Football preview: Trinity Catholic at Clearwater Central Catholic

The Celtics take to the field for the first time this season when they face the Marauders

CLEARWATER, FLORIDA- The battle of state runner-ups out of their respective classifications goes down tonight in the 727. 

For Clearwater Central Catholic, it’s their second game of the season after defeating Berkeley Prep in a gritty 21-14 victory. On the other side of the spectrum, Trinity Catholic is playing its first game of the season after having to miss their opener due to Covid 19. 

Will having already playing a game be an advantage for the Marauders when they host the Celtics tonight? Maybe so as Trinity Catholic’s only game was in the preseason when they cruised 59-13 over Key West. 

CCC (1-0) opened up the 2023 campaign with a narrow win over Berkeley Prep last week and it came on the heels of a strong performance by the defense. Offensively, yards were hard to come by for the Marauders. 

Quarterback Jershaun Newton was the standout for the Marauders on offense, completing 13-of-18 passes for 161 yards, rushing for 81 on the ground. He wasn’t alone when it came to running the ball well as running back Justin Stephens had a solid game, rushing for 121 on 21 attempts. 

Lakewood transfer Shamar Rigby was Newton’s top target in the passing game, hauling in six catches for 86 yards. Another wide receiver that transferred in over the offseason that stood out was Caleb Goodloe (Clearwater Calvary Christian transfer) caught five passes for 46 yards. 

Rigby also saw time on defense in the secondary, notching four tackles, and the defensive backfield is arguably one of the best in the Tampa Bay Area. Along with Rigby is Ole Miss commitment Andy Jaffe at safety and Artrevian McClellan at cornerback. 

A calling card for CCC last season on their way to reaching the Class 1M state championship game was strong front seven play on defense. They are led in the front seven by linebacker Matt Mills (10 tackles in Week 1) and sophomore Tyrique Harris (Six tackles in Week 1). 

If we learned anything about Trinity Catholic from the preseason, it’s they can score a boatload of points no matter where they’re at. Traveling down to the Florida Keys was an experience for the Celtics, but the only action to date for the team. 

Missing out on a highly anticipated opener against FSU High was going to tell us a lot about what this Trinity Catholic team will look like. 

Reason being is because John Brantley and his staff have some new pieces to the team from the off-season, especially on offense. The team features last year’s starter Preston Wright and North Marion transfer AJ Cussins. 

Wright gives the team a dual-threat at the position after completing 93-of-128 passes for 1,274 yards and 11 touchdowns a year ago. He’s joined by another experienced starter in Cussins, who completed 137-of-230 passes for 1,890 yards and 15 touchdowns. 

The duo will be joined by backfield mate Jamarkus Starkes, who rushed for 300 yards in 2022. The offensive line will be a strength once again, with junior Gerrick Gordon and sophomore G’nivre Carr paving the way up front. 

Defensively is where the Celtics really excel and they have a slew of returners on that side of the ball. Watch out for players like Jeremiah Rhem (72 tackles in 2022) and Devontae Grant (three interceptions in 2022) to head up a very talented unit. 

-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @sblivefl