cause those things will turn a win into a lossfaster than just about anything.”

Facing a fourth and 20,Fitch made a 26-yard completion to Carrier to giveSteinbrenner first down.The sophomore sig-nal caller wasn’t done there. Facing fourthand 7,he found Carrier for a 42-yard recep-tion with less than 45 seconds to play.

Pearcey fought through the line for thegame-tying score on fourth and goal with thewin hinging on the extra point,which sailedwide left to send the game to overtime.

The Warriors got the ball on the Chiefs’10-yard line with four chances to score,buta penalty pushed them back. Steinbrennerwould not be deterred, as Fitch found

Carrier in end zone for a 14-yard strike onthe second play.

“Coach said ‘go make a play’ and Fitchput it out there,”said Carrier, who finishedwith three catches for 76 yards.“It was agreat pass and I just caught the ball.”

Chamberlain could not answer on itspossession,giving Steinbrenner the victory.

The Warriors host Middleton on Thursday,Nov.10 at 7:30 p.m. to end the season.

By Eugenio Torrensetorrens@cnewspubs.com

During his college career, center JeffDeremer snapped the ball to such SuperBowl-winning signal callers as Brett Favreand Brad Johnson, but he formed some ofhis longest-lasting memories in high school.

He said as much when he visited his oldcoach John Castelemare, who is in his sec-ond season at Academy at the Lakes.

“The stuff you’re going through right now,you’ll remember the rest of your life,”Deremer, who played college ball at theUniversity of Southern Mississippi and Florida

State University, told the Wildcats who gath-ered in the school gym’s weight room.

Castelemare coached Deremer atRidgewood his sophomore through seniorseason, 1985-88. Any time the Wildcatscoach beckons his former player to speak tothe team,Deremer obliges.

“Sometimes when you’re a player, youkind of let what coaches say and teachers saygo in one ear and out the other,but this stuffreally means something,and you don’t figurethat out until later in life,”Deremer said.

Deremer stressed academics and takingcare of responsibilities more important thanathletics, though he said sports teaches life

lessons, including one that has stuck withhim more than any other since high school.

“Never quit,”Deremer said.Castelemare’s Wildcats welcomed

Deremer last year,when the team went 5-5.This season he spoke in front of a 9-1 squad,and the several players said they hoped henoticed their improvement.

“I think he’ll be impressed,” said juniorlineman Alex Stark.

That’s saying something for someonewho played at a college football power-house.

“We’re not even an 11-man team, but tohave somebody who played on the highestlevel of collegiate football to come talk to usis pretty cool,”said sophomore lineman JackFishman.

He remembered some of the lessons

from Deremer last year, such as workinghard and never giving up. He joked howDeremer made it known that Castelemarehad gotten softer since the 1980s.

But even as the hard-nosed, rough-and-tumble,whistle-blowing coach,Castelemareserved as a role model for his athletes, in-cluding Deremer whose father wasbedridden during his playing days.

“Kids need these role models in theirlives,”Deremer said.

Every year he speaks to Castelemare’snew group of players, Deremer was over-come with nostalgia.

“You come back and you see the samestuff and you see kids working that hard andall the opportunities that they’re gonnahave, it’s incredible,” Deremer said.“I’ll doanything to hand back what I was taught.”

CnewsPubs.com / 813-909-2800 C O M M U N I T Y N E W S P U B L I C A T I O N S November 9, 2011 23

By Jeff OdomLaker/Lutz News Correspondent

It took a last minute touchdown andovertime,but the Steinbrenner football teamdefeated Chamberlain 34-27 on Nov.4 to se-cure the first winning season in theprogram’s three-year history.

Curtis Fitch completed a 42-yard pass to JonMarc Carrier with 45 seconds left in regulationto set up the game-tying score for the Warriors(6-3).The two connected again for a 14-yardstrike in overtime to claim the road victory.

“Our offensive coordinator,Andres Perez,made a couple of great calls,” said Warriorscoach Floyd Graham.“The winning play wejust put in this week and it worked just likeit’s designed to.”

Steinbrenner drove down the field intoChamberlain (1-8) territory thanks to ahandful of rushes from Cody Cazin andKendall Pearcey.After Cazin set up a firstdown,Pearcey found a hole and turned onthe burners for a 42-yard touchdown to getthe Warriors on the scoreboard.

The Chiefs struck back with a weapon oftheir own — halfback Xavier Johnson.Thejunior, who finished with 262 yards on 32carries and two touchdowns, slippedthrough a hole on the outside and tied thegame with a 32-yard scamper.

Steinbrenner’s Zack Jones answered witha 99-yard kickoff return for a score, tying a2010 return by Jake Carroll for longest inschool history.

Johnson continued to show his speed,breaking through a host of defenders enroute to a 27-yard gain to set up NickMcNeal for a 32-yard touchdown to tie thegame at 14.

Pearcey, who finished with 212 totalyards, took the ensuing kickoff back 57yards to set the Warriors up with good fieldposition.He scored on a 1-yard rush to giveSteinbrenner a 21-14 halftime lead.

Johnson wasted no time tying the gameafter halftime with a 51-yard touchdown.JoshBennett found McNeal in the back of the endzone to give Chamberlain a 27-21 fourth-quar-ter lead after a blocked extra point.

The Warriors took over on their own 28for what turned out as their last possessionof regulation.Penalties threatened to derailthe 18-play,72-yard drive.

“The penalties killed us all night,”Graham said.“We have to eliminate that be-

2011 HIGH SCHOOLFOOTBALL STANDINGS

Class 7A-District 7Tampa Bay Tech* 6-3 (5-0)Gaither* 6-3 (4-1)Steinbrenner 6-3 (3-2)Freedom 2-8 (2-3)Chamberlain 1-8 (1-4)Wiregrass Ranch 0-9 (0-5)

Class 6A-District 6Hernando* 8-2 (7-0)Sunlake* 8-1 (6-1)Land O’ Lakes 6-3 (5-2)Nature Coast 5-5 (4-3)River Ridge 5-4 (3-4)Mitchell 5-5 (2-5)Springstead 2-7 (1-6)Central 0-10 (0-7)

Class 5A-District 6Pasco* 10-0 (7-0)Fivay* 7-2 (6-1)Zephyrhills 5-4 (5-2)Anclote 4-5 (4-3)Wesley Chapel 5-4 (3-4)Gulf 2-7 (2-5)Ridgewood 1-9 (1-6)Hudson 0-9 (0-7)*Clinched playoff berth

Past revisits present at academy

Warriors beat Chamberlain in OTSPORTS

Steinbrenner’s Zack Boryla, No. 79, and Amiri Brown sack Chamberlain quarterback Josh Bennettduring the Warriors’ 34-27 overtime victory on Nov. 4. (Photo courtesy of SteinbrennerFootball.com)

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