Bmack's Astronaut High School football dynasty

[Bmack]

1981 Individual Offense

 

[Bmack]

1981 Individual Defense

 

[Bmack]

[xtable=562x@]
{tbody}
{tr}
{td=64x@}YEAR{/td}
{td=137x@}PLAYER{/td}
{td=82x@}CLASS{/td}
{td=48x@}Pos{/td}
{td=97x@}All-State{/td}
{td=134x@}College Scholarship{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}1981{/td}
{td}Whiting, Donnie{/td}
{td}Senior{/td}
{td}QB{/td}
{td}1st Team{/td}
{td}Florida{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}1981{/td}
{td}Parker, Ken{/td}
{td}Senior{/td}
{td}TE{/td}
{td}2nd Team{/td}
{td}Georgia Tech{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}1981{/td}
{td}Montgomery, Oscar{/td}
{td}Senior{/td}
{td}LB{/td}
{td}2nd Team{/td}
{td}Carson-Newman{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}1981{/td}
{td}Beasley, Art{/td}
{td}Senior{/td}
{td}G{/td}
{td}3rd Team{/td}
{td}Army{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}1981{/td}
{td}Warren, Terry{/td}
{td}Junior{/td}
{td}T{/td}
{td}Hon. Mention{/td}
{td}Florida State*{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}1981{/td}
{td}Wiles, Jeff{/td}
{td}Senior{/td}
{td}DL{/td}
{td}Hon. Mention{/td}
{td}Carson-Newman{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}1981{/td}
{td}McConico, Scott{/td}
{td}Junior{/td}
{td}RB{/td}
{td}Hon. Mention{/td}
{td}-{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}1981{/td}
{td}Bower, Sean{/td}
{td}Senior{/td}
{td}G{/td}
{td}-{/td}
{td}Central Florida{/td}
{/tr}
{/tbody}
[/xtable]


*Warren did not graduate from Astronaut.

 

[Bmack]

[xtable=414x@]
{tbody}
{tr}
{td=64x@} {/td}
{td=colspan:3|92x@}Re-enacted{/td}
{td=colspan:3|94x@}Reel Life{/td}
{td=colspan:3|164x@}Difference{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=64x@}Year{/td}
{td=39x@}W{/td}
{td=39x@}L{/td}
{td=14x@}T{/td}
{td=42x@}W{/td}
{td=22x@}L{/td}
{td=30x@}T{/td}
{td}w+/-{/td}
{td}L+/1{/td}
{td}T +/-{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=64x@}1972{/td}
{td=39x@}4{/td}
{td=39x@}6{/td}
{td=14x@}0{/td}
{td=42x@}3{/td}
{td=22x@}5{/td}
{td=30x@}2{/td}
{td}1{/td}
{td}1{/td}
{td}-2{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=64x@}1973{/td}
{td=39x@}11{/td}
{td=39x@}1{/td}
{td=14x@}0{/td}
{td=42x@}9{/td}
{td=22x@}2{/td}
{td=30x@}0{/td}
{td}2{/td}
{td}-1{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=64x@}1974{/td}
{td=39x@}9{/td}
{td=39x@}1{/td}
{td=14x@}0{/td}
{td=42x@}9{/td}
{td=22x@}1{/td}
{td=30x@}0{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=64x@}1975{/td}
{td=39x@}11{/td}
{td=39x@}1{/td}
{td=14x@}0{/td}
{td=42x@}9{/td}
{td=22x@}2{/td}
{td=30x@}0{/td}
{td}2{/td}
{td}-1{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=64x@}1976{/td}
{td=39x@}13{/td}
{td=39x@}1{/td}
{td=14x@}0{/td}
{td=42x@}10{/td}
{td=22x@}3{/td}
{td=30x@}0{/td}
{td}3{/td}
{td}-2{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=64x@}1977{/td}
{td=39x@}11{/td}
{td=39x@}1{/td}
{td=14x@}0{/td}
{td=42x@}9{/td}
{td=22x@}1{/td}
{td=30x@}0{/td}
{td}2{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=64x@}1978{/td}
{td=39x@}8{/td}
{td=39x@}2{/td}
{td=14x@}0{/td}
{td=42x@}8{/td}
{td=22x@}2{/td}
{td=30x@}0{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=64x@}1979{/td}
{td=39x@}11{/td}
{td=39x@}2{/td}
{td=14x@}0{/td}
{td=42x@}10{/td}
{td=22x@}3{/td}
{td=30x@}0{/td}
{td}1{/td}
{td}-1{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=64x@}1980{/td}
{td=39x@}7{/td}
{td=39x@}3{/td}
{td=14x@}0{/td}
{td=42x@}7{/td}
{td=22x@}3{/td}
{td=30x@} {/td}
{td}0{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=64x@}1981{/td}
{td=39x@}8{/td}
{td=39x@}2{/td}
{td=14x@}0{/td}
{td=42x@}8{/td}
{td=22x@}2{/td}
{td=30x@} {/td}
{td}0{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}Total{/td}
{td}93{/td}
{td}20{/td}
{td}0{/td}
{td}82{/td}
{td}24{/td}
{td}2{/td}
{td}11{/td}
{td}-4{/td}
{td}-2{/td}
{/tr}
{/tbody}
[/xtable]

 

[Bmack]

REEL TALK:
Titusville's 1981 trip to the playoffs short lived:

 

[Bmack]

REEL TALK:
Donnie Whiting
Donnie Whiting rewrote the Astronaut High School passing records during his two years as starting quarterback. Bold items in the table below are either single season or career passing records he set.

