Young DeLand has moments, but shut out in high school football jamboree with Osceola, Edgewater
KISSIMMEE — DeLand’s young football team had plenty of opportunities against two of Central Florida’s top programs Thursday but were unable to finish.
The Bulldogs lost 16-0 to Edgewater and 14-0 to host Osceola in a spring jamboree. DeLand, a regional champion last fall, played a half against each team.
“We competed. We played hard,” DeLand coach Rick Darlington said. “We gave up big plays. Against Edgewater, they scored on the first play and the last. In between we battled. We couldn’t finish drives because of penalties, turnovers, whatever. Against Osceola, the back (Osceola star running back Taevion Swint) is special.
“The thing I hate to say is we’re close. I don’t want my team to be satisfied with being close. We want to have a standard that’s very high.”
Things didn’t get off to an ideal start as Edgewater running back Joshua Perry scored on a 75-yard touchdown on the first play of the game with DeLand. The Bulldogs’ offense then had a bad snap on offense on its first play and almost gave the ball away.
DeLand quickly settled after that and put together a nice drive before just missing on a fourth down pass deep in Osceola territory. It would be the theme of the night for the Bulldogs. They moved the ball well between the 20-yard lines, but mistakes cost them in the red zone.
The Bulldogs dropped a wide-open pass that would have been a touchdown against Edgewater, then had the next pass intercepted. Later, against Osceola, DeLand had the ball inside the Kowboys 20 but fumbled the snap and Osceola recovered.
DeLand rising sophomore quarterback Gardner Nordman completed several passes and made plays with his feet when things broke down. Playmakers Ladamion Bletcher, Marceles Carey and Nalin Rogers all picked up key first downs — both rushing and receiving. Bletcher and Carey are rising juniors, Rogers is a rising sophomore.
Rising sophomore edge rusher Nico Woodward was in the backfield a handful of times and had a big third down sack against Edgewater.
“Young guys have to grow up quick,” Darlington said. “The people will say, ‘Oh, they’re young. Wait for them in a year.’ But that’s not fair to the seniors. Their time is now. We were close last year to getting to play for it all and that’s what they want. Whether that’s realistic or not, that’s what the goal is. We’ve got a lot of work to do, just like everyone else.”
Here are some of the recruits who stood out Thursday.
Osceola 2025 RB Taevion Swint
This should come as no surprise as Swint, a UCF commit, is No. 25 on the USA Today Florida Network top 100. The 5-foot-9, 180-pounder scored three touchdowns — two against DeLand and the lone score in a 7-0 win against Edgewater. He was close to 200 rushing yards and was his typical dominant self.
Osceola’s Defensive Line
Considering the Kowboys rotated 10 players on Thursday — a number they expect to be up to 13 in the fall — we’ll cheat and highlight the group. Rising junior Amier Clarke was consistently in the backfield and rarely got pushed back in the run game. Rising sophomore Jason Lewis is 6-foot-3, 235 pounds and did a good job of not letting offensive lineman get into his body. An intriguing player to watch is Randy Jean Charles, a twitchy 6-foot-6, 220-pound edge rusher.
Osceola 2026 OT Marcus Ferrer
At 6-foot-6, 300 pounds, Ferrer literally stands out. He showed nice athleticism on Swint’s second touchdown run as he pulled from his left tackle spot and cleared a path for his running back on the right side. Incoming transfer Conner Howes (No. 82 USA Today Florida Network top 100) will give the Kowboys an impressive set of tackles. Syracuse and Tulane are among the schools to offer Ferrer.
Edgewater 2025 RB Joshua Perry
Obviously, the 75-yard touchdown run where he broke through the first wave of defenders and just pulled away showcased his speed stood out but he also had several runs where he was hit after a yard or two but kept his balance and picked up five or six yards. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound Perry has offers from Air Force, UMass, Colgate, Brown and others.
Edgewater 2026 QB Carter Emanuel
The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Emanuel, who has offers from Arkansas, UCF, USF, West Virginia and others, showed his dual-threat abilities Thursday. He scored a long keeper on Edgewater’s final play of the night and ran over a DeLand defender along the sidelines earlier in the half. He also had a couple long completions, including an awfully close play in the end zone that probably should have ruled a touchdown pass to Luke Anderton.
Edgewater 2025 WR Semaj Fleming
With Fleming, No. 80 USA Today Florida Network top 100, it’s about his abilities to hurt you in multiple ways. He did that Thursday. The 5-foot-10, 175-pounder had a nice run out of the wildcat formation, caught passes as a slot and outside receiver and will return kicks in the fall, too. His offers include Georgia, Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse and UCF.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: High school football: DeLand shut out in spring by Osceola, Edgewater
