The 2022 season spotlights the future with great expectations

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RUSHING YARDS: (Left to right) Senior center back Justin Depree pushes through Cypress Bay’s defenses along with Kelvin Reyes to keep the team in the lead against their rivals. The first game of the season would end 27-24 after going into overtime. Photo by Madison Peller

By: Armani Brutus

Coming off a mediocre 2021-2022 campaign, the Bobcat football team was looking to build off last year’s record and begin this year with a strong message to the rest of the conference. With a thrilling overtime victory against arch-rival Cypress Bay on August 26, the Bobcats did just that.

The sign for a potentially successful season would appear with the win against Cypress Bay. Although there are high hopes, the Bobcats would still have a hard time overcoming challenges as the season progresses.

“My expectations coming into the season was to make districts and the play-offs,” Said junior quarterback Johnathan Morillio. “This offseason, the team was working really hard in the weight room, on the track, and running on the hills.”

The first game of the season was a fierce one for the Bobcats, but it would be a memorable victory against our Rival, The Cypress Bay Lightings. West Broward led up until the third quarter, however, in the final quarter, Cypress would tie 21-21, leaving the game to go into overtime for a tiebreaker where the Bobcats would prevail 27-24. Junior quarterback Jona- than Morillio would throw for 241 passing yards with three touchdown passes. Senior wide receiver Ryan Rengifo would net 57 receiving yards and one touchdown. Senior center back Justin Dupree and junior strong safety Nicholas Vazquez would lead the defense with one interception each.

“For a team like us to beat them in overtime, that shows that we are going in the right direction. It shows our kids are learning how to play against all adversity,” said Athletic Director Edgardo Lopez.

Starting the season with a big win, the Bobcats would go out of state for the first time this season to Chattanooga, Tennessee, to play against the McCallie Blue Tornados, a team ranking within the top 60 nationally and first for the state of Tennessee. Although the Tornados would come out victorious 62-27, the game served as a learning experience for the Bobcats about what being away from home and on the road can do to an athlete and the type of team they would strive to be.

“Against McCallie, the team definitely gained some out of state experience. We also saw what type of team we wanted to be and what we needed to do to get there,” Morillio said.

The Bobcats would split the next two games during the month of September. The Bobcats dropped their third game of the season to the Dwyers High School Panthers, 27-13. However, their next game against the Pembroke Pines Charter Jaguars would yield a good result for the Bobcats with a score of 20-13. This would leave the season’s record at 2-2.

“After the win against Dwyer, everyone was overall upset because we felt we just did not play well as a team,” senior center back Justin Dupree said. “The next week we felt we had something to prove, so I definitely think the loss helped prepare us for the win against Pines Charter because we were more motivated.”

With homecoming on the horizon, the varsity team would prepare to face Somerset Academy in another tense game of the season. The first quarter was tied at 7-7, but the Bobcats quickly took the lead in the second quarter, 15-7. The Panthers would push themselves to tie with the Bobcats 15-15 in the third quarter, but the game would tilt in West Broward’s favor and end the game 25-21. The defensive line shined in this game. Senior defensive end Jordan Rengifo would end the game with seven solo and two assisted tackles. Not following far behind, Dupree would have six and middle linebacker Carlos Morales would have five.

“We are not there yet, and I would say we are about two years away from being a top program or a power house program.” – Edgardo Lopez.

“I think our defense sets the tone in the games, then the offense does their thing, and this is done with their commitment,” Lopez said. “These groups of kids are committed to each other.”

The varsity team would face another two-game losing streak with the South Broward Bulldogs and the Gulf Coast Sharks. The Bulldogs would come out victorious, 30-26, for the sixth game of the season. The away game against the Sharks would once again test the team by forcing the Bobcats to play away from home, and the result, 45–13, showed the difficulty of long travel for these young athletes.

“Every time we have to travel far, it makes it hard on the team, especially when they are not used to it. What coach McCartney is doing this year is teaching our players that they have to get used to the protocol of a long trip, longer warm- ups, a hostile environment, and different referees,” Lopez said.

Senior night would be a night to remember for the Bobcats because it would be their first Mayor Cup victory in West Broward history, as well as retaliation for last year’s heartbreaking loss to Flanagan. The senior team would end the night with a blowout score of 33-0 against Flanagan High School.

“Going into the game, we were confident, but we had to remain ready because we knew it was a big rivalry, so they were going to try their hardest to beat us,” said Dupree. “We were excited to finally play them again and beat them since we lost last year, and after the game, it was a great feeling beating them since that was the first time ever in school history we beat them and we got the mayor’s cup.”

With their blowout win against Flanagan, the varsity team was ready for their district championship match against Copper City, and victory was delivered. Although the game was cut short due to police intervention, the energy was still high as the Bobcats celebrated their 21-7 victory against the Cowboys.

“The game was very intense from start to finish, and it was Cooper’s last game of the season, so in their eyes, they had nothing to lose, so they continued to try and start fights with us. Finally the referees had enough, so they ended the game with about two minutes left,” Dupree said.

For their last non-conference match of the season before the quarter-semifinals for states, the team delivered another blowout victory, but this time against Everglades High School, 36-0. This victory would give the team a 6-4 record. The season would then come to a conclusion with a record of 6-5 after their game against Palmetto High School ending in 37-13.

West Broward Schedule:

Date	School	Date
Fri, 8/26 7:00 pm	Cypress Bay (Weston) Away • Non-District	WIN 27-24 (OT)
Fri, 9/9 7:30 pm	McCallie (Chattanooga, TN) Away • Non-District	LOSS 62-27
Fri, 9/16 7:00 pm	Dwyer (Palm Beach Gardens) Home • Non-District	LOSS 27-13
Thu, 9/22 7:00 pm	Pembroke Pines Charter (Pembroke Pines) Away • Non-District	WIN 20-13
Fri, 9/30 6:00 pm	Somerset Academy (Pembroke Pines) Home • District	WIN 25-21
Fri, 10/7 7:00 pm	South Broward (Hollywood) Home • Non-District	LOSS 30-26
Fri, 10/14 7:00 pm	Gulf Coast (Naples) Away • Non-District	LOSS 45-13
Thu, 10/20 7:00 pm	Flanagan (Pembroke Pines) Home • District	WIN 33-0
Thu, 10/27 7:00 pm	Cooper City Away • District	WIN 21-7
Fri, 11/4 7:00 pm	Everglades (Miramar) Away • Non-District	WIN 36-0
Fri, 11/11 3:00 pm	Palmetto (Miami) Away • Playoff	LOSS 37-13