[xtable=border:0|cellpadding:0|cellspacing:0|448x@]
{colgroup}
{col=span:7|64x@}{/col}
{/colgroup}
{tbody}
{tr}
{td=bcolor:transparent|64x19} {/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent|64x@}G{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent|64x@}ATT{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent|64x@}COMP{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent|64x@}YDS{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent|64x@}TDS{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent|64x@}INT{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=right|bcolor:transparent|@x19}1979{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}3{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}13{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}5{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}97{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}0{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}0{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=right|bcolor:transparent|@x19}1980{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}10{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}223{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}107{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}1588{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}13{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}9{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=right|bcolor:transparent|@x20}1981{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}10{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}176{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}84{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}1416{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}10{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}13{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td=border-color:windowtext|bcolor:transparent|@x20}Career{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}23{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}412{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}196{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}3101{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}23{/td}
{td=bcolor:transparent}22{/td}
{/tr}
{/tbody}
[/xtable]



Whiting earned a scholarship to play at the University of Florida, following in the footsteps of previous Astronaut stars Collinsworth and Marshall. After redshirting in 1982, he played in only one game his redshirt freshman year of 1983. He was the backup to Florida starter Wayne Peace. Whiting came in at the end of the Gator’s win over Florida State and threw for 23 yards and ran for 22. He played 3 drives leading the Gators to a field goal and then scoring himself on a 6 yard run.

Whiting was set to enter 1984 as the Gator starter with 3 years of eligibility remaining. However, he was ruled academically ineligible. He would not play again for the Gators. This lead the way for the Gators to press a freshman into the starting job, Kerwin Bell, who would be a 4 year starter.

 

[Bmack]

REEL TALK:
Terry Warren
Terry Warren was an all-state Tackle for in 1981. He did not graduate from Astronaut, but rather Tallahassee Leon. He is the younger brother of Scott Warren, a 1976 (football season 1975) Astronaut graduate who was one of Bobby Bowden’s first recruits at Florida State. He was the subject of an earlier REEL Talk.

Terry also went onto play football at Florida State. Here is his Florida State career profile:

http://www.nolefan.org/football/warren_terry.html

As can be seen he was an All-American Honorable mention in 1987. Also, the page contains his obituary as he passed away earlier this year.

Terry came to some national attention by being linked to Burt Reynolds and Loni Anderson. It was rumored that he had an affair with Loni Anderson which was part of the reason Burt and Loni were divorced. Burt had brought Terry under his wing after hearing him sing the national anthem at a game. I’m not sure it was ever confirmed that he had the affair and I’m pretty sure he steadfastly denied it, as did Loni.
Here are some links on the scandal:
http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20106248,00.html

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-11-10/features/9511100318_1_burt-reynolds-loni-anderson-life-in-high-heels/2

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com...85_1_loni-anderson-burt-reynolds-terry-warren

 

[Bmack]

1981 was quite the year. Ronald Reagan survived an assassination attempt and nominated the first woman to the Supreme Court. Egyptian President Anwar Sadat did not survive the attempt on his life. The Space Shuttle Columbia’s maiden mission on STS-1 occurred. The first known cases of AIDS were reported. Muhammad Ali lost the final fight of his career, to Trevor Berbick.

And the Astronaut War Eagle football team completed its tenth year of play. The season concluded with a heartbreaking loss to crosstown rival Titusville. Another shot at a district championship slips away, another playoff chance slips away, and another season slips away. Another one gone and another one gone…

 

[Bmack]

12/20/1981
The Cincinnati Bengals finish the regular season with a 30-28 win at the Atlanta Falcons. The Bengals are 12-4 and finish as AFC Central Division champions.

Rookie Cris Collinsworth sets a Bengals season record with 1,009 yards receiving. Accomplished on 67 receptions, 8 for touchdowns.

1/3/1982
The Bengals defeat the Buffalo bills in the playoffs, 28-21. Ken Anderson finds Collinsworth for a 16 yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to break a 21-21 tie and give the Bengals the win. Collinsworth had only one other catch on the day, for 8 yards.

1/10/1982
The Bengals defeat the San Diego Chargers 27-7 in the “Freezer Bowl” to win the AFC Championship. The air temperature was -9 degrees F. The wind chill temp was -37 degrees F. Collinsworth caught only two passes for 28 yards.

1/24/1982
The Bengals fall to the San Francisco 49ers 26-21 in the Super Bowl. The 49ers held a 20-0 halftime lead. Collinsworth had 5 receptions for 107 yards.

 

[Bmack]

REEL TALK:
A follow up tidbit on the 1981 Astronaut season. Fullback Oscar Montgomery was the scoring leader on the space coast with 108 points. He scored 18 touchdowns on only 58 carries. He had 208 yards rushing.

 

[Bmack]

SEPTEMBER 1982
SPACE COAST FOOTBALL SEASON PREVIEW
ASTRONAUT WAR EAGLES
HEAD COACH: B. MACK (11[sup]th[/sup] year, 93-20, 6 district championships)
CLASS/DISTRICT: 3A, 9 (new alignment)
1981 RECORD: 8-2 (District Runner-up)
Roster Size: 55 (23 seniors, 19 juniors, 13 sophomores)

MACK SEEKS ANSWERS TO PLAYOFF DROUGHT

Astronaut Coach B. Mack doesn’t have to wonder too long why his War Eagles haven’t been to the playoffs since 1979. The answer is simple. “Titusville,” says the only coach the school has known entering his 11[sup]th[/sup] season. “The Terriers have been in our way. It will probably come down to that last Friday one more time. They have a great team.”

