Winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Clearwater). They blew past the Gulf Buccaneers 41-21 on Monday. Given the Tornadoes' advantage in MaxPreps' Florida football rankings (they are ranked 99th, while the Buccaneers are ranked 223rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Jaylen White was his usual excellent self, rushing for 118 yards and a touchdown on only 11 carries, while also throwing for 162 yards and a touchdown. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in rushing yards.
Clearwater's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged two passes before it was all said and done. Jeffrey Barnes Jr picked up that interception and then proceeded to rub salt in the wound by taking it back the other way for a touchdown. Another thorn in Gulf's side was Noel Brown, who picked up two sacks and made ten total tackles.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Clearwater was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 205 rushing yards. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved they're rushing yard total in three consecutive games.
When it comes to explaining why Gulf lost, don't look at Antonio Muniz. Despite the final result, he rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown while picking up 7.3 yards per carry. Muniz was no stranger to the big play, taking off on a dash that went for 57 yards. Aiden Holewski also helped out with an impressive 83 receiving yards.
The victory got Clearwater back to even at 3-3. As for Gulf, they now have a losing record at 2-3.
Clearwater will welcome Tampa Catholic at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. As for Gulf, they will head out to challenge Sunlake at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
