At the conclusion of spring football practice, high school teams undoubtedly have a greater sense of what to expect when official practice begins in August.

Still, changes can occur.

Take last year, for instance, when both Cape Coral and Mariner had to search for new head coaches after winning spring football games.

Troy Davis departed Cape, accepting a job in Virginia, and Mariner’s Robert Butz stepped down after five seasons, wanting to spend more time with his family and focus more attention on his career and education.

Both schools opted to hire coordinators who already were coaches on the staff, figuring it would be a smooth transition for the players.

Mike Goebbel, formerly an offensive coordinator, was hired by Cape High. He guided the Seahawks to a 10-3 record last season, a victory total achieved only one other time in the Seahawks’ 29-year history.

At Mariner, Chad O’Brien transitioned from defensive coordinator to head coach, and led the Tritons to a 6-4 mark, their first winning season since 2004.

Given those successful seasons, the participation numbers are up at both Cape and Mariner this spring. That means more players to evaluate during spring practice and this week’s scrimmage games.

O’Brien said the spring games are an extension of the practices with the focus on player evaluation more than the final outcome.

“It lets you see what you have and gives you a chance to evaluate what you’ve been doing,” he said. “We’re going to play every kid in that game and really evaluate that film hard.”

The Seahawks travel to Charlotte for its spring game Thursday night, while Bishop Verot hosts East Lee County at Viking Stadium. Mariner visits Gulf Coast Saturday night.

On May 30, Ida Baker concludes spring practice by hosting Evangelical Christian and North Fort Myers entertains Lehigh.



Cape Coral at Charlotte: Though a spring football game is not always a clear indication of what to expect in the fall, the Seahawks’ 38-23 victory over the Tarpons last year proved to be a sampling of things to come.

Led by senior quarterback David Pasquale, the Seahawks scored touchdowns on their first two possessions and built a 21-0 lead. They moved the ball efficiently with their shotgun-spread offense and displayed a lot of speed and athleticism, which remained an advantage during the fall season.

The Seahawks return 14 starters from last year’s team, but are in the process of finding replacements for players like Pasquale.

Senior-to-be Colin Saring and junior Jaylen Watkins are the two returning players from the varsity team vying for the quarterback spot, with a few others moving up from the junior varsity team also in the mix.

Goebbel said with the numbers so high the Seahawks have options at other positions and potential depth.

“We kind of doubled our numbers from a year ago,” he said. “We’ve been able to platoon and create the depth we wanted to create, and also get a chance to look at some younger kids from a good freshmen group.”

The Seahawks’ spring encounter with the Tarpons kicks off at 7:30 p.m., and is their third straight meeting in spring. The Tarpons consistently have a strong program and figure to be one of the teams contending for the District 5A-11 honors.



East Lee County at Bishop Verot: The Vikings went to the air often in 2007. Their offense, led by senior quarterback Butch Moore and a host of outstanding receivers, played a big part in the team’s turnaround from 1-9 to 7-4.

As the Vikings try to continue that momentum, they’ll hope for strength in numbers and all-around strong play as many of the offensive leaders are graduating.

Coach Phil Dorn said he may shift the offensive emphasis more to the run. They return leading rusher Schon Thomas and four of five offensive linemen.

“We may not have as many stars, but we have guys that we think can be pretty good,” Dorn said. “Our system is multiple and flexible enough that we can emphasize the players we have.”

Dorn said there is a competition for starting quarterback with senior-to-be J.D. Chase the frontrunner.

In the spring game, the Vikings face East Lee County. Kickoff is 7 p.m. The Jaguars took their lumps last season as a first-year varsity program, going 0-10 and being outscored 369-94.



Mariner at Gulf Coast: The competitive nature of the District 5A-12 race makes it difficult to project each game, let alone the order of finish.

For the record, though, last season Fort Myers finished 4-0, Cape Coral 3-1, Mariner 2-2, Ida Baker 1-3 and North Fort Myers 0-4.

The Tritons and Seahawks met in the annual Black n’ Blue Bowl to decide the district runner-up playoff berth, with the Seahawks prevailing 32-15.

Though the start of the 2008 season is still months away, the Tritons will look to make a move up the standings, after falling short last year.

One area the Tritons expect to be more efficient is at quarterback. Junior-to-be Gabby Rojas offers more of a run-pass threat than older brother Joel Rojas.

Joel, who is graduating, was a consistent and key performer for the Tritons at several positions during his career and stepped into the quarterback role early last season. Gabby was given some reps early before becoming the starter and showing potential late in the season.

On both sides of the ball, the Tritons pride themselves on being a hard-hitting, smashmouth team. They’ll look for the offensive line to be a strength and pave the way for Rojas and several running backs. The biggest gamebreaker of the bunch is junior Eric Mitchell, who rushed for 1,008 yards as a sophomore.

On defense, the Tritons lost some key starters, including linebackers Rodd Story and Corey Wortinger, and defensive end Kirk Richardson.

They were outstanding as a unit, swarming to the ball and tackling. Senior cornerback Kevin Payen and senior defensive end Ryan Schneider (12 sacks) are among the defensive players looking to build off strong junior seasons.

The Tritons take the field for a spring game at 7 p.m. Saturday at Gulf Coast in Naples. Tritons coach Chad O’Brien said the work ethic and camaraderie has stood out the most during spring practice.

“They’re seeing what it takes,” he said. “The kids are learning some new systems but are catching on and bonding well together.”