Prep football: Naples gets revenge on Fort Myers, wins regional title