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East Lake football hitting its stride

Eric Horchy/SUNCOAST

East Lake quarterback Sam Shaffer's more consistent play is one of the integral cogs driving the Eagles toward a postseason berth.

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By Eric Horchy | The Suncoast News

Published: October 16, 2009

Updated:

EAST LAKE - At any level of football, an 0-2 start to a season will quickly make grand postseason hopes shift dangerously toward being mere pipedreams.

In high school, that type of stumble represents 20 percent of a team's schedule firmly in the loss column with only eight games remaining.

Suffice to say, it's not an enviable place to be found, yet that's exactly the hole East Lake fell into four weeks ago.

To say the Eagles have responded well and bounced back would be an understatement.

East Lake has won four straight and is now on a collision course with Class 5A, District 8 Countryside (5-1) for league supremacy. Both are 2-0 in district play.

"We're playing now how we looked forward to in the offseason," said Coach Bob Hudson. "This is what we thought we could do."

Taking a closer look at East Lake's full schedule helps illustrate why the team could go from completely defeated one moment to unbeaten the next.

The Eagles' first two games were road tests against St. Petersburg and Largo, two of Pinellas County's top teams this year with a combined record of 10-2 as of Wednesday. Both were close affairs, especially the 14-11 season opening loss at St. Pete where East Lake outgained the Green Devils 308-147.

Now it's been 4-0 since the first two weeks spent in South Pinellas, including a huge 13-3 triumph over cross-town rival Tarpon Springs in Week 3 that sparked the run.

"That's a good team," Hudson said of Tarpon. "My biggest thing was that we held them to 3 points. That was huge. They've got three backs that are real good players and probably would all start anywhere else."

That ability to shut down the run has played a key role in this season's dramatic turnaround. East Lake is allowing only 90 yards rushing per game and 3 yards per carry. Much of that is predicated on the sheer size of the Eagles' defensive front and the coaching staff's advocacy of hardnosed football.

"That's something we've preached to the guys ever since I've been here," Hudson said. "When we play a team on Friday, Saturday when they wake up, win or lose, they're going to be sore. They're going to know who they played."

A stout, physically aggressive group generally is expected from the Eagles around Pinellas football circles, but it's the suddenly potent offense's ability to sustain drives and let the defense catch its breath that is gaining newfound respect.

East Lake broke the 20-point barrier only three times during last season's 3-7 campaign, but have already matched that mark in its past three and is averaging over 22 per contest.

Senior running back Jamaal Wilburn, who did not play against Largo, entered Week 7 as the county's sixth-rated rusher with 600 yards and eight touchdowns.

Hudson also cited the continued growth of quarterback Sam Shaffer. The Eagles, who averaged only 67.6 passing yards last year, are now around 100. That has helped soften up the defensive box for Wilburn.

"When you get a kid for a second year, there's no doubt that they learned a lot from the year before," Hudson said of Shaffer's progress. "It's just the comfort level with everything."

With multiple pieces continuing to fall in place as the season gets into crunch time, 0-2 is feeling more like a distant memory and that postseason optimism is in full effect.

"This is a real fun year," Hudson said. "They're playing really well and with a lot of heart and emotion."

"We're feeling the playoffs right now," Wilburn said of his team's penultimate goal. "We don't want to be at home watching other teams play."

Eric Horchy can be reached at 727-815-1071 or ehorchy@suncoastnews.com.

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