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Schools

Football Preview: Clearwater Central Catholic Poised For Breakout

John Davis' Marauders have the speed and skill to make a push for a state crown in 2012-13.

This could finally be the year John Davis’ Marauders have a break out season.

Sure, Clearwater Central Catholic football has always been good under Davis. But his teams never really made a run for a state title.

This could be the year.

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CCC isn’t just deep, it has speed to burn all over the field. Last year, Davis took a step up and had CCC battled one of Pinellas County’s big boys, East Lake, and the two teams had a classic game that CCC, Davis still contends, let slip away at the end.

Tell this to Davis and he immediately puts on the brakes.

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“You never know for sure until you play the game,” Davis said. “No one is going to hand [a win] to us.

“On paper, we look pretty good. We have a lot of speed.”

Davis is going to use that speed to his advantage. Under the guidance of a sort of local offensive wizard who helped bring Pinellas County out of the clutches of the archaic single-win offenses, look for Davis' Marauders to use all sorts of funky if not devious plays to get the ball in the hands of playmakers.

First there’s Michael Stevenson. As a backup running back last year averaged eight yards a carry. As a safety, Stevenson, who runs a 40-yard dash in 4.5 seconds, collected 68 tackles.

Then there’s tight end Kyle Brittan, who may be just as quick. As a linebacker Brittan has over 100 tackles.

At fullback, Davis raves about the potential of Dominic James.

If there is a weakness to the Marauders, it’s the offensive line.

“We can’t afford any injuries there,” Davis said

Clearwater Central Catholic 2012-13 Football Schedule (via FHSAA)

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