Atlantic defense may be county’s best

Week 2 of the high school football season saw some teams respond to adversity, others make major statements and still others clean up areas that needed to be improved.

Four takeaways from the weekend:

1. Atlantic’s defense is as real as it gets: Entering Friday’s highly touted matchup with Dwyer, all eyes were on the defenses, as both squads were coming off dominant performances. It was evident early that the Eagles’ unit was out to prove it’s the best in the county. Atlantic defenders lived in Dwyer’s backfield seemingly all night, racking up six sacks and blowing up even more plays behind the line of scrimmage. The pressure along the line made life difficult for Super 11 quarterback Gio Richardson, who couldn’t get into any kind of rhythm. Led by super prospect Henry Bryant, a junior defensive lineman, the Eagles’ defense is a force.

2. Park Vista 1, Adversity 0: A demoralizing 40-0 season-opening loss to Dwyer could have had a lasting effect on Park Vista, but on Friday night, the Cobras displayed

WEEK 3 SCHEDULE

■ West Boca Raton at Santaluces, 6 p.m.

■ Centennial at Royal Palm Beach, 6 p.m.

■ Hillel North Miami Beach at Boca Raton Chr., 7 p.m.

■ Pembroke Pines Charter at St. John Paul II, 7 p.m.

Friday

All games at 6 p.m. unless noted

■ Fort Pierce Westwood at Jupiter

■ Miami-Braddock at Palm Beach Central

■ Lake Worth at Palm Beach Gardens

■ Wellington at Park Vista

■ Atlantic at Pahokee

■ Boynton Beach at Boca Raton

■ John I. Leonard at Forest Hill

■ Spanish River at Suncoast

■ Cardinal Newman at Olympic Heights

■ Dwyer at Glades Central

■ Tampa-Cambridge Christian at Village Acad., 7 p.m.

■ Inlet Grove at St. Andrew’s, 7 p.m.

■ Benjamin at LaSalle, 7 p.m.

■ Berean Christian at Holy Trinity, 7 p.m.

■ King’s Academy at Glades Day, 7 p.m.

■ Pembroke Pines-Somerset Academy at Somerset Canyons, 4 p.m.

■ Jupiter Christian at Pinecrest Prep, 4:30 p.m. (Coral Reef Park) maturity and resilience, cementing their status as a legitimate playoff threat. The Cobras still have room to improve, especially on offense where they feature a young, inexperienced line. But the defense proved it can hold the line until the offense starts to click. The way teams respond to adversity shows the type of character they have, and Park Vista proved plenty with its 31-0 win over West Boca.

3. Palm Beach Central’s offense has arrived: After totaling three offensive points in their Kickoff Classic against Dwyer and Week 1 loss to Atlantic, questions were raised about the Broncos’ offense. Despite the talent on the roster, concern was mounting that the offense couldn’t match the firepower on defense. Friday night quelled those concerns, as the Broncos racked up more than 500 yards of total offense and senior quarterback R.J. Douriet scored three touchdowns in the first half of a 48-0 win against Miami-Ferguson.

4. Inlet Grove starting to rewrite history: After just three wins in the previous five seasons, the Hurricanes have opened their 2018 campaign with back-to-back victories over Somerset Academy-Canyons and Berean Christian. The wins signify a long-awaited turnaround for a program that has been struggling for years.

How did Ryan do? Record: 17-4.

Best pick: I predicted that Palm Beach Gardens would beat Royal Palm Beach 38-6. The final score was 44-7.