State champs get spring win
From Seminole High School’s deep well of football talent it’s likely that at least a few more major college prospects will emerge this fall.
Anthony Dunn, a 6-foot-4, 250-pound rising senior defensive end, might be one of those guys. He was just one of the many big bodies in Seminole’s state championship stockpile of athleticism last year. On Friday night he looked like he could become something special in 2021 as the ‘Noles won their spring football game 28-10 at Lake Mary.
Dunn, who started two games as a junior for Seminole’s undefeated Class 8A state title team last season, got his team going when he scooped up a Rams’ fumble and rambled 43 yards for a touchdown to start the scoring 8 ½ minutes into a game where neither offense mustered much consistency.
“That was big because I was able to kick-start my team,” Dunn said. “I’m going to be a senior. I’m stepping into that leadership role.”
In the final minute of the game, Dunn made another big play when he forced a fumble on a second-andgoal play to snuff out a Lake Mary scoring opportunity.
Seminole didn’t dominate offensively, as it did so many times last season with USF signee Timmy McClain making highlight-reel plays from quarterback. But it did get scoring catches from three different receivers and some power running by Donte Whack.
Darrin Lawrence, a rising junior, caught a 35-yard touchdown pass from ninth-grade quarterback Karson Siqueirios-Lasky on the final play of the first quarter for a 14-0 lead.
After Lake Mary answered with a drive that ended with a 30-yard field goal by highly-rated kicker Colton Boomer, Seminole scored again. Whack broke away from coverage and hauled in a 75-yard TD pass from Luke Rucker, who transferred to the ‘Noles in January after setting some Oviedo High passing records as a junior last fall.
The ‘Noles upped their lead to 28-3 midway through the second quarter after standout rising senior defensive back Jacari Henderson intercepted a pass and ran it back 27 yards into Lake Mary territory. Rucker completed two passes to Lawrence to set up his 7-yard TD toss to Deandre Cameron.
That proved to be the end of the scoring for Seminole.
“I think our attention to detail has to really improve,” said Seminole coach Eric Lodge, who was a first-year head coach for the ‘Noles 2020 title team.
“We still have great talent. The things that we’re good at may be a little different with this group.”
Both teams rolled out backup players in a third quarter that went scoreless. First-teamers returned to the field in the fourth quarter and Lake Mary was able to close the gap.
The Rams’ defense forced a Seminole punt, stopped a fourth-andone play, and then came up with an interception of Rucker to halt three consecutive Seminole possessions. The theft was by Kadian Kinler, who picked off a Rucker pass in the end zone and ran it out for 40 yards.
Lake Mary quarterback Gunnar Smith, who becomes a four-year starter in the fall, pitched completions to Logan Cook and Markel Jones to move the chains and then scored on his own 10-yard keeper with 3:33 remaining in the game.
Smith, a 6-4, 185-pound shotgun passer, has thrown for 6,075 yards and 61 touchdowns through three seasons. He showed on several occasions he is also ready to run.
Another interception by Kinler — on a throw by Rucker that was deflected — gave Lake Mary a final opportunity. A 43-yard pass from Smith to wideout Jaffa Martin-Frye pushed the Rams to a first-and-goal before Dunn snuffed out the threat with his sack and forced fumble.
“I liked the fight our kids showed at the end,” said Lake Mary coach Scott Perry. “We were shellshocked at the beginning and we had a lot of spring-time mistakes. They were bigger, faster, stronger. We’ll try to fix that this summer.”
Rucker completed 179 of 309 pass attempts (58%) for 2,392 yards, 22 touchdowns and 12 interceptions as an Oviedo junior and is the presumed starter for Seminole. But that doesn’t appear to be a done deal. Siqueirios-Lasky, who led Seminole’s junior varsity team to a perfect 2020 season, got the starting nod on Friday night and made some impressive throws.
“Every position is open,” Lodge said. “Both of the [quarterbacks] we have are working hard. Both are really smart kids. We’re pleased with their progress. It’s a good problem to have.”
Seminole’s standout Class of 2022 middle linebacker Kameron Moore led a defense that put heavy pressure on Smith.
Lake Mary inside linebacker Brock Brown made key stops for the Rams, who are coming off an 8-3 season that included two playoff wins.