TBT handles lightning, rain, tall grass

Posted Aug 9, 2010 by Bill Ward

Updated Aug 9, 2010 at 09:18 PM

At Tampa Bay Tech, the Titans had three obstacles on opening day of fall training: lightning, rain and tall grass.

First, the late afternoon thunderstorms that rolled through eastern Hillsborough County halted their practice shortly after it began. After waiting out the foul weather in their locker room, the Titans emerged to find their field was soaked and, in some places, under a few inches of water.

But their biggest hurdle of the day—literally—was the grass on their practice field. According to coach C.C. Culpepper, it hasn’t been mowed in nearly two weeks. In some places, the grass is so tall TBT players had a difficult time seeing the ball once it was placed on the ground. The uncut grass also makes it difficult for the Titans to run drills quickly and safely, Culpepper said.

“It’ll get mowed when it gets mowed,” said Culpepper, who added a county crew is in charge of the cutting. “Until then, we’ll just have to deal with it.”

Aside from those minor annoyances, Culpepper was upbeat about the start of his fourth season at the school. Yes, the Titans have lost star fullback Maurice Hagens, but they return standout backs Cludner LaCount and Devontae McCloud. Also returning to the backfield is senior quarterback Johnathan “Cornbread” Williams.

But what really has Culpepper pumped for the 2010 campaign is his defense, which, anchored by players like linebacker Tim Stewart and lineman and Josh Smith, is once again big, fast and hard-hitting.

“Right now, our defense is our strength,” Culpepper said. “We have solid guys there at every position there and depth to go with it.”

And guess what? Culpepper even has a kicker—not one, but two, including a new TBT student from Bosnia. Last season, the Titans’ unstable situation at that position usually forced them to go for the two-point conversion instead of the point-after kick.

—Bill Ward