Published on Tuesday September 29, 2009 in The Miami Herald
St. Thomas Aquinas gets opponent worthy of résumé
BY MANNY NAVARRO
mnavarro@MiamiHerald.com
With dozens of top-notch recruits on both teams, St. Thomas Aquinas' showdown with Byrnes (S.C.) on Friday might be the best No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup ever.
George Smith has been around a lot of big high school football games in his illustrious coaching career.
But there's something about the upcoming game that's different from the other 401 games he has been a part of in his 33 years at St. Thomas Aquinas.
Something bigger than the rest.
''There's only been four of them before,'' Smith said. ''So I guess it's pretty special.''
Friday night at Lockhart Stadium in front of a national ESPNU audience, the Raiders (3-0) will host the Byrnes Rebels (5-0) from Duncan, S.C.
Read the school résumés and it's big: St. Thomas has won five state titles and played in 12 championship games and outscored opponents by an average of 44-6. Byrnes has won nine state titles -- including six of the past seven -- and outscored their opponents by an average of 61-8.
Read the rankings and recruiting reports and it's even bigger: Aquinas is the No. 1-ranked team in the country according to every major national poll. Byrnes is right behind them at No. 2.
Their rosters are loaded with enough talent to stock every starting position for a major college football team. Byrnes has the nation's No. 2 running back in Marcus Lattimore (6-0, 214).
Aquinas has the nation's top corner in Lamarcus Joyner (5-8, 185).
Both are finalists for the nation's U.S. Army Player of the Year award.
''I think this matchup of star power between teams is definitely better than any other No. 1 versus No. 2 matchup we've seen before,'' said Charles Fishbein of Elite Scouting Services.
''When you saw Southlake Carroll [Texas] play Miami Northwestern two years ago, there were plenty of stars on the field for the Bulls. But with Southlake Carroll there was really one kid who went D-1. This is a legit head-to-head matchup with talent all over the field.''
There are plenty of intriguing matchups.
None might be more crucial to the game's outcome than how the Raiders' offensive line holds up against Byrnes' imposing front four. The Raiders have talented tackles Brandon Linder (6-5, 270), who has Florida, Miami and Notre Dame recruiting hard, and Jermaine Barton (6-5, 270).
The Rebels have two Tennessee commitments in defensive tackle Brandon Willis (6-2, 260) and end Corey Miller (6-4, 231).
''I definitely think the Brandon Linder Brandon Willis/Corey Miller battle is going to be a great matchup,'' Fishbein said.
''But it's also my area of concern for Aquinas. How are a few of those other guys going to to hold up against that Byrnes defensive line? Will they have as much success running the football as they did against the team from Ohio?''
Byrnes can win on the legs of Lattimore alone. He carried the ball 589 times for 4,150 yards rushing as a sophomore and junior.
Aquinas usually wins with its running game -- headed up by the two-headed monster of Gio Bernard and James White.
But the best matchup of the game could come down to how Rutgers-bound quarterback Chas Dodd and his talented trio of receivers -- Jazz King (5-11, 178), Torian Richardson (5-11, 174) and Nick Jones (5-8, 178) -- fare against Aquinas' loaded secondary.
Besides Joyner, the Raiders have Cody Riggs, Keion Payne and Brian Robinson, who all are considered among the 20 best defensive backs in the country.
''We're glad to be in this situation,'' Smith said. ''That's what this game was setup to be -- No. 1 versus No. 2. To me, it's great for South Florida, great for Broward County to create these things.
''Any high school football fan that's excited about football should come and see what Florida does against South Carolina. They have great players. We have great players. It's going to be a great game.''
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