounded to win the 2007 six-man football state title. The program went to 11-man football in 2008 and finished 9-2 in 2009.
“It’s been really fun to get the program started here,” said Patriots senior quarterback Billy Embody. “The first season was tough, but we got through it. Getting to 11-man football was a big part of building up the excitement at the school.”
Embody and wide receivers Matt Monteilh and Michael Kanter have been a part of the program from its start. Senior running back Darius Bing came to the school as a sophomore.
“It’s been fantastic,” Monteilh said. “Last summer before our senior year we realized it would be our last and we needed to go out with a bang. We got a couple wins early in the season and that got our confidence up. I think that carried us through the year.”
CDS coach Lane McLaughlin, who has led the Patriots since 2007, knows it will be tough to replace the seniors.
“Billy is a coach on the field and knows the offense better than anyone but me,” McLaughlin said. “Mike and Matt have been big for us in the passing game and Matt is also an all-purpose player. He did a lot on special teams and had a lot of big plays for us…Our whole system was built on Darius and it will be hard to lose them all in the same year.”
All but Kanter will play football at college. He will attend the University of Central Florida next year. Last season Kanter had 304 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
DARIUS BING
Bing led the Patriots with 19 total touchdowns last year, 15 rushing and four receiving, while gaining 1,022 yards on the ground on 91 carries. His 15 rushing scores were the third most in Hillsborough County in 2009.
Bing, who lives in Wesley Chapel, started at the school his sophomore season after attending Jefferson as a freshman. He said he will not be able to forget the other seniors.
“I’m going to miss them so much,” Bing said. “They were the first guys to welcome me at the school and I’ve loved playing football with them.”
Bing said his first choice is to play at Quincy University in Illinois depending on the results of his Scholastic Aptitude Test. He is interested in computer engineering, architecture and archaeology.
BILLY EMBODY
Embody had 1,836 passing yards and 25 touchdowns as a senior and also had four rushing scores. During his time in 11-man football the Odessa resident had 3,863 yards through the air, 43 touchdowns and completed 63 percent of his passes.
“Matt and I used to play at Idlewild Baptist Church’s football league,” Embody said. “When we were looking at high schools we thought it would be kind of cool to help start the football program at CDS. When (Darius) came over it gave us a two-headed rushing attack with Matt still carrying the ball a lot.”
Embody currently has a 4.16 GPA and is also CDS’s salutatorian. His grades and leadership earned him a scholarship to play at Southern Methodist University (SMU). The quarterback plans to double major in journalism and sports management.
“I fell in love with it,” Embody said of SMU. “I would have gone there even if I didn’t get a scholarship. It’s perfect.”
Embody will be a preferred walk-on at SMU, which means he is guaranteed a roster spot and can practice with the team the entire year.
MATT MONTEILH
Monteilh had a team-high 26 catches for 500 yards and eight touchdowns while adding 45 carries for 472 yards and another four scores. As a defensive back he had 43 tackles, three sacks one interception.
Monteilh, a Carrollwood resident, received the Coast Guard Academy Scholarship and will attend New Mexico Military Institute next year. If he maintains at least a 2.4 grade point average (GPA) he will automatically be enrolled at the Coast Guard Academy.
“I’m not sure if I want to be a mechanical engineer or stay in the Coast Guard as a career,” Monteilh said. “…I’m the first of my brothers to serve, but my dad was in the Army during the Vietnam War and my grandfather was a (mobile Amy surgical hospital) doctor during World War II.”
Maintaining a 2.4 GPA should be manageable for Monteilh, who lives in the Northdale/Carrollwood area. His current weighted GPA is 3.89.
Bing, Monteilh and Embody all thanked McLaughlin for what he taught them about football and credited him with turning the program around at CDS.
-All stats as reported to Maxpreps.com by coaches.
