Plant quarterback James Few, right, Daniel Casselli (6) left and Wesley Bullock (3) center, embrace at the conclusion of the second half of a Florida high school class 8A state final football game against Miramar on Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011, at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando. Plant won the game 31-20. Photo Credit TYLER TJOMSLAND St. Pete Times

By: Eduardo Encina
St. Pete Times
December 18, 2011

ORLANDO — This year’s Plant football team didn’t possess the five-star recruits or the record-breaking passing game of years past.

These Panthers made their fourth straight state title game appearance devoid of the star power of their predecessors.

And because of that, this squad might go down as the best title team of the bunch.

A Plant team that played the role of underdog perfectly all season — losing a pair of All-Americans from last year’s 6A state final team, looking overwhelmed in the preseason loss to Miami Columbus and overmatched against local rival Armwood —  slayed its greatest giant in Saturday’s Class 8A state title game.

Facing the nation’s No. 3-ranked team, the Panthers pounced early on Broward County power Miramar, then held off a furious second-half rally to claim their fourth state title in six years with a 31-20 victory at the Citrus Bowl.

“We won the state championship when no one thought we could and we did it together;  that’s the best part,” senior quarterback James Few said. “We’re so happy that we got to spend this much time with each other, that our season didn’t end short. To even get to this game was enough for us, but to win it is the icing on the cake.”

The Panthers saw a 17-point halftime lead all but vanish. Miramar scored two touchdowns on deep pass plays 24 seconds apart in the third quarter. Plant turned the ball over twice on fumbles, including one 2 yards from the end zone, in the second half.

Another December failure was close, but the Panthers defense rose to the occasion in the end. Senior linebacker Tate Rogers recovered a Miramar fumble in the end zone for a touchdown with 6:07 to play.

Junior defensive end Mitchell Wright (seven tackles, 1 ½ sacks, one QB hurry) lunged at Miramar quarterback Camren Hudge as he rolled out in the back of the end zone, forcing the fumble.

“We knew we had to make a big play because they were smelling it,” Rogers said. “And we had to make it right away.”

That play — which came two plays after Antonio Crawford’s fumble as he turned the corner toward the end zone at the 2-yard line with Plant clinging to a three-point lead — provided a much-needed swing for the Panthers (14-1).

“It just shows how much of a bond we have,” Crawford said. “Everyone came up to me and picked me up. They’re all my brothers. They told me, ‘We didn’t get this far for nothing.’ ”

The Panthers ran for 254 yards against a Miramar’s vaunted “Dark Side” defense that allowed just 7.7 points a game this season, had three shutouts and had never allowed more than 20 points in one game. Five-foot-six junior tailback Wesley Bullock led the Panthers with 124 yards and one touchdown on 26 rushes

“I told our seniors (Friday), ‘I’m going to work my butt off to help y’all get (your) rings,’ ” Bullock said. “We got them and now we’re already thinking about next year.”

Plant’s defense was equally effective, holding the Patriots to 145 yards of total offense and minus-4 yards rushing.

The game wasn’t pretty — the teams combined for 15 first-half penalties and 28 overall — and almost became very ugly late in the second half. Hudge threw for long touchdowns on back-to-back drives, hitting Malcolm Lewis with a perfectly-placed 31-yard touchdown pass.

The Patriots then capitalized on a Bullock fumble, with Hudge hitting Tanares Robinson from 27 yards out — with Plant linebacker Mike Tate’s hands also on the ball as the two fell into the end zone. The touchdown made the score 24-20.

It was a huge difference from the first half, when Plant found holes in Miramar’s defense, piercing the Patriots with a ground game that tallied 141 yards going into the half.

Bullock who lifted the Panthers early, ran for 56 yards on four carries on the game’s opening drive and put Plant up 7-0 on a 21-yard touchdown run just 2:15 into the game.

And the likely Ivy League-bound Few, known more as a pocket passer, completed just five passes but ran for a career-high 57 yards and one score. Four of his 11 carries were for first downs.

“That kid is just an unbelievable leader; all of our players responded to him immediately without him even trying, that’s who he is,” coach Robert Weiner said. “People thought, ‘Okay, what happened to the great Plant quarterback line?’ Well, you saw what happened tonight.”

By:Laura Keeley
St. Pete Times
December 18, 2011

ORLANDO — The “Dark Side” Miramar defense had a weakness coming into Saturday’s Class 8A state title game.