The War Eagles have been good, but not quite good enough to get past their crosstown rivals. Season finale losses the last two years have kept the War Eagles out of the playoffs.

If the War Eagles want to overcome their rival, and other teams in the district, they will need to find a replacement for Quarterback Donnie Whiting, who is now at the University of Florida. Whiting set more school records than previous Astronaut All-American’s Cris Collinsworth and Wilber Marshall. Whiting holds numerous football passing records, as well as records in basketball (most points scored in a single game) and baseball (lowest season earned run average). He also played tennis last year and was 11-2 as the War Eagles No. 2 man.

The man Mack hopes can fill those shoes is junior Ethan Waldron. A receiver and backup quarterback last year, Waldron will be the clear cut starter according to Mack.

Last year’s starting tailback, Scott McConico will move to Wingback. Newcomer Ivan Wilson allows Mack to make the switch. “Scottie will still play some tailback. But he won’t be there every down. He carried the ball about 15 times a game last year (149 rushes for 842 yards), but we also play him every down on defense (at safety).” McConcio also had 196 yards receiving.

The FHSAA realigns districts every two years and the War Eagles district has shrunk. Rockledge falls to Class 2A while Melbourne moves up to 4A. The War Eagles district foes will be Palm Bay, Cocoa, and Titusville. “I’m not sure if I like a smaller district,” says Mack. “It doesn’t leave much room for error. But I guess all teams are in that same boat.”

 

[Bmack]

[xtable=231x@]
{tbody}
{tr}
{td=32x@}Site{/td}
{td=77x@}Date{/td}
{td=122x@}Opponent{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}H{/td}
{td}9/10/1982{/td}
{td}Sanford Seminole{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}H{/td}
{td}9/17/1982{/td}
{td}Melbourne{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}A{/td}
{td}9/24/1982{/td}
{td}Lake Howell{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}A{/td}
{td}10/1/1982{/td}
{td}Rockledge{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}A{/td}
{td}10/8/1982{/td}
{td}Merritt Island{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}A{/td}
{td}10/15/1982{/td}
{td}Satellite{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}H{/td}
{td}10/22/1982{/td}
{td}Eau Gallie{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}A{/td}
{td}10/29/1982{/td}
{td}Cocoa{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}H{/td}
{td}11/12/1982{/td}
{td}Palm Bay{/td}
{/tr}
{tr}
{td}H{/td}
{td}11/19/1982{/td}
{td}Titusville{/td}
{/tr}
{/tbody}
[/xtable]

District games in bold.

 

[Bmack]

 

[Bmack]

9/10/1982
Sanford Seminole at Astronaut

WAR EAGLES GRIND OUT 10-3 WIN

Astronaut opened the season with a 10-3 win against visiting Sanford Seminole Friday night at Draa Field. The War Eagles, ranked 4[sup]th[/sup] the Class 3A preseason poll, stayed mainly on the ground. They rushed for 175 yards. Wendell Marshall was the top ground gainer with 68 yards on 16 carries.

After a scoreless first, Junior quarterback Ethan Waldron scored on a 3 yard bootleg play with 4:12 left in the half. The score came at the end of a time consuming drive in which the War Eagles ran 14 plays and marched 72 yards in just over 7 minutes. Sanford got on the board with a field goal with just 14 seconds left in the half, making the score 7-3.

As the defenses ruled most of the game, Astronaut moved the lead to 10-3 on the strength of Sophomore Kurt Aken’s 27 yard field goal with 3:13 left in the game. Sanford, which relied on the passing game almost exclusively, made a final effort to tie the game. However, the War Eagles dynamic safety duo came through with the play of the game. With just 39 seconds left Sanford completed a pass to the War Eagle 17. But as the receiver caught the ball and began to make a move, Junior Dwayne Glover jarred the ball loose with a crushing hit. Senior captain Scott McConnico recovered the fumble, securing the win for the War Eagles.

“Our defense played great. I’m really proud of the effort. We have to see if we can get the offense caught up now,” said Astronaut Coach B. Mack.

 

[Bmack]

 

[Bmack]

REEL TALK: MARSHALL PLAN

This was a great weekend for the Marshall family. On Friday night, Wendell Marshall rushed 14 times for 120 yards and scored both War Eagle touchdowns to lead them to a 16-10 come from behind win over Sanford Seminole.

On Saturday, his older brother Wilber Marshall had the game that pretty much put his name on the national map. #10 Southern Cal visited #11 Florida in Gainesville. Marshall was all over the field, harassing Quarterback Sean Salisbury, chasing down running backs from behind on the USC sweep. He had 12 tackles and 4 sacks for 30 yards of losses. He hit Salisbury as he went back to pass causing an incompletion on the last play of the game, securing a 17-9 win for the Gators.

Long Video lots of highlights:

 

[Bmack]

9/17/1982
Melbourne at Astronaut

WAR EAGLES BEAT BULLDOGS

Astronaut Quarterback Ethan Waldron accounted for all 3 War Eagle touchdowns en route to a 23-10 district win over the Melbourne Bulldogs. The Junior completed 7 of 11 passes for 84 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed 6 times for 45 yards and a touchdown. The War Eagles are now 2-0 on the season.

Waldron’s rushing touchdown came on the opening drive as the War Eagles drove 67 yards in 10 plays. With 6:37 left Waldron executed a 1 yard sneak to take a 7-0 lead. After a Melbourne punt, Waldron drove the War Eagles once more and hit Wendell Marshall out of the backfield for a 2 yard touchdown pass. The War Eagle lead was 14-0 at the end of the first period.

