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OCALA – Mark Whittemore is the new head man in charge of Buchholz football again this season, regaining the post he held from 2012-2022.
His successor and predecessor – defensive coordinator Chuck Bell – stole the show in Whittemore’s return to the sideline on Friday night.
The Bobcats’ defense grinded Vanguard’s offense to a halt in a 24-7 win at Booster Stadium to begin the season 1-0.
“I just can’t say enough about what Chuck and his staff have done with their guys,” Whittemore said.
The unit entered this season with doubts. Buchholz lost Florida’s Myles Graham, Texas A&M’s Kendall Jackson and its four leading tacklers from 2023.
“There’s a lot of doubters out there, they know that “Coming off a magnificent defensive year last year, there was going to be a lot of question marks,” Whittemore said.
Bell got to work and remade a defense with the remaining pieces, who all stepped up to the plate Friday.
Senior DB Taylor Carter, who was 11th on the squad in tackles last season, balled out and recorded a diving interception in the fourth.
“We’ve been preaching that all offseason. We want our corners and safeties to be more aggressive,” Whittemore said. “Play the ball in the air, be ball hawks.”
Newcomers like GHS transfer Caleb Young and Division I commitments like Nick Clayton (Wisconsin) and Kain McDonald (Coastal Carolina) all contributed to the stout performance.
“We love what we’re doing, and we’re a bunch of smart guys,” he said. “Even when we make mistakes, we’re never in our own head.”
The defense’s biggest stop came near the end of the first half. Vanguard, down 17-7, drove to the Buchholz 5.
The Knights then got called for back-to-back delay of game penalties, though the second was erased after VHS coaches convinced the referees they had an extra timeout, even though…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/lot-doubters-buchholz-defense-silences-041259071.html
Author : The Gainesville Sun
Publish date : 2024-08-24 04:12:59
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