Mr. Football goes to...

[Ricky the Bull]

Pahokee RB Antone Smith with 129 first place votes.

Matt Grothe finishes a VERY close second with 123 votes.

Congrats to Matt!!!

LHS's Castle Named Top Coach

Lake Gibson's Grothe narrowly misses being selected best player in Florida.

By TED BECK

Ledger Correspondent

GAINESVILLE -- Lakeland head coach Bill Castle was named the Coach of the Year by the Florida Dairy Farmers for the second time after also taking the award in 1998.

Pahokee senior running back Antone Smith was named Florida's Mr. Football after narrowly beating out Lake Gibson quarterback Matt Grothe by six votes.

******snip*********

Smith, who became the second player from Pahokee to be named Mr. Football, ran for 2,537 yards on 215 carries and scored 41 touchdowns. Current Arizona Cardinals wide receiver and former Florida State Seminole Anquan Boldin took the award in 1998.

Smith's numbers are even more impressive because his team played just eight regular-season games because of hurricane-related cancellations.

"I'm happy to have won the award, but I wouldn't have been able to do anything without my teammates," Smith said. "I just wanted us to be successful as a team."

The Blue Devils did just that after capturing the 2B final Saturday in a 43-9 rout over Pensacola Catholic. Smith ran for 276 yards on 25 carries and scored three touchdowns in the win.

Smith, Grothe and Ponte Vedra Nease junior quarterback Tim Tebow all finished with five first-place votes. Grothe finished with 123 total votes to Smith's 129.

Tebow looks to be the front runner next season after passing for 4,304 yards and rushing for 1,272 more.

Smith said he'll most likely wait until the Feb. 2 national signing day to make his decision on a college.

Smith will make his first official visit next week when he'll travel to Auburn, while Grothe has committed to South Florida.

http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041212/NEWS/412120390/1254

[Velcro]

wow, very close!  He would have won if they could have beat Armwood.

[smazza]

where is mr smith going to school?

[Guest Daniel]

Antone Smith goes to Pahokee,  Pahokee won the state championship this year by beating Penscacola Catholic.. making them back 2 back champions.

Pahokee played @ St. Pete Catholic this year, so everybody did have a chance to see him..he's a stud.

-start rant

Still think CCC would of beat Pahokee... -end rant

[Apis Bull]

I think he means what college is he going to.

[BullDoug]

-start rant

Still think CCC would of beat Pahokee... -end rant

One line complaints are not rants.  Definition of a rant includes at least 3 points 5 words of profanity and 10 lines of text.  It's a SouthFloridaBulls.com unspoken rule.  Your statement above is just a matter of opinion.  Sorry but I didn't want you going on being misled.  

[Bullpride08]

smazza,

easy answer- he's not going here.

my guess miami.

[Guest HowieP1]

where is mr smith going to school?

He aint tellin'!  ;D

Pahokee's Smith dodges questions on where he'll go

By Steve Dorsey

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Monday, December 13, 2004

GAINESVILLE  Antone Smith's announcement Saturday that his first recruiting visit will be to Auburn this weekend triggered the inevitable question during post-game interviews after Pahokee's 43-9 win against Pensacola Catholic in the Class 2B state championship game.

Everyone wanted to know the other four schools Smith is considering, but the senior tailback did not oblige with an answer. He said he hasn't made any other decisions but anticipates narrowing the field within a couple of weeks.

Smith, the state's 2004 Mr. Football award winner, said he receives phone calls from college coaches daily, all trying to sway him to visit their campuses before national signing day Feb. 2.

"It's been crazy since Sept. 1," Smith said when asked whether he mentally was prepared to face the stress that accompanies the recruiting battles that will take place during the next several weeks.

Pahokee coach Leroy Foster said he doesn't think Smith will allow anyone to influence his decisions surrounding the recruiting process, nor does he think that any particular program will have an edge because of its offensive scheme.

"I think he'll fit anybody's offense and any offensive set," Foster said. "He's very gifted.... I'm trying to stay back. He's adamant about running the show."

Smith demonstrated that during interviews Saturday after he was presented the Mr. Football award at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Whenever a reporter tried to pin him down on what schools he might be leaning toward, Smith just smiled and shook his head. He'll let us know when he's ready.

Foster said that Auburn and Miami have called almost daily in recent weeks, but Smith hinted that no school is a front-runner for signing him. However, now that he has accomplished his No. 1 goal of leading Pahokee to its second consecutive state title, Smith said he is ready to tackle the recruiting process.

"I'm looking forward to it," Smith said. "I'm a very focused person. I put everything in the back seat to get another ring. Now I've got to go to the next step."