Special to the Gazette
Marcus Smith fought for playing time at Miami Central, a talent factory. Ultimately, it wasn’t enough, and he decided to move. So when he learned that former NFL star T.Y. Hilton was going to become the new head coach at Miami Springs during the off-season, he knew, with only one year of eligibility left, he had found his final destination. That move began to pay dividends last Friday night (Aug. When Smith enjoyed a huge night, he completed 12-of-15 passes for 238 yards. He threw four touchdowns and scored one himself. It was the official season-opener for both teams, a 49-0 rout at Ives Estates Park.
Smith has been part of a mass exodus of players from the likes of Central, Booker T. Washington, Northwestern and Edison to leave and come over to play at Springs for Hilton. Thus, more than 70 players in uniform joined Springs. Only six returners from last year’s team remain. The program has moved from bottom-feeder status to the top in Miami-Dade County.
“I was getting on the field a little bit over there (Central) but not enough and I really appreciate the opportunity Coach T.Y. has given me over here and I’m excited for what’s ahead for us this season,” said Smith. “Tonight, I just came out here with my head on straight and just wanted to play well and not make mistakes and managed to do that. Certainly this was a great start for us.” Smith’s favorite target was receiver Victwon Miller Jr. who reeled in six of those 12 completions for 101 yards and two touchdowns. Tyrell Johnson Jr caught three balls
for 70 yards including a 45 yard touchdown in the second quarter and Derrick Bloodsaw had a 44-yard score as the Hawks built up a 35-0 lead at the break leading to a running clock in the second half.
Miller Jr. was one of a dozen Hawks on the field Friday night who went up against their old teammates as he played at Edison under Luther Campbell, who stepped down at the end of last season. Victwon Sr. came from Edison to join Campbell’s coaching staff. He now coaches under Hilton. “I knew what I had to do tonight and just came out and took care of my business and couldn’t really get caught up in going up against who was on the other side of the ball,” said Miller Jr. “I knew some of them but they have a lot of new guys as well so I didn’t really get too caught up in all of that. Tonight we started strong, and it felt good. I know we’ve got a lot of great things in store for us up ahead. Right now it’s the old one week at a time thing and just try and build some momentum.”
On the other side of the ball, the Springs defense was just as dominant as the Hawks held the Red Raiders to 78 yards of total offense and recorded six sacks, three of them coming from Anthony Crumbley. And just when it looked like Edison might crack the end zone having reached the Springs 10 yard line in the final minutes, defensive end Xavier Smith, only an eighth grader, reached up and picked off a low pass. He then got behind a row of blockers and rambled down the sidelines for a 95-yard pick-six touchdown to complete the scoring.
For Hilton, it was a successful night in his debut as a high school head coach at his alma mater. He starred for Springs and was a multiple Miami Herald All County athlete in both football and basketball from 2004-07 before moving on to play for Mario Cristobal at FIU and then 10 years in the NFL (including four Pro Bowls) with the Indianapolis Colts and Dallas Cowboys.
“I liked the energy that we came out and played with for sure but too many penalties including some stupid stuff which we’ll have to get cleaned up,” said Hilton whose team was flagged 13 times for 110 yards. “All in all though, a good night with alot of good stuff to build on.”
Hilton was then asked about the challenge of trying to mesh so many players from so many different programs to try and make things come together.
“It’s about none of them being selfish and learning to compete as a team,” said Hilton. “We’re not about individual glory around here. If we play selfishly and focus on I rather than us, we won’t go far. We’re not about individual glory around here. I think we’ve got a great group
of kids, a lot of them seniors who are leaders and they understand that. It starts from the top down, them believing in me and trusting me and so far, I like what I see.” Once again, Bill Daley and River Cities Gazette is always here for you. We have you covered. For info or advertising, call 786-587-3093. We will fill you in.