The War Eagles final touchdown came in the 2[sup]nd[/sup] quarter when Waldron hit Tight end Greg Pelham for an 11 yard score. The extra point attempt by Kurt Aken was missed. Melbourne added a field goal with to end the half and make it a 20-3 game.

Melbourne opened the second half with a 9 play 71 yard drive culminating in a touchdown to close the lead to 20-10. The War Eagle defense held firm the rest of the way and Aken added a 19 yard field goald with 6:24 left in the game to round out the 23-10 score.

 

[Bmack]

 

[Bmack]

Astronaut Rolls over Lake Howell

OVIEDO—Astronaut High’s defense shut out Lake Howell for 3 quarters and its offense produced a 27 to 0 halftime lead as the Class 3A No. 2 ranked War Eagles defeated the Silver Hawks 27-7 Friday Night at Lake Howell Stadium. Astronaut is now 3-0 on the season.

Astronaut got the scoring started with 7:35 remaining in the opening quarter. Junior quarterback Ethan Waldron connected with Senior wide receiver Mark Ledford for a 51 yard touchdown pass. Kurt Aken’s extra point was good and the lead was 7-0. Aken added a 41 yard field goal with 2:57 left in the quarter to make it 10-0.

Senior running back Ivan Wilson scored from 5 yards out with 7:44 left in the half making it 17-0. Wilson added a 2 yard touchdown run with 2:26 left. After a quick Lake Howell punt, Waldron moved the War Eagles quickly to the Lake Howell 20 yard line. It was there that Aken added the final War Eagle points with a 37 yard field goal with 3 seconds left in the half.

Astronaut Coach B. Mack let the second team play most of the final half. “It was good for some of our backups to gain experience,” he said. Lake Howell finally scored with 9:43 left in the game making it 27-7.

 

[Bmack]

 

[Bmack]

10/1/1982
Astronaut at Rockledge

ASTRONAUT WINS IN OVERTIME

The Astronaut War Eagles needed a late 4[sup]th[/sup] quarter touchdown and overtime to withstand a fierce challenge from the Rockledge Raiders Friday night at McLarty Stadium. The Class 3A number 2 ranked War Eagles moved to 4-0 on the season with the 14-7 win.

Defense was the name of the game as both teams went into halftime scoreless. Rockledge took a 7-0 lead with a 21 yard touchdown run with 3:12 left in the third quarter. Astronaut quarterback Ethan Waldron was intercepted early in the 4[sup]th[/sup] quarter thwarting a War Eagle attempt to comeback.

This looked bleak for Astronaut but they were able to take over on their own 32 with 4:11 left to play. Waldron then went to work on the War Eagles last chance of the game. He hit backup Sophomore wingback Matthew Mack for a 19 yard pass to start the drive. Then on a third and 16 play, Waldron scrambled for a 15 yard pick up. Faced with 4[sup]th[/sup] and 1 Waldron converted a first down on a sneak play. Then with 1:14 left to play he found Scott McConnico down the sideline for a 36 yard touchdown pass. Kurt Aken connected on the extra point to tie the game at 7.

After the kickoff, Rockledge hit a 51 yard pass play to move into War Eagle territory. They moved to the Astronaut 26 yard line but were faced with 4[sup]th[/sup] down with 4 seconds left. A final pass attempt fell incomplete and regulation ended in a tie.

Astronaut was first to have the ball in overtime. McConnico was dragged down for a 5 yard loss on the first play putting the War Eagles back on the 15. Waldron threw incomplete on 2[sup]nd[/sup] down and the War Eagles were faced with 3[sup]rd[/sup] and goal. The Waldron to McConnico passing connection was good one more time as they connected for a touchdown to put the pressure back onto Rockledge, 14-7. When Rockledge had the ball, two rushing attempts produced no yardage. Then on third down, Sophomore defensive back Bogie Statham intercepted the Raiders pass in the end zone, producing the win for Astronaut.

“This is the type of game that can help build character,” said Astronaut Coach B. Mack. “Not everything is going to be easy, and it’s good to pull one out where we were really challenged.”

 

[Bmack]

 

[Bmack]

REEL TALK:
This was a 10-7 win for Astronaut. Sophomore kicker Kurt Aken missed a 25 yard field goal with 13 seconds left in the third quarter after Rockledge had tied the game at 7. With 1:57 left in the game, Aken was given another chance. He connected on a 35 yarder that proved to be the winning margin.

 

[Bmack]

10/8/1982
Astronaut at Merritt Island

MUSTANGS KICK WAR EAGLES

The Merritt Island Mustangs handed the Astronaut War Eagles their first loss of the year 12-7 Friday night at Mustang Stadium. Two field goals and a touchdown were enough to give the Mustangs the victory.
The first Mustang field goal came as time expired in the first half, to give them a 3-0 lead. A 26 yard field goal with 3:29 left in the 3[sup]rd[/sup] put them up 6-0. The final Merritt Island points came with 9:05 left in the 4[sup]th[/sup] on a 4 yard touchdown run. The rushing attempt for a two point conversion was stopped and the sputtering War Eagle offense was left with a 12 point deficit.

The War Eagles finally scored with 1:50 left in the game when Quarterback Ethan Waldron hit Tight End Greg Pelham for a 15 yard score. Kurt Aken added the extra point to make it 12-7. Astronaut, left with no timeouts, attempted an onside kick which was recovered by Merritt Island. The Mustangs then ran the clock out.

