Porter Gaud still looking to play complete game
By Neill Kirkpatrick
Special to the HSSR
Charleston – The Porter Gaud Cyclones are maybe a quarter and a half away from being undefeated this season but head coach Brad Bowles knows his team still has a lot of work to do if they are to accomplish their goals this season.
“We have played some good football teams but we have not played our best. We still have lapses, missed assignments but we are getting better,” Bowles said. “We have some good football players and when we play to our abilities we can be very good but we have not put a full game together.”
That quarter and half of football was against top ranked and reigning SCISA AAAA state champion the Hammond Skyhawks. In three possessions the Skyhawks turned a tie game into a twenty-point lead in route to a 27-15 victory.
Since that that game Cyclones have ripped off three straight lopsided wins including handing AAAA Bishop England it is only lose 34-14.
Offensively, the Cyclones are led by a road grading offensive line of Frank Schmidt, Haze Marchant, Alexander Stiglic, James Temple, and Kyler Boggan. They get off the ball well and get to the second level to allow their backs to gain junks of yardage. They have paved the way to the tune of 2704 yards.
JJ Fludd and Tony Brown have been the primary beneficiaries of the offensive lines work. Fludd, the 50th ranked player in the state by the HSSR, has rushed 1092 yards and 17 touchdowns while Brown has rushed for 748 yards and 10 touchdowns. They are averaging over 10 yards a carry.
Quarterback Nolen Shuman has shown the ability to hit the big play in the passing game but his forte is running the option. He does a great job reading and getting the ball in the hands of his backs. He has over 700 yards of total offense.
The defense has gotten better as the season has gone on. They have only given up 33 points in the last three games after giving up 99 points in their first four games.
Leading the defense are sophomore Daven Brown, seniors Hugh Buxton, Chase Anderson, and Mills Knapp and sophomore Julian Buxton. Knapp and Anderson lead the team in tackles with 69 and 60 respectively while Brown leads the team in sacks and Julian Buxton leads the team in tackles for loss with 10.
Cyclones are headed to undefeated Northwood Academy (7-0,3-0) on Friday night in what will be the game of the night in the low country.