Plant coach Robert Weiner knew it. Starting quarterback James Few knew it. And running back Wesley Bullock knew it, too. And together the duo, along with Antonio Crawford and Aaron Banks, exploited the Patriots’ man-to-man coverage for 254 rushing yards on 53 attempts, a season high.

The game-plan tweak worked, as Plant won the first 8A title in Florida history 31-20.

“We knew that they were going to be in man, and we were going to try to spread them out and see if they were going to account for me,” said Few, with tears of joy in his eyes. “We didn’t think they would, and it turned out they weren’t.”

Few rushed for 57 yards on 11 carries, both season highs. His 8-yard scramble through the middle of the defense in the first quarter put Plant ahead 14-7. The Panthers never trailed again.

Typically, Plant (14-1) has used Banks, a junior, in running situations. While he did carry the ball three times for 20 yards, Few took off on the majority of the quarterback-designed runs.

“We wanted to give them a little different look,” Weiner said. “Everybody always thinks that James is just a pocket passer and that Aaron is a runner; both of them can do both. We loved having James in those situations, and he just gutted it out on every one. He took shots each time and got back up and answered the call.”

Bullock, who came into the game averaging about 128 rushing yards in the playoffs, gained 124 yards on 26 carries. About half of those yards (56) came on the opening drive, and he finished in the end zone after bouncing out to the right sideline.

In the third quarter, Bullock fumbled after defensive lineman Trevon Conley jarred the ball free. Miramar (13-1) recovered at the Plant 17 and scored its first touchdown of the quarter. The second came 24 seconds later.

“My 11 teammates and 11 coaches, they picked my spirits back up,” Bullock said. “ ‘Pick your head up, pick your head up, we’ve got plenty of time.’ I said all right, and I made a promise to my team that I would get them this ring.”

Bullock made good on that vow, with a little help from his teammates.

“I just never got the chance to run (before),” Few said. “We took it on the ground. I don’t even know if I completed three passes. But whatever, dude. We won the state championship."

Plant kicker Grant Van Aman (19) kicks off against the Fletcher offense in the fourth quarter. Plant defeated Fletcher 26 to 7 on Friday, November 9, 2011. Photo Credit OCTAVIO JONES, St. Pete Times

By Eduardo Encina
St. Pete Times
December 10, 2011

A week after needing overtime to save its season, the Plant football team was determined to not need a prayer in Friday night’s Class 8A state semifinal against Neptune Beach Fletcher.

The Panthers needed a furious fourth-quarter comeback to beat East Lake last week, but seven days later, Plant was meticulous at piecing apart the Senators at Dad’s Stadium.

And Plant’s 26-7 win over Fletcher sealed its fourth straight trip to the state finals in Orlando. The Panthers still remember last year’s state championship loss to Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas at the Citrus Bowl.

“I will probably wear my silver medal every day next week just to remind me what happened last year and make sure it doesn’t happen again,” said senior two-way player Antonio Crawford.

Crawford made the biggest play of the night, a third-quarter interception that he returned 57 yards inside the Fletcher 1-yard line to set up Plant’s first touchdown of the night — a Mike Tate power plunge to make the score 19-0.

Before then, the Panthers couldn’t crack the end zone against a game Senators defense and were forced to settle for four Grant Van Aman field goals.

A week ago, Van Aman missed a 49-yard kick that would have beaten East Lake in regulation. But on Friday he was perfect, converting kicks of 42, 30, 45 and 47 yards.

“To come back and kick them from the long distances that he did, it says a lot about what that young man has inside of him,” Plant coach Robert Weiner said. “I couldn’t be more proud of what he’s done and couldn’t be happier going into state with him.”

Said Van Aman: “I knew that this game could come down to me. When I hit that 47-yarder, it was just a sigh of relief.”

Special teams play was a theme for the Panthers, who gave the Senators an average starting field position at their 19-yard line in their first nine possessions, including one drive at the 7 and another at the 1.

“Our special teams were spectacular tonight,” Weiner said. “We give them a goal sheet. And we want to win every special teams play and we feel the game breaker will come out of it eventually. We might have not had a game breaker, but we made every play.”

Plant running back Wesley Bullock (12 carries, 147 yards), who had his sixth straight 100-yard rushing game, scored Plant’s other touchdown in the fourth quarter on a 26-yard run.

The Plant defense held Fletcher scoreless for most of the night, allowing the Senators’ only touchdown with 4:41 to play. The Panthers also held 2,100-yard rusher Jamari Smith to 77 yards on 21 carries.