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Bulldogs rip Evans, 27-18; Falcons next PDF Print E-mail
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Wednesday, 06 October 2010 18:36
By Ken Jackson
Sports Writer
Things seem back to normal at St. Cloud High, with the focus back on football.
And, not a moment too soon.
The Bulldogs get back to District 4A-7 play on Friday, when they host second-year program East River at 7:30 p.m.
The Falcons may be the surprise of the area, off to a 4-0 start after winning just one game last year. As far as playoff hopes go, the game is a virtual must-win for St. Cloud, who is 0-1 in 4A-7 after a 20-17 loss to Edgewater on Sept. 24. East River is 1-0 after beating Poinciana that night.
The Bulldogs (3-2) ended a two-game losing streak Friday with a 27-18 win over Evans (1-3) that didn’t come easily.
Senior tailback Irving Huggins ran for 128 yards and four touchdowns, the last on a 40-yard gallop with 2:01 left in the game that finally put it away.
The game came days after Coach Bill Buldini was reinstated to his position after he let a homeless player reside with him, an infraction of FHSAA rules.
A FHSAA investigation continues. The player has been ruled ineligible by the FHSAA, pending an appeal by the high school.
“I haven’t heard about what’s gone on,” Buldini said. “I’m sure I won’t hear any more until there’s a conclusion.”
The goings-on may have affected the Bulldogs early in Friday’s game, when Evans took a 6-0 lead and largely kept St. Cloud’s quick-strike offense off the field.
“We started slow again,” Buldini said. “We’ve fallen behind everyone except Edgewater this year. After that, offensively when we needed to score, we did. And then we buckled down in the second half defensively.”
Both units got the Bulldogs back in the game. After Melvin Manning picked off the first of two passes, the offense turned it into points three minutes, nine plays and 65 yards later on Huggins’ first score from 1 yard out. A blocked PAT left it tied at 6.
St. Cloud’s offense got right back on the field after an Evans three-and-out, and, set up by two scrambles by quarterback Phillip Steinmetz, including a 24-yarder, Huggins scored again from a yard out 37 seconds before halftime. Steinmetz then hit Brett Biller for the two-point conversion for a 14-6 lead at the break.
The Bulldogs made it 20-6 in the third quarter after Manning’s second interception, giving him a county-leading five for the season. Huggins capped the 12-play, 72-yard drive with a 10-yard run, but Evans narrowed the gap to 20-18 and got the ball at their 43 with 6:25 to play.
But the Bulldogs defense held and Huggins ran away with the game.
Steinmetz, while being held to 69 yards passing (7-for-19), ran for 109 as the Bulldogs tallied 274 rushing yards.
“Phil had a nice game, he did a great job running the offense,” Buldini said. “The offensive line played one of their better games in front of him.”
The Falcons are undefeated against teams with a combined record of 2-17. East River defeated Ocoee, 24-14, last week.
Buldini said after a good win, the team’s focus level is back at 100 percent – and it’s all on getting back in the district race.
“No doubt, it’s a must-win. Those guys are big up front, strong and physical. They can control the football and keep our offense off the field, like Evans did against us early,” he said. “We can’t match their size, but if we’re going to win we’re going to have to match their physicality.”
Buldini said he hopes to create mismatches on offense, and then push those advantages.
“When we have the ball, we’ve got to be better at what we do than what they throw at us,” he said.
 

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