Two North Pop Warner teams qualify for playoffs
Playing in Division 1 for the first time in years, the North Fort Myers Pop Warner football programs founds things a little tough at times.
It also found great triumph, as two teams earned their way into the Peace River Conference playoffs this season.
The Junior Pee-Wees and Midgets will play Oct. 25 at a site still to be determined.
The Midgets have been the class of the organization, going 7-1 in the regular season, with a loss to Fort Myers the only blemish to their record. They will play Charlotte, the No. 3 seed, on Oct. 25.
“It’s been a good group of kids. Nobody really stands out. You don’t have that one kid,” North head coach Ron Kelly said. “It’s out first year in Division 1 in years and we have a chance at a championship right out of the gate.”
The Midgets have relied on quarterback Ben Pogue and a backfield of Chris Lucas, Hunter Kobylanski and Blake McPherson to grind out yardage and play stout defense.
Knowing it had to win Saturday against Cape Youth to secure the No. 2 seed in the playoffs, the Red Knights took care of business with two late touchdowns and cruised to a 20-0 victory.
A loss would have meant a three-way tie for second and a Kansas City tiebreaker that could have dropped North to the No. 4 seed.
Blake McPherson ended a long drive with a 10-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter to give North a 6-0 lead.
But Cape Youth didn’t make it easy for them. The hurricanes recovered a fumble near its goal line to deny another score and took the momentum, driving for nearly six minutes before missing a field goal at the end of the half.
The Canes started the second half with another long drive that ended with another missed field goal, and that’s when the Red Knights found that next gear.
McPherson scored again late in the third quarter from seven yards out to make it 12-0, and after Lucas recovered a fumble, Kobylanski plunged in from three yards with seven minutes left to ice it after Dawson Graves kicked the two-point PAT.
Kobylanski had an interception late for the exclamation point.
“The Canes are our biggest rivals and we had to play today. They had those drives midway through the game and we had to stop them, and we did,” Kobylanski said.
“We didn’t come out playing our best, but the coach gave us a speech and we came out ready,” McPherson said. “We want to give Fort Myers something to think about.”
The Junior Pee-Wee squad secured the No. 3 seed with a 6-0 victory over Cape Youth. They will play Riverdale in two weeks in hopes of avenging a 13-7 heartbreaker when they played in the regular season.
At 4-4, coach Chris Reeves has put together a team that lacks experience but makes up for it in size and speed.
“We only have a few older players and usually that’s a weakness. But our younger players are bigger and faster and more athletic and have lots of heart, which you have to have in D1,” Reeves said.
Willie Brown Jr., who scored the game’s only touchdown, is the go-to guy, with Keon Anderson, and quarterback Josh Fitch the other ball carriers.
Linebacker Justin McDonald is one of the older players, but football smart way beyond his years, Reeves said. Alex Lee, a first-year player, has shown great promise as a center.