 

[Bmack]

 

[Bmack]

10/15/1982
Astronaut at Satellite
WAR EAGLES OVERCOME SCORPS IN OVERTIME

For the second time this season the Astronaut War Eagles used a late touchdown to send a game to overtime and then prevailed in the extra play. Two weeks ago it was a 14-7 win over Rockledge. Friday night it was a thrilling 24-17 win over the home standing Satellite Beach Scorpions.

Satellite took the lead with 8:02 remaining in the first quarter when they completed a 72 yard touchdown pass to take a 7-0 lead. Astronaut’s Kurt Aken put the War Eagles on the board with a 30 yard field goal with just 45 seconds left in the first. He missed a 31 yarder with 4:18 left in the half. Satellite was able to put up a 37 yard field goal right before halftime to make it a 10-3 advantage.

With 1:53 left in the third quarter, Astronaut fullback Wendell Marshall scored on a 2 yard run. Aken’s extra point tied the game at 10. The drive was a ball control masterpiece as the War Eagles drove 70 yards in 14 plays consuming 7 minutes of game time.

In the 4[sup]th[/sup] quarter, Satellite regained the lead with a 3 yard touchdown run with 6:50 left to play. The War Eagles, faced with the prospect of a second loss in a row, then went on yet another ball control drive. This time they drove 57 yards in 15 plays taking 6 minutes and 17 seconds. Twice the War Eagles were successful on 4[sup]th[/sup] down during the drive. The last one was the scoring play as the War Eagles faced 4[sup]th[/sup] and goal from the 11. Ethan Waldron found Mark Ledford in the end zone for the touchdown. Aken’s point after was good and the game was tied at 17.

In overtime, the War Eagles were on offense first. 3 rushing plays led to a touchdown. As Marshall ran for 3, followed by Ivan Wilson for a 4 yard gain. Marshall capped it off with a 3 yard scoring run. Aken hit the extra point and the War Eagles were up 24-17. When Satellite took over 3 plays moved them to the 6 yard line. Faced with a 4[sup]th[/sup] down needing a touchdown they went to the air. However, the pass was caught out of bounds in the back of the end zone, resulting in the final score of 24-17.

“We survived another close one. We are getting used to this,” said a relieved Astronaut Coach B. Mack, whose team is now 5-1.

 

[Bmack]

 

[Bmack]

REEL TALK:

The Merritt Island game was a 31-7 loss for the War Eagles. The Mustangs were just too much as seemed to always be the case.

The Satellite game was actually a 19-15 loss for the War Eagles. Ethan Waldron was 12 of 16 for 164 yards passing. He threw 2 touchdowns to Scott McConnico of 33 and 24 yards. But it wasn’t enough to overcome Satellite’s 227 rushing yards on 49 attempts.

 

[Bmack]

10/22/1982
Eau Gallie at Astronaut

ASTRONAUT BLASTS EAU GALLIE

Astronaut improved to 6-1 on the season with a 41-17 win over the Eau Gallie Commodores Friday night at Draa Field. The War Eagles rolled to 302 rushing yards, 102 coming on Scott McConnico’s 10 carries. 5 different War Eagles scored touchdowns.

Eau Gallie took an early lead with a 34 yard field goal with 6:58 left in the 1[sup]st[/sup] quarter. Astronaut then marched 68 yards in 12 plays taking 6:21 of game time. The drive was finished off when Fullback Wendell Marshall scored the first of his two touchdowns from 1 yard away. The extra point missed and Astronaut led 6-3. Ethan Waldron found Mark Ledford in the back of the endzone with 3:43 left in the half to put Astronaut up 13-3.

Marshall scored his second touchdown with 8:30 left in the third making it 20-3. However, Eau Gallie quickly answered with a 6 play 72 yard drive that was mostly in the air that resulted in a touchdown making it 20-10. On the next series, McConnico sped away on a 54 yard touchdown run with 3:59 left in the third.

Ivan Wilson got into the scoring act for the War Eagles early in the 4[sup]th[/sup] quarter, scoring on an 11 yard run. Eau Gallie answered with a touchdown drive making it 34-17 with 1:38 left. The scoring was capped off with reserve sophomore running back Matthew Mack burst around left end for a 57 yard touchdown run. Mack is the son of Astronaut Coach B. Mack.

“We didn’t play defense as well as we have in the past but our running game really got going. I’m proud of the offensive line and our backs tonight,” said B. Mack.

 

[Bmack]

 

[Bmack]

10/29/1982
Astronaut at Cocoa
ASTRONAUT BEATS COCOA; WINS 100[sup]TH[/sup] GAME

Astronaut won their 100[sup]th[/sup] game all-time with a 17-14 district victory over the Cocoa Tigers Friday night. Astronaut Coach B. Mack, the only coach in the school’s 11 year history, downplayed the milestone. “I suppose that’s nice, but what I’m really concerned with is that this was our 1[sup]st[/sup] district win of the season. Those are the games that really matter right now,” said Mack.

Astronaut got on the board first when wingback/halfback Scott McConnico lined up as a slot receiver. Quarterback Ethan Waldron found McConnico for a pass play in which he ran over a defensive back and raced 45 yards for a touchdown. Kurt Aken’s extra point gave the War Eagles a 7-0 lead with 6:01 left in the first quarter.

In second quarter, Cocoa missed a long field goal. However, with 2:36 left they broke a 51 yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7. Astronaut drove into position and Aken was able to connect on a 29 yard field goal with 21 seconds remaining in the half to put the War Eagles up 10-7.

