Tight end DeFalco provides imposing presence for Pirates

Daniel DeFalco started his high school career at Matanzas. Now he’ll be ending it there.

DeFalco started his football career with the Pirates as a quarterback. Now, the 6-foot-3, 230-pound rising senior is a Division I tight end prospect.

“It’s a lot different having a big guy over there to go against every day,” said Pirates middle linebacker Cole Hash. “I mean, it's a pleasure. I'm glad to have him back. I love him. He’s like a brother to me, always has been.”

DeFalco transferred to Flagler Palm Coast before his sophomore season after he was moved to defense.

“I wasn’t familiar playing defense, and I actually wasn’t really that good,” he said.

When he got to FPC, the new coaching staff moved him to tight end, where he blossomed. He transferred back to Matanzas near the end of last season, and he’s happy to be back.

“Everyone here likes to bring each other together,” he said. “They like to build people up, not tear them down. There aren’t groups of people that hang out. If the team hangs out, everyone hangs out together.”

When DeFalco was with the Pirates three years ago, Hash said, he was about 6 feet tall.

“He’s grown a lot,” Hash said. “I look up to him now, like physically look up to him. He’s a challenge for me every day, which is a blessing.”

Matanzas coach Matt Forrest said DeFalco will move around a lot on offense — at slot and H-back as well as on the line.

“He’s going to be all over the place,” Forrest said. “We play multi-formation and sets, trying to get the defense off-balanced. The knowledge he got when he played quarterback here, he’s retained, and that’s definitely going to make him more versatile.” 

He’s grown a lot. I look up to him now, like physically look up to him.” — COLE HASH 

When Hash, who won a state weightlifting championship last month, moves over to offense, he and DeFalco will provide opposing teams with mismatches.

“They’ll complement each other,” Forrest said. “They’ll be on the same side, on opposite sides. It gives our offense lots of options to get the ball to our playmakers.”

DeFalco is excited about his multiple roles, whether it’s playing H-back lead blocking for the running back or catching passes out of the backfield or running routes out of the slot.

“It’s helping me get ready for the next level of ball,” he said. “I'm on the line too with my hand down.”

He has Division I offers from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and the University of Rhode Island. He’s also talked to Georgia Southern, Penn, Yale, New Hampshire, Carson-Newman and, most recently, Georgetown.

DeFalco said he’s working with quarterback Dakwon Evans to get their timing down. Evans missed most of last season with a broken collar bone. Forrest said it took the rising senior about 10 minutes to shake off the rust after he was cleared.

While most schools were starting spring practice on May 1, the Pirates already had a week under their belt, starting on April 24 after petitioning the FHSAA to start early to avoid practicing during finals week.

“It makes sense for us,” Forrest said. “It gives (the players) an extra week off going into summer conditioning.”

Matanzas will play host to Nease in a spring game at 7 p.m. on May 18.