As season starts, Seabreeze head coach Troy Coke looks to change team's culture

Ormond Beach Observer
News

After losing nine of its 10 games in 2016 and beginning the 2017 preseason with a late loss against Titusville, Seabreeze head coach Troy Coke is getting tired of it.

“We let it get away,” Coke said. “We did some good things, but overall we just made some mistakes that were pretty typical of a kick-off classic.”

The Sandcrabs led 14-6 at half and safety Jalen Miranda was all over the field. He blocked a punt that led to a touchdown run by Deshaun Hugee, and was also the team’s leading tackler.

Seabreeze relinquished a late field goal to lose 17-14, but thankfully for the team, it didn’t count.

The Sandcrabs are 0-0 and lost their first five games of the 2016 season.

New quarterback Jadyn Nirschl will need to carry a lot of the responsibility on offense and be able to disperse the ball effectively. There aren’t a lot of elite offensive weapons on Seabreeze, but an accurate quarterback with the ability to lead will be something the team didn’t have a year ago.

"Seabreeze is a team that has a proud history," Coke said. "I want our guys to know what it's going to take to win in this area, and we have had NFL players come from this school so there's that culture that we're still trying to get back."

Nirschl threw a touchdown pass to Clayton McDonald during warm-up week and will now look to rival Spruce Creek as his week one opponent.

Spruce Creek surprised a lot of people by appearing in the state playoffs a year ago, and will look to be a force once again. The team lost to Seminole 35-21 in its kickoff classic contest, getting solid offensive contributions from quarterback Kyle Minckler, running back Jacquez Lord and wide receiver Cameron Cole.

A big difference for Spruce Creek will be the addition of sophomore linebacker Tyler Berrong into the lineup. He didn't play for a single snap during the preseason game. Berrong has been nursing a mild ankle injury, but will be looking to unleash after having plenty of rest heading into week one. Berrong has offers from Florida and North Carolina, and accrued three sacks in the spring game against Mainland.

The contest will come down to if Seabreeze can move the ball effectively against Creek, one of the top defenses in the area. With Berrong in the box and talented cornerbacks like Travon Killins on the outside, Nirschl will have plenty to deal with and a lot of pressure to handle.