After a scoreless third quarter, Waldron put Astronaut up 17-7 with an 8 yard touchdown run with 7:58 left in the game. Cocoa scored with 1:36 remaining in the game on a 7 yard touchdown pass to make it 17-14. The onside kick attempt was covered by Astronaut, who ran out the clock to secure a key district victory.

 

[Bmack]

 

[Travis7401]

I think I might have missed this at some point, but what do the playoffs look like at this point in time? Still that goofy setup you had to start with that limited it to like 1 district spot and lots of good teams competing for it? When does "grade inflation" strike the Florida High School footbaw so that 4 win teams make the playoffs?

 

[Bmack]

I think I might have missed this at some point, but what do the playoffs look like at this point in time? Still that goofy setup you had to start with that limited it to like 1 district spot and lots of good teams competing for it? When does "grade inflation" strike the Florida High School footbaw so that 4 win teams make the playoffs?

At this stage of the dynasty the playoffs structure consists of classifications with either 8 or 16 districts. Each district will have between 3 or I've seen as many as 8 teams. Teams play round robin style with the best record getting one playoff spot. 3 way or more ties are settled with a Kansas tiebreaker playoff usually the Monday night before the 1st round of the playoffs.

The goofy stuff was through 1974. You could have districts with 12 to 14 teams. There was no way for every team to play each other so there wasn't really any attempt to play many teams in your district, other than those in your local area. For instance Astronaut's district in 1974 had a team from Ocala which is a two hour drive away. The way the district champion was decided was based on a point system for wins which varied on the class of the team you beat (4 points for beating a lower class team, 10 points for beating a higher or same class team). They also had a rule that you got zero points for a loss. You only counted 8 games in your point total, and you had to count all losses. So if you were 9-1, you only got points for 7 of your best wins, 8-2, 6 wins, and so on. This setup allowed for teams that were 10-0 to be left out of the playoffs, and we saw that earlier. In 1975 the current setup began where you had to play all the teams in your district.

This setup would go until I think 1992 or 1993. At that point they added a round to the playoffs and allowed district runner ups in. The district champ got a first round home game and the runner up played on the road. Whenever a champ played a runner up in later rounds the champ would host. I think in around 1999 or 2000 they lowered the number of classes, say from 16 to 12. Gave 24 playoff spots for champs and runners up, and then had 8 at large teams, two in each quadrant or region. This allowed for a good team in a stacked district that finished 3rd to get in the playoffs. I'm not sure at what point they went back to the pure champ/runnerup model that exists today. But if we take this dynasty far enough we will find out!

You may have also had the phenomenon of this at large system creating some "grade inflation" as you say and allowing some 6-4, 5-5 teams in. I remember at one point I think it was 2001 or 2002 I traveled up to Jacksonville as Astronaut played Bishop Kenney in the first round and they were a 6-4 team. Astronaut was a runner up and Kenny was a district champ, or it was at-large vs. runner up, idk.

In the late 80's Live Oak Suwannee won 4 consecutive state titles I think. One of the years they were something like 4-6 in the regular season with all of their wins district wins. They only had to win 3 playoff games to win state and they did. So they were state champs with a 7-6 record. There may have been some forfeits among those 6 losses for an ineligible player but I'm not sure.

At this part of the dynasty it really is a situation where the Astronaut -Titusville season finale winner goes to the playoffs. Astronaut made the playoffs 6 times from 1972 to 1986. If they had the runner up model in place at that time they would have had 5 to 7 more playoff appearances (depending on what would have been Kansas tiebreaker outcomes). Titusville had 6 playoff appearances as well. I really wonder what this would have looked like if they never split the schools up in 1972. They would have had enrollments form 2500 to 3000, but there are big schools in Orlando and Miami and Jacksoville that have those enrollments. Maybe they wouldn't have been able to compete with those levels. We'll never know. Unless we do another re-enactment dynasty based on a combined school...(wheels turning...)

 

[Bmack]

@Travis7401 contrast this 2015 grabass shotgun spread football with the previous video I posted awhile back that had 1983 beautiful wishbone, split back slobberknocker football. How the fuck do you expect to run a ball control offense all spread out like that?

 

[Travis7401]

Thanks for the details, I remembered you saying we we were going to transition out of the really goofy stuff, but I was still surprised to see the Astronaut-Titusville game being a defacto play off because runners up aren't allowed yet. Seems a really tough model for high school where there can be incredible regional variations in talent even in the same classification. Regional setups just make sense for the regular season (reducing travel where possible) but I'd hate to eliminate great teams for losing a single district game.

In my senior year Colorado changed the way the playoffs were set up to allow for at large bids and it was the only reason my team made the playoffs as the last seeded at large team with 3 district losses and a 7-3 record total. Our conference was by far the best in 3A (made up of teams that should have probably been in 4A) and sent 4 teams to the playoffs (us and the 3 teams we lost to). So even though we lost three conference games, we were undefeated against all the teams we played from other conferences, so we got that last at large bid at 7-3 (4-3 in conference and 3-0 out of conference). We were the #16 seed and had to play the #1 seed who was undefeated (but from a really weak conference) so we beat them pretty easily.

It was a 16 team playoff bracket set up so that teams from the same conference were on opposite sides of the bracket, but with 4 teams from the same conference in the playoffs we had 2 teams on each side of the bracket. All 4 teams from our conference won our first two playoff games and then met in the semi-finals, so that was kind of interesting especially since there was some consternation about allowing 4 teams from an 8 team conference even though we did have the best at large record. Anyway, that experience made me understand the concept of at large bids in systems where you can't guarantee the sub conferences are equal levels of play. Eventually we lost the semifinal rematch to our conference rivals and they went on to win the state shampionship.

