SPRING FOOTBALL: Matanzas Pirates

Palm Coast Observer
Sports

The Pirates went 4-6 last season. Coach Keith Lagocki will keep the spread offense.

Already this spring, the Matanzas High School football team is seeing what kind of depth it has.

Last season, the Pirates went 4-6 and lost 19 seniors, including eight starters on offense and five starters on defense.

But coach Keith Lagocki likes the chemistry his program has shown this spring.

“We have many new starters, especially on offense, and we are really excited to see what this group will do when we play against someone else,” Lagocki said.

The Pirates will get their first test 7 p.m. Thursday, May 24, when they travel to Warner Christian for their spring game.

“Our lack of depth has really kept us from doing extensive contact drills, and our guys will be pumped to be able to line up against someone in a different colored jersey and know that they don’t have to hold back,” he said.

Al’Kwazi Spencer, who was the starting quarterback last season as a sophomore, underwent offseason knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus. He will miss the spring game but will be ready come fall.

Lagocki said Spencer will play both ways next season, getting a lot of time as safety and also playing a key role in the offense as a wildcat (running) quarterback.

Filling Spencer’s void at quarterback is freshman Jeremiah Wilson. Wilson was the starting QB on junior varsity last season but has gotten all of the first-team snaps this spring. Wilson will factor into the quarterback role in August, Lagocki said.

Both the offense and the defense will continue to run the same schemes — the spread on offense and the basic 4-3 on defense.

The Pirates could have three freshmen starting on defense, but defensive coordinator Andrew Ward hopes to continue momentum on the physical playing style he instilled in the defense last season.

Overall, Lagocki wants to see his team stay together.

“Last year, we had a lot of outside distractions which really hurt the team chemistry,” Lagocki said. “This year’s team is much closer and does not have those distractions.”