So...I imagine last night's scrimmage will shut people up about letting local talent get away for at least, oh, ten minutes.

Our little Georgian friend, high school senior Storm Johnson, waved hello to Miami with a spectacular 52-yard run up the left sideline before Demarcus Van Dyke chased him down at the 10, and on another carry he broke out for a 29-yard gain up the left. He notched a six-yard touchdown run and caught two balls for 14 yards.

(Note to Storm: Please don't be one of those that sucks comes fall.)

Actual Miamian Lamar Miller ripped off a 44-yard touchdown from a broken tackle and later scored in a goal-line situation.

Together, the two had 168 yards on 17 carries; Polk County's Mike James added another touchdown.

"I want to spoon was kind of pleased with the running backs," was Randy Shannon's glowing endorsement.

"Early, the defensive line -- Micanor, Curtis and Allen -- they were really hitting the running backs, stuffing them. It looked like it would be a tough day for them. But the one thing I like about the running backs is they were patient enough to keep going, keep fighting....Now maybe the 20 or 30 yard plays go for 60-yard touchdowns."

Also of note: TWO FIGHTS. WE'RE BACK, BITCHES!

MEANINGLESS STARTING LINEUPS

QB AJ Highsmith
RB Mike James
FB Pat Hill
WR LaRon Byrd and Leonard Hankerson
TE Richard Gordon
OL (L to R) Cory White, Jared Wheeler, Tyler Horn, Harland Gunn, Jermaine Johnson.

DE Andrew Smith and Allen Bailey
DT Curtis Porter and Micanor Regis
LB Colin McCarthy, Kylan Robinson and Sean Spence
CB Demarcus Van Dyke and Brandon McGee
S Vaughn Telemaque and Jamal Reid.

OUT: Damien Berry, Brandon Washington, Brandon Harris, Joel Figueroa, Orlando Franklin, others

RANDY SHANNON Q&A

It looks like you have some explosive backs that you haven't had in the past.

You look at the emergence of Lamar, Lamar's been in track. He's a sprinter, but he's a physical, big sprinter. He reminds me a lot of Clinton Portis and Willis McGahee, big guys that can run. And you saw Storm Johnson tonight, the same type of athlete. And Mike James. Those big backs that can run and have speed can make a big difference. Now maybe the 20 or 30 yard plays go for 60-yard touchdowns, things you really want a running back to do. That's what is special about those guys, getting big plays running the football and not just throwing it.

AJ Highsmith had three interceptions.

The quarterbacks didn't do very well tonight. We had too many turnovers as far as interceptions. But they're learning. They're getting a lot of reps to learn from their mistakes. AJ was up and down, threw a pick, but he came back with a nice play on third and long to Aldarius. He executed, and when we went to no huddle we came down and scored. When those guys are able to handle that kind of stress as a quarterback that shows they have the knowledge to do it and execute what we're doing on offense.

Do you think on those big gains by the offense it was just defensive breakdowns?

Offensively and defensively, you make a mistake that's where the big plays come from. The young offensive line kept fighting, kept going. They kept going and blocking and getting on guys, and all of a sudden the running backs found a crease. And the receivers are blocking. You find guys that find a way to get on everybody and block it perfectly, big plays come.

Andrew Smith had three sacks.

All up front I thought was really good - the ends, the tackles all did a good job. It's something you can build on.

 

SCRIMMAGE STATS

Rushing
Storm Johnson 10 carries, 104 yards, 1 TD
Lamar Miller 7 carries, 63 yards, 2 TD
Mike James 12 carries, 18 yards 1TD

Passing
A.J. Highsmith 7-for-11 94 yards, 1TD, 3 INT
Spencer Whipple 7-for-9 75 yards
Stephen Morris 0-for-3

Receiving
Aldarius Johnson 3 catches, 45 yards
Leonard Hankerson 2 catches, 35 yards
Storm Johnson 2 catches, 14 yards
Travis Benjamin 2 catches, 8 yards, TD
Billy Sanders 1 catch, 17 yards
Kendal Thompkins 1 catch, 16 yards
Davon Johnson 1 catch, 14 yard
Tommy Streeter 1 catch, 14 yards
Lamar Miller 1 catch, 6 yards

Wieclaw 2-for-2 Field Goals (33 yards, 27 yards)

Scoring
Highsmith 8 yd TD pass to Benjamin
Miller 44 yd TD run
Highsmith 13 yd TD run
S.Johnson 6 yd TD run
James 1 yd TD Run
Miller 5 yd TD run

Defense
Andrew Smith 3 Sacks
Vaughn Telemaque 2 INT
Nathan Gholston 1 INT
Micanor Regis 1 Sack
Tyrone Cornelius 1 Sack
Adewale Ojomo 1 Sack
Allen Bailey 1 Sack
Ray Ray Armstrong Fumble Recovered