 

[Travis7401]

Some of the most dominant teams in Colorado run foot to foot spacing power footbaw and it is really the only reason they can compete with the private school with all the Broncos kids (like McWhitey at Stanford). If they tried to match Valor Christian in spread gameplan they'd get crushed by the atholetes (and they often do get crushed anyway). There are some good spread teams here too, but the playoffs are always really cold and it seems like the power teams have an advantage there, especially the teams with a good system and weight program that area always producing those kids linemen who might only weigh 200 but bench 400.

Last year Cherry Creek beat Valor for the first time in the playoffs using a "Pro style" offense that was mostly just tight I formation tunnel toss plays (looks like a sweep to start, but is designed as an off tackle cut from the running back, letting the contain players take themselves out of the play by design).

Playing (and losing twice) that team from our conference is what made me fall in love with the double wing and wedge plays. I had such a grudging respect for it because even when we KNEW what was coming, we couldn't stop it for less than 2.5 yard per play (they went for it every 4th down). Then they'd catch us sleeping on a counter and go for 30 yards.

 

[Travis7401]

That was a nice lookin fake field goal, love that shovel pass WAR EAGLE special teams looked much better than that of the terriers.

 

[Bmack]

Thanks for the details, I remembered you saying we we were going to transition out of the really goofy stuff, but I was still surprised to see the Astronaut-Titusville game being a defacto play off because runners up aren't allowed yet. Seems a really tough model for high school where there can be incredible regional variations in talent even in the same classification. Regional setups just make sense for the regular season (reducing travel where possible) but I'd hate to eliminate great teams for losing a single district game.

In my senior year Colorado changed the way the playoffs were set up to allow for at large bids and it was the only reason my team made the playoffs as the last seeded at large team with 3 district losses and a 7-3 record total. Our conference was by far the best in 3A (made up of teams that should have probably been in 4A) and sent 4 teams to the playoffs (us and the 3 teams we lost to). So even though we lost three conference games, we were undefeated against all the teams we played from other conferences, so we got that last at large bid at 7-3 (4-3 in conference and 3-0 out of conference). We were the #16 seed and had to play the #1 seed who was undefeated (but from a really weak conference) so we beat them pretty easily.

It was a 16 team playoff bracket set up so that teams from the same conference were on opposite sides of the bracket, but with 4 teams from the same conference in the playoffs we had 2 teams on each side of the bracket. All 4 teams from our conference won our first two playoff games and then met in the semi-finals, so that was kind of interesting especially since there was some consternation about allowing 4 teams from an 8 team conference even though we did have the best at large record. Anyway, that experience made me understand the concept of at large bids in systems where you can't guarantee the sub conferences are equal levels of play. Eventually we lost the semifinal rematch to our conference rivals and they went on to win the state shampionship.

I can see what you are saying there, the at large set up allows teams that are pretty good but don't get one of the auto bids to get into the playoff. I think that happens in the Florida years I'm sure but the at large stuff was done by Region so you can get hit or miss where a 5-5 or 6-4 team sneaks in as well. I think the first year of at large stuff was 2001, and I really quit intently following Astronaut and high school in general after the 2000 season, so I'm not too familiar with all the details (YET!) I was in college until 1999 and still living at my parents house so I could easily get to games. I moved to orlando the saturday after AStronaut was eliminated from the playoffs in 1999. THe game was in LIve oak which is a 4 hour drive. I must have got home at 2 or 3 am and then wake up 9 am and tell my mom and dad i'm ready to pack up and move out lol. (I had the apartment already rented just hadn't moved in yet).

 

[Bmack]

11/12/1982
Palm Bay at Astronaut

ASTRONAUT EDGES PALM BAY

Astronaut moved to 8-1 on the season and 4-0 in district play with a 10-7 win over Palm Bay (3-6, 2-3) Friday night at Draa Field. The win sets up the War Eagles with yet another showdown with the Titusville Terriers next week on the same spot. Titusville (7-2, 4-0) has won the last two meetings between the crosstown rivals.

Astronaut took a 3-0 lead when Kurt Aken kicked a 28 yard field goal with 1:19 left in the first quarter. With 1:37 left in the half, quarterback Ethan Waldron found Scott McConnico for a 15 yard touchdown pass to put the War Eagles up 10-0.

The War Eagles managed only 126 yards of total offense, but its defense pitched a shutout for all but 57 seconds of the game. That is win Palm Bay connected on a touchdown pass to make it 10-7. Astronaut recovered the Pirates onside kick attempt and ran out the clock.

“It wasn’t pretty, but it gets us to where we need to be, and that’s a shot for the district title next week against the Terriers,” said Astronaut Coach B. Mack. “It seems like it always comes down to this, hopefully we can pull this one out.”

 

[Bmack]

 

[Bmack]

REEL TALK:
A perfect simulation here as the actual score was Astronaut 10, Palm Bay 7. Palm Bay had a 7-3 lead heading into the 4[sup]th[/sup]. Midway through the 4[sup]th[/sup] quarter Astronaut completed a 12 play 63 yard drive with an Ethan Waldron 1 yard qb sneak to take the lead and hold on for the win.

I made a mistake in my Cocoa game write-up by saying it was the first district win. 1982 was a year with 6 district teams. 1983 and 1984 have 4 district teams and somehow that was in my mind. I’ve been doing gameplay into 1983 and setup for 1984 (and research into 85-86). So I’m dealing with different seasons depending on where I’m at in all those processes. Earlier in the dynasty I was pretty synced up with gameplay and write up, but right now I’m ahead on gameplay. I thought I was going to be able to catch up on gameplay write-up over the Thanksgiving weekend since I didn’t have my PS3 with me. However, the wi-fi at my parents’ house acted like a POS all weekend so I just did a lot of offline type work.

