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| GREG WILLIAMS trots off the field after taking a touchdown pass from Leesburg quarterback Mike Napier on the first play against Groveland in the second quarter of last night's Jamboree. |
Mike Fowler
Commercial Sports Editor
September 7, 1969
If the rest of the season follows the pattern of the first two offensive plays, then Leesburg High's Yellow Jackets could end up in the Super bowl against the Jets. If the rest of the season follows the pattern of the two quarters Leesburg played last night in the Jamboree at Eustis, then Yellow Jacket fans will see some of the best Class A football possible - a smooth, potent, often devastating offense, a rock-hard defense, a team murder against weaker opponents and sturdy against tough ones.
That was the pattern of the night, a night which left coach Wilbur Lofton jovial and pleased and Jacket fans in the Eustis bleachers talking excitedly.
The Jackets made their first at the ball a memorable one in the opening minutes of the second quarter, in which they faced Groveland, With the ball at it's own forty. quarterback Mike Napier faded back, threw long to Greg Williams, hooking to the right, and laid the ball in his hands,Williams, dodging one tackler, hit the goal line untouched, and the first ten seconds of the 1969 season had produced the first six points - and the first bit of glory for the Napier-Williams passing combination which is already an area legend.
Then only a couple of minutes later - minutes in which the defense held Groveland to no gain in three tries - Tony Hart dropped back, to receive a punt, took it once at his 25, found a fifty-yard return nullified by a penalty, took the second kick at the 32 and skipped through Grovelanders 68 yards for the Jackets second touchdown.
That left Jacket fans yelling, the stands buzzing, Groveland stunned. The first quarter produced nothing else but more things for the Jackets to smile about. The defense stopped Groveland's runners dead in the middle and around the ends, the swarming pass defense let virtually no Groveland receiver into the clear.
Napier left midway through the quarter without completing another pass, but the three he missed were smooth near-misses, no cause for shame in the first game of the season. His replacement, sophomore Andy Carlton, completed two passes, a 65-yarder to Sherrill Lackey and a twenty-five yarder to Sam Rixie, who struggled through a swarm of Grovelanders for the Jackets third touchdown.
Meanwhile Jacket runners Rixie and Mike Chatman were grinding out steady yardage to give Coach Lofton his most pleasant surprise of the evening. "I was afraid we wouldn't have a ground games at all, 'he said. "We do." Final score for the quarter Leesburg 18, Groveland 0.
The third quarter was tougher, possibly more satisfying. The rival was Eustis, the Jackets grudge rival, last year's Area Champ, and this year's version of the Panthers is the same Eustis junior varsity that went undefeated and unscored-upon last year.
People were wondering if the Napier-Williams passing team could be the first to score on these Panthers. The answer they got was yes - it came late in the quarter, after nine minutes of virtual standstill football, Napier hit Lackey, ran 23 yards himself, and after a penalty, found the ball on the Jacket 30.
He hit Williams at the 50. Next, boxed in trying to pass he struggled to the Panthers 42. Two passes to Williams fell short. Only 1:33 remained on the clock when he hit Williams for a first down at the thirty, Lackey for another at the ten, and finally Williams, who took the ball at the five and danced through Panthers for the score.
Leesburg 6, Eustis 0, and time ran out with Eustis doggedly but far too slowly moving into Leesburg territory.
In the first quarter Eustis, plagued by slippery fingers, fumbled three times, losing two, to spoil a good performance by back Rick Day, and tied Umatilla scoreless. Umatilla end a bad night by losing the last quarter to Groveland, when Otis Evans, a bull of a fullback, plunged over from one yard out then kicked the extra point for Groveland's 7-o victory.
RESOURCES
Mike Fowler
Commercial Sports Editor
DAILY COMMERCIAL
September 7, 1969
Article provided by:
Gerald Lacey
Staff Writer
Carver Heights Quarterback Club
www.leesburgyellowjacketsfootball.com
Gerald is a professional Internet marketer and social media marketing expert. His online business ventures and websites generate multiple streams of income annually. His consulting clients include best selling authors and international speakers.
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