Takeaways from Lincoln, Leon, Godby's Leon County Spring Football Jamboree games

While day two of the Leon County spring football jamboree was cut short due to severe weather, there was plenty of action at Gene Cox Stadium.

On Friday night, Godby, Leon and Lincoln squared off in the annual round-robin of games, with Godby defeating Leon in game one, and Lincoln winning over the Lions in game two before the weather cut the highly anticipated matchup between the Cougars and Trojans.

Here is what we saw as these three programs got a first taste of action on the gridiron.

Godby ushers in new era under John Holston, shutout Leon

The Cougars are under new direction with the departure of Demario Jones from the head coaching role, with John Holston stepping into the leading role for Godby.

Making his head coaching debut on the sidelines at Gene Cox, the Cougars shut out Leon 21-0 to open Friday night's action. Led by a physical brand of football, Holston was happy with the win but wants more from his team in the fall.

"Far from satisfied. We left too many points on the board," Holston said. "We should have scored at least two more times. We still got work to do, but they showed great effort out there, but there is still work to do."

The Godby offense went with a balanced approach of rushing and passing, with touchdowns both on the ground and in the air. While junior Tylan Vickers didn't score, the wide receiver showcased his ability to create separation off the line and block for his teammates.

Holding multiple division one offers, including Florida State, Vickers has taken on a leadership role for the Cougars as he hopes to boost the team win total in the fall.

"I don't want just me to eat, I want the whole team to eat," Vickers said. "They know if there is anything they want me to do or tell the coach, I'll do it."

Like Holston, Vickers still wants to see more from the team, but he thinks the Cougars are in a good spot right now.

With touchdowns from running back Demyric Bentley and wide receiver Jammarion Simmons, the Cougars have versatility on offense, and Vickers thinks the offseason will give the team a chance to get better.

"We are at a good point with where we want to be," Vickers said. "It's still early but we still have time to work. So we are at a good point, but I think over the summer we will have a lot of time to see a big improvement."

Leon continues to adapt to changing offense, new personnel

While Friday's spring jamboree wasn't what the Lions had hoped for, falling in both games to Godby and Lincoln, third-year head coach Tyrone McGriff feels like the spring portion of the season has been successful for his squad.

Heading into the jamboree, McGriff felt like his team was having a really good showing in the spring and thinks the foundations for what they want to do come fall have been set.

"Leading up to today we've had a pretty decent spring, we are still trying to get accustomed to our new offensive sets," McGriff said. "Last year, we had a whole lot more speed than we do this year, but we are a little bit bigger up front. We are still trying to get accustomed to becoming a run-first offense."

While running the football may become a priority for the Lions, one wide receiver who stood out during Friday's action was Jeremiah Lalanne.

The transfer from St. John Paul II displayed a wide catch radius and good hands for the Lions.

While the Lions are still adjusting to its new playing style offensively, McGriff thinks his defense showed some good signs, and he said his defensive backs showed good ability when tackling.

"I think on the defensive side of things, most of our hits came from the defensive backs," said McGriff. "Up front, we just got to be a little bit tougher."

Lincoln's offense explodes against Leon, defense pitches shutout

The Trojans only got one half of football in, beating Leon 21-0.

But Lincoln gave us a look at what its offense can produce in the fall.

Led by rising senior Christian Sims at quarterback, the Trojans showcased the ability to attack opposing defenses through the air and the rushing attack. With a strong offensive line, both Sims and Christian 'Duece' Lawrence were afforded time to make plays.

"It's real big for us," Sims said. "Coach [Brandon] McCray has been doing a lot of work with them to make sure they are ready for my senior year and us trying to go to state."

Lawrence opened the scoring for the Trojans with a long touchdown run, and Sims delivered some strong passes to his receivers to cap off a strong offensive showing in the limited jamboree action.

Sims, who is entering his second year with Lincoln, said he feels more confident with the Trojans this season.

"I feel more comfortable in the pocket," Sims said. "I love my O-line, they take care of me big time. We just have become a family."

Not allowing the Lions to score, Lincoln's defense seemed to have picked up from where it left off last season.

With a strong performance from the defensive line and linebackers, Trojans head coach Jimmie Tyson said his veteran players on defense set the standard for everyone to follow.

"I think our older players understand the standard and they raise our younger guys," Tyson said. "It just gets passed on from year to year. We are going to be physical, we're gonna fly to the ball and we're going to bring pressure to any offense."

Liam Rooney covers preps sports for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at LRooney@gannett.com or on Twitter @__liamrooney

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Here is how Leon, Lincoln, Godby played in the spring football jamboree