“One of the best matchups of the season so far turned out to be not much of a matchup at all.”
That was Naples Daily News PrepZone host Alex Adeyanju describing Naples, Fla.’s 41-6 victory over Palmetto Ridge last Friday night in Week 2 of the Florida high school football season. (Newsflash: They’ll be in Week 3 when we start on Friday).
Apparently, Palmetto Ridge is a pretty good small school in the Florida HS football scene, but was given no chance of toppling mighty Naples. Of course, Palmetto took the David vs. Goliath approach, evoking a recent and well-known upset to get them believing.
It didn’t work.
“They just came out talking about Appalachian State and stuff, and we just came out and showed them its not that way all the time,” said Antwain Harvey, who intercepted three passes as the Golden Eagles’ defense held poor Palmetto Ridge to just 150 total yards in this destruction.
Harvey and Adeyanju say all of this on the Naples Daily News’ incredible online feature “FanZone,” which has all the other comments and commentary, not to mention video highlights of Naples in action at this link: Naples News: Fanzone Week 2
Yeah, it’s just crazy down there.
Naples took a three touchdown lead and then added two more (one off a blocked punt) with under five minutes left, eliciting some heated words from Palmetto coach Tim Speakman to Bill Kramer and the rest of the Naples coaching staff.
Here are the words, not to mention plenty of commentary, to go with the carnage: Naples runs away from Palmetto Ridge, 41-6
EDIT: Found this a little later in the evening, the NBC2-Florida TV station down there: NBC2 Gridiron Video – Week 2
Anyway, Naples is 2-0 and looking like a powerhouse.
SPB
To your knowledge – does Naples’ football team have a website?
Heres my comment coming from the ansonia biast. How does Greenwich get to play Naples anyway. Aren’t there rules in the Ciac that don’t allow that like a few years ago when crosby hoops had an oppurtunity to play at msg in a tournament and the ciac would not allow them. Sean when are you going to write an article saying that the NVL needs out of league games in every sport. Doesn’t the league get tired of seeing such lopsided scores when undermatched teams play ansonia or seymour or naugatuck. Just like when waterbury schools come play ansonia, seymour and naugy in hoops. The league needs to give teams a chance to succeed. How nice would it be to see Ansonia play Greenwich this year or New Britain in 2003. Or wouldn’t it be good to see Crosby play Hillhouse in hoops during the regular season. It needs to happen for the good of the league
Off topic a little but still on football for the elite 8 countdown what happened to the big game of the year which only was in ridgefield’s info. Do you think you can add it to the other elite 8 teams much appreciated.
AnsoniaVinny:
Here’s my solution:
Ansonia, Seymour, Woodland, Naugatuck need to grab Derby and form a 20-team superconference with the SWC. Forget the NVL, honestly, it’s a basketball conference with Waterbury and a football conference with the lower valley.
Here’s how I see it, though this may change:
Housatonic Valley Division, with all the Danbury area schools on downward: Immaculate, New Milford, New Fairfield, Newtown, Brookfield, Masuk, Notre Dame, Weston, Barlow, Bethel.
Naugatuck Valley Division with all the teams in and around the lower NVL and the Housy tributary, including Oxford, Pomperaug, Nonnewaug, Stratford and Bunnell.
However you divvy it up, that would be a TREMENDOUS league, huh? The Waterbury schools just don’t compete with the real valley schools in football, vice versa in basketball, so break it up, right?
The demographics work pretty well, the school sizes are relatively comparable, and…
Hey, what an awesome idea! LET’S GET MOVING ON THIS!
That’s me, always thinking. More on this later. -sp