- April 29, 2024
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Coach Travis Roland's son Paxton leads the Buccaneers in the warmup at the Daytona Stadium. Photo by Michele Meyers
Mainland team captains LJ McCray (11), Myron Shafer (second from left, back row), Jerard Bell (52), Christian Hudson (center, back row) Emmanuel Y'Israel (8), Ramon McCollough Jr. (66). Photo by Michele Meyers
Mainland prepares for their homecoming game against Deltona at the Daytona Stadium. Photo by Michele Meyers
The Mainland and Deltona team captains wait for the coin toss after the one-hour lightening delay. Deltona will receive the opegning kickoff. Photo by Michele Meyers
The Mainland and Deltona team captains shake hands and fist bump before game time at the Daytona Stadium. Photo by Michele Meyers
Bubba Westbrook runs the Mainland flag onto the field before the game against the Deltona Wolves at the Daytona Stadium. Photo by Michele Meyers
Mainland quarterback Dennis Murray (14) smiles as he jumps while leading his teammates onto the field before the Buccaneers' homecoming game against Deltona. Photo by Michele Meyers
Deltona's Desean Fludd (5) attempts to stop Mainland's Demond Noelien's tackle. Photo by Michele Meyers
Deltona's Desean Fludd (5) works his way through Mainland's defense before the tackle. Photo by Michele Meyers
Deltona's kicker Koen Bonta (2) scrambles for some yardage after dropping the snap as Mainland defenders chase him down. Photo by Michele Meyers
Mainland defenders Phillip Moore (2) and Tamaj Woodard (42) tackle Deltona's Damarion Phillips in the Buccaneers' Homecoming game. Photo by Michele Meyers
Deltona's Desean Fludd attempts to intercept the pass to Buccaneer Emmanuel Y'Israel. Photo by Michele Meyers
Deltona's Damarion Phillips makes the tackle as Mainland quarterback Dennis Murray (14) scrambles out of the pocket to gain some yardage. Buccaneer Clarence McCloud (3) stands by for a possible pass. Photo by Michele Meyers
Mainland running back Corey Hill (12) makes his way through traffic in the downpour at the Daytona Stadium. Photo by Michele Meyers
Buccaneer Zavier Mincey enjoys a moment in the downpour during the game against Deltona at the Daytona Stadium. Photo by Michele Meyers
Mainland halfback Blake Irwin gets the first down during the game against the Deltona Wolves. Photo by Michele Meyers
Undeterred by the 50-minute lightning delay, Mainland improved to 7-0 this season with a 65-0 rout in the rain against Deltona on Thursday, Oct. 12.
Nine different players scored 10 touchdowns on a rain-soaked field during the Buccaneers’ homecoming game.
Deltona fell to 0-7. According to Mainland running backs coach Arthur Westbrook, the Bucs are taught to respect every opponent, no matter its record.
“Like coach (Travis) Roland always says, you always have to respect your opponent,” Westbrook said. “You can never look past anybody, no matter who you play. Like I say, it’s always the next game. Once we take care of business playing them, we move on to the next game.”
Mainland is a force to be reckoned with for any Florida team. The Bucs are ranked first in Class 3S and 10th overall in the state.
Defensive linemen L.J. McCray and Ramon McCollough Jr. are ranked among the top 20 in sacks in Class 3S. McCray is sixth in sacks, averaging 1.4 per game. This month, the 6-foot-6, 275 pound defensive lineman will be announcing his commitment to one of his top schools — Auburn, Florida State, Florida, Georgia or Miami.
Like coach (Travis) Roland always says, you always have to respect your opponent. You can never look past anybody, no matter who you play. Like I say, it’s always the next game. Once we take care of business playing them, we move on to the next game.” — Arthur Westbrook, Mainland running back coach
McCray was instrumental in shutting down the Wolves on their first drive. Deltona was plagued by turnovers in the game as both teams battled intermittent deluges of rain.
Running back Khamani Robinson scored the Bucs' first touchdown after scooping up a mishandled snap five minutes into the game. He also ran in the fifth touchdown after Deltona's Koen Bonta’s punt bounced back to the 5-yard line in the second quarter.
As the field and the game got messier, Roland protested that some of the officials’ calls put his players in danger. Mainland finished the game injury free.
Westbrook has been coaching Pop Warner for years where he said they have a saying —“let the players play, let the coaches coach and let the fans cheer.”
“The most important thing is let the referees ref,” he said. “That’s their job. Sometimes they see it and sometimes they don’t. I’m just glad our guys stay focused. They didn’t react. You know, the old saying is, ‘the second person always gets caught.’ We just tell our kids, if something negative happens, they’re supposed to just hold their hands up and come to the sidelines.”
Touchdowns were scored by offensive and defensive players alike. Wide receivers Clarence McCloud, Emmanuel Y’Israel and Tyree Weatherspoon scored as well as linebacker Dennis King III and defensive end Antonio Wilson who had fumble recoveries in the second quarter. Running backs Corey Hill and Jontrell Edwards joined Robinson with one touchdown each while E’Zaiah Shine scored on a quarterback keeper in the third quarter.
Westbrook said the goal is to get back to the state championship game after falling short 32-30 to Lake Wales in the 3S title game last season. He referred to Roland’s decision to play the video from the fourth quarter of that game in the first practice of the season.
“You want to make every tackle, every throw, every catch,” he said. “We know they are going to make mistakes but our kids practice really, really hard. The coaches coach and the players respond. What keeps them focused (is) we always say 32-to-30 because that was the score that we lost to Lake Wales. We are just hungry. We want to get back.”
Mainland plays host to Kissimmee Osceola (2-5) on Thursday, Oct. 19.