 

[Bmack]

@Travis7401 As a follow up to the "grade inflation" deal here is the 2000 Class 3A bracket (spoiler alert for how Astronaut did). As you look at the records of the teams what you see is that the at-large bids act to get alot of 9-1 and 8-2, 7-3 teams in. There are two 6-4 at larges. But when you look at the district runner ups there are two 4 win and one 5 win teams. Which is pretty much not the type of teams that really deserve to be in a playoff.


http://www.fhsaa.org/sites/default/files/orig_uploads/sports/football/archives/2000-01/brak3.htm

The 4A bracket has 6 four and five win teams. @whiteyc_77 would go absolutely nuts.

http://www.fhsaa.org/sites/default/files/orig_uploads/sports/football/archives/2000-01/brak4.htm

 

[Travis7401]

Yeah, I always thought at large bids made more sense than runners up, especially in small divisions where a runner up could have a losing record because of non-conference play.

 

[whiteyc_77]

@Travis7401 As a follow up to the "grade inflation" deal here is the 2000 Class 3A bracket (spoiler alert for how Astronaut did). As you look at the records of the teams what you see is that the at-large bids act to get alot of 9-1 and 8-2, 7-3 teams in. There are two 6-4 at larges. But when you look at the district runner ups there are two 4 win and one 5 win teams. Which is pretty much not the type of teams that really deserve to be in a playoff.


http://www.fhsaa.org/sites/default/files/orig_uploads/sports/football/archives/2000-01/brak3.htm

The 4A bracket has 6 four and five win teams. @whiteyc_77 would go absolutely nuts.

http://www.fhsaa.org/sites/default/files/orig_uploads/sports/football/archives/2000-01/brak4.htm

Even more hilarious here in Sakerlina: the team that I call games for went 7-4 this season and made the playoffs. They had to play their first round game on the road...............to a team that went 4-7. wat

-YTC

 

[Bmack]

Even more hilarious here in Sakerlina: the team that I call games for went 7-4 this season and made the playoffs. They had to play their first round game on the road...............to a team that went 4-7. wat

-YTC

I assume those 4 wins were district/conference wins. There are flaws to every system. I suppose the thing you could do is have larger districts so your games that count make up a higher portion of your schedule. I.e 9 team districts so you play 8 games that determine playoff qualification and you get 2 or 3 games for any rivals etc that might not be in your district classification.

 

[whiteyc_77]

Your assumption was correct. It's just always funny to see a team have to go on the road to a team who had such an inferior record. It all worked out, as we won 49-14.

-YTC

 

[Bmack]

11/19/1982
Titusville vs. Astronaut
ASTRONAUT WINS DISTRICT
The Astronaut War Eagles won the district championship with 14-7 win over the Titusville Terriers Friday night at Draa Field. The War Eagles will make their first playoff appearance since 1979 when they host the Lake Wales Highlanders next week.

Titusville took a 7-0 lead with 1:18 left in the first half with a 2 yard touchdown run. Titusville would outgain the War Eagles 219 to 205 but they would not score again. The War Eagles could muster only 35 yards in the first half.

The War Eagles finally scored to tie the game with 2:35 left in the 3[sup]rd[/sup] quarter. A 12 play 81 yard drive taking 6 minute and 25 seconds was capped off by Ivan Wilson’s 2 yard touchdown run. The score was setup when Ethan Waldron connected on an 18 yard pass to Scott McConnico to the Terrier 2 yard line.

In the 4[sup]th[/sup] quarter the War Eagles marched 74 yards in 12 plays taking 5 minutes and 51 seconds off the clock. With 3:38 to play McConnico bulled in for a 3 yard touchdown run giving the War Eagles a 14-7 lead. Titusville mounted a drive to try and tie the game. They drove to the Astronaut 14 yard line and with 56 seconds left were faced with 3[sup]rd[/sup] and 9. The pass attempt into the end zone was broken up by Astronaut Junior Safety Dwayne Glover. Then on 4[sup]th[/sup] down, Sophomore Defensive Lineman Frankie Glenn sacked the Titusville quarterback for an 8 yard loss setting off a celebration on the War Eagle side.

“This was just a classic game. Both teams played so hard, I’m so proud of these kids for not giving up playing their hearts out,” said Astronaut Coach B. Mack. “It feels good to be returning to the playoffs.”

 

[Bmack]

 

[Bmack]

REEL TALK:

Can’t believe I flipped this one. Titusville won the reel game 18-0 continuing their dominance over Astronaut and moving onto the playoffs. Titusville ran 57 times for 263 yards. Fullback Gerald White had 23 carries for 132 yards. He scored a touchdown, kicked an extra point, and kicked a 25 yard field goal. For his senior regular season, White scored 121 points, 16 touchdowns, 19 extra points, 2 field goals. He had 1,182 yards on 160 carries in the 10 regular season games.

Astronaut had the worst offensive performance probably in the history of the school even to this date. They had 17 yards passing and minus 11 rushing. They managed 1 first down. Titusville rubbed a little salt in the wound when, late in the 4[sup]th[/sup] quarter after scoring a touchdown to make it 16-0, they went for a 2 point conversion and made it.

Somehow I was able to turn this around and win it. Both scoring drives were accomplished on Heisman offense level.