John Carroll Catholic pulling out all the stops in District 6-1S title quest
When asked about how his team would go about trying to defeat Cardinal Mooney to win a district championship Friday, John Carroll Catholic head coach Mickey Groody unveiled a play sheet filled with plays upon plays that will all be on the table.
The Rams will try to throw the kitchen sink and take a two-game winning streak after an 0-5 start to 2023 to the west coast of Florida and try to return home with the District 6-1S title and a state playoff berth.
John Carroll, which made a 1S semifinal a year ago, had to endure a turnover of its top players moving to different area schools. That started the season full of question marks.
Groody and his staff have lost important players on defense along with their top three quarterbacks for the season with injuries.
Unexpected contributions have helped the Rams and offer hope for their biggest game of the season on Friday that can extend John Carroll's season to a place that just two weeks ago seemed highly unlikely.
A long wait for positivity
Losing several Power Five recruits going into the season, John Carroll had a tough schedule, and with a relatively young roster, growing pains for the Rams were expected.
The 0-5 start did have bright spots with competitive games against Calvary Christian, Zephyrhills Christian, and King's Academy. The Rams were squarely in going to the second half.
More: Quick takeaways: What we learned from the newest FHSAA football rankings
More: Week 7: John Carroll Catholic, Master's Academy win big on Senior Night
On the heels of a 59-8 loss to Moore Haven in Week 5, few figured John Carroll had much hope going on the road to undefeated Seminole Ridge the following week. But the Rams kept the game close into the fourth quarter before turning the tide.
Freshman Jaydien Pittman's 90-yard punt return for a touchdown with two minutes left gave the Rams the lead. An interception by Ivan Kelly secured a 21-18 victory.
John Carroll continued its momentum last Saturday with a 43-0 win over Dr. Joaquin Garcia to set itself up for the rest of a season that is looking optimistic because of the collective effort from inside and outside the program.
Put me in coach!
Groody's creativity on offense makes John Carroll one of the more potent units in the area year after year, but injuries at quarterback have forced him to adjust.
Starting quarterback Jax VanName and reserve quarterbacks Jackson Gravlee and Kaidin Seelbach all have sustained season-ending injuries. Groody is down to senior defensive lineman-turned-quarterback Shea Hartnett and junior Matt Brennan, who just a couple of weeks ago was the Rams' ball boy.
Groody was approached by Brennan and after one junior varsity game to give him a look, the junior scored a rushing touchdown against Joaquin Garcia and will be right in the mix Friday night to try to help John Carroll find a path to victory.
"He's been watching the team the past two to three years as our ball boy and his football IQ is through the roof," Groody said about Brennan. "Last week, I was trying to get a feel of how I want to rotate (Hartnett and Brennan) and I think we've got a good understanding of it for this week. This team's resilient, lot of things haven't gone their way and the way society is, it's easy to quit."
Win and you're in
The two wins in a row for the Rams have sparked confidence within the program that they can get the job done Friday but even if they were to come up short, all may not be lost for their postseason hopes.
John Carroll is within shouting distance of their Week 9 opponent Victory Christian in the FHSAA rankings and plays the Storm on the road. Playing Cardinal Mooney and True North to end the regular season in Week 10 will help the Rams' strength of schedule. A win over Victory Christian if they need it could put John Carroll in an at-large position for Region 2-1S.
The task at hand is to do enough to find a way past Cardinal Mooney to take care of the long-term goals for the Rams. Using the playmaking abilities of senior Jaden Mackey, who has 505 receiving yards and four touchdowns, and Pittman, a threat to score any time touches the ball, will be on Groody's play call sheet in a variety of ways.
Injuries to Cole Bates and Josh Reynolds on defense have forced different players to step up. Kelly, juniors Andrew Negherbon and D'Angelo Bonilla, seniors Johnny Raneri, Caden Johnson and Tristan Lemons along with sophomore Zander Lemons all will need to play sound football if John Carroll is to come back home as a district champion.
In the face of adversity, Groody has been proud of his kids and is expecting an all-out effort to try to get the job done Friday.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: John Carroll digs deep into its roster in search of District 1-6S title
