Bucs' bounty: Mainland puts itself in the district driver's seat with its first win of the season, 43-0 over Matanzas | Observer Local News

Mainland heard the grumblings as the losses began to pile up to start the season. Playing the third toughest schedule in the state, according to Florida High School Athletic Association's ratings, the defending state champion Buccaneers were 0-5 entering their game at Matanzas.

But the only streak that really matters to the Bucs is 30 years in a row of making it into the playoffs. With their 43-0 drubbing of the Pirates on Friday, Sept. 27, that streak will likely turn 31 this season.

"These kids put in so much work and they hear so much negative stuff from some people in the community, and to see finally their hard work pay off, I think it's just a springboard for what's going to happen the rest of the season," said first-year Mainland coach Jerrime Bell, who collected his first victory with the Bucs.

The Bucs are now in the driver's seat in the three-team District 4-5A. They can clinch the district championship and earn an automatic trip to the playoffs with a win over Belleview on Oct. 25. Belleview has struggled of late, falling to 0-4 on Sept. 27 with its 13th consecutive loss over the past two seasons.

"That (playoff) streak means everything," Bell said. "not just to these kids but to the alumni and everyone that put in the work. This group is a prideful group, and they don't want to be the group that breaks that streak."

Bell said the Bucs knew the first half of the schedule would be tough, especially when they were breaking in 18 new starters.

"We graduated 29 players from last year's team. We have 26 playing college ball right now on Saturdays," he said. "It's tough getting rid of that many people and having to rebuild your roster, but we're Mainland High School. We don't run from competition."

The game was close though most of the first half with the Bucs (1-5) leading 10-0 with less than two minutes remaining. But two Matanzas mistakes put the Pirates (3-3) in a hole they couldn't climb out of.

First, Christian Hudson returned a Matanzas fumble 55 yards for a score with 1:12 left before the break. And then the Bucs recovered a bad snap on a Matanzas punt attempt to set up Edward Williams' 10-yard touchdown run with 6.4 seconds remaining, giving the visiting team a 24-0 halftime lead.

The Bucs didn't ease up in the second half. Instead, they put their foot down on the accelerator.

"They weren't satisfied," Bell said of his players. "The defense said, 'We're going to go score for you coach and special teams said, 'We're going to get the ball back for the offense to score.' When those guys have that type of belief we're going to be a tough team."

Junior quarterback Sebastian Johnson, who earned his first victory as Mainland's starter, tossed a 52-yard touchdown pass to Eddie Lake Jr. to make it 30-0 in the third quarter. Christian Cooper scored from the 2-yard line following a Shawn Holmes interception to make it 37-0, and backup quarterback Cole Walker threw a 73-yard touchdown pass to Kajuan Curry in the final minutes under a running clock.

"It feels great," Johnson said of the Bucs' first win. "Obviously it's the first with many more to come."

Noah Lehman kicked a 39-yard field goal on Mainland's first possession of the game and Kwasie Kwaku took a pitch and ran 31 yards for a touchdown early in the second quarter to give the Bucs a 10-0 lead.

Flagler Palm Coast High School transfers Zyquan Neal, who had a first-quarter interception, and Walker with the final touchdown pass, each contributed to the Bucs' victory against their former cross-town rival.

The Pirates, who entered the game ranked eighth in the region by the FHSAA, are still in the hunt for one of the eight Region 1-5A playoff spots. Mainland was ranked ninth before the victory.

"Mainland's record is not an indication of how good they are," Matanzas coach Matt Forrest said. "We just got to get back to work Monday. We came into this game in eighth place in the region, so our focus is to come to work Monday and try to find a way to beat Mount Dora (next week) and hopefully get back in the top eight."

Bell said in the past couple of weeks he could see signs of the Bucs turning the corner. They were coming off a 10-7 loss to Coffee High School of Douglas, Georgia, a reining state champ, on Sept. 20.

"We made a few mistakes (against Coffee), but we probably should have pulled that one out, so it felt good to finally get (the first win)," Bell said. "These kids are starting to play for each other and not for themselves. They're playing for Mainland across their chest and not for the name that would be on the back of their jersey. When you do that, things happen."

The game was stopped for several minutes at the end of the first half after Bucs wide receiver Jameil Patrick took an accidental hit to the back of his neck when a teammate ran into hime from behind. He was taken off the field on a stretcher.

"Everything that happened was out of precaution," Bell said. "He had all movement. His mom said he does have a headache, so he's probably going to be in concussion protocols."