Pensacola High surges past Bishop Kenny

Pensacola High swarms teams with speed. It stifles with ankle-snapping athleticism.

The defense makes quarterbacks see maroon in their sleep.

The Tigers have that simple formula — a stellar run game and relentless defense — that is supposed to win championships. While still three wins from a crack at a state title, it's safe to say the Tigers officially hit full stride on Friday night.

Ranked No. 5 in Class 3A, PHS buried Jacksonville Bishop Kenny 31-0 in the Region 1-3A quarterfinals at Jim Scoggins Stadium. The win sets up a monster matchup as the Tigers will host No. 3 Jacksonville Andrew Jackson in the regional semifinals next week.

"I really feel good about the way we are playing," PHS coach Mike Bennett said. "Our defense was outstanding. Our running backs did a heck of a job. Right now, we're hitting on all cylinders and I'm excited about this football team."

When the Tigers had the ball, they racked up 278 yards on the ground, punishing the Bishop Kenny defense straight up the middle with a stable of tailbacks. When they didn't have it, the defense shut down tailback Mark Butler — the Crusaders' top threat — harassed quarterback Trent Parete on every dropback and posted its fourth shutout of the season.

"The only thing the defense has to do is keep those teams out (of the endzone), then the offense will do what we've got to do," said tailback Kenyon Martin, a News Journal Super Senior. Martin displayed his speed with a 70-yard touchdown run in the first half and totaled a game-high 98 rushing yards on six carries. Martin was one of five Tigers to rush for at least 25 yards.

"Our offense is kind of like the Florida Gators' offense, we have interchangeable running backs, you can put anyone back there and we can all make plays."

Holding a 10-0 lead at halftime despite outgaining Bishop Kenny 221-52, the Tigers (10-1) broke it open midway through the second half with three quick-hit scores in a five-minute span.

First, PHS tailback Rakim Rivers ran in a three-yard score to make it 17-0 with 3:56 left in the third quarter. Then, after forcing Bishop Kenny into its fourth three-and-out of the night, Laderick Black brought back the punt 69 yards for a touchdown, making it 24-0. Quarterback Jalen Spencer delivered the knockout with 10:58 to play in the fourth, finding a wide-open Black for a 30-yard scoring strike.

Defensively, PHS held Bishop Kenny to 124 total yards. Butler, who entered the game with 1,591 rushing yards and 24 touchdowns, was held to 51 yards on 17 carries. Parete made almost every throw on the run with a PHS player in hot pursuit, completing 3 of 16 passes with one interception. He was also sacked three times.

"They're very athletic at a lot of positions," Bishop Kenny head coach Mark Thorson said. "We hung with them in the first half, but then they made some big plays and got us out of the game. They're a really good football team and they've got a chance to go all the way."

With a team this fast and this stingy playing its best ball of the year, it's surely starting to look that way.