By Gary Curreri
Deerfield Beach High School senior running back Jaylan Knighton said it came down to who wanted it more in the team’s game against the defending 3A state champion, Chaminade-Madonna.
“It was how bad do you want it?” said Knighton, a University of Oklahoma commit, who helped his team to a 13-10 victory. “They won a state championship last year and we are fittin’ to win it this year. We proved to them that we don’t care about none of that. We just are going to come out here and work.”
Knighton got things started for the Bucks with a 65-yard touchdown run midway through the first quarter. Deajaun McDougle hauled in a 30-yard scoring pass just before halftime to give Deerfield a 13-3 halftime lead and they held on for the win.
Deerfield Beach coach Jevon Glenn said his team welcomes tough opponents.
“This is a measuring stick,” Glenn said. “We had a chance to win a powder puff game, but we don’t do that. We want to be better. When it is all said and done, we want to have wars like this so we may be in the same kind of war (this) Friday night in Lawrenceville, Georgia.
“It is all about repetition,” Glenn added. “When you get on a bike, you don’t think right pedal first and then left pedal…You just ride it because you have done it so many times. We have been riding like this for the last four years. We have guys who have been here for four years and they know and the new guys are feeding off the old guys, those veterans. We still have a long way to go, but I like our direction.”
Ely Coach Randall gets Hall nod
Blanche Ely boys basketball coach Melvin Randall will be inducted into the Broward County Sports Hall of Fame this fall. The ceremony will take place Oct. 23 at the Greater Broward County Convention Center.
Randall, who has won 553 games in his 25-year career, has also captured a record eight state championships.
“The announcement threw me a little bit,” Randall said. “I am excited about it. I feel very, very blessed. Getting in the Hall of Fame means a lot to me.”
Randall has won multiple state championships at different schools, which puts him in a category by himself.
Randall led Deerfield Beach to its only boys basketball state titles in 1997 and 1999. He then turned Ely into a dynasty, winning four state titles in a five-year span from 2012-2016.
“I am not going to relax and expect anything to come to me,” Randall said. “I’m always looking to get better. I still have that energy to work hard and get those kids ready for not just basketball but the next chapter in their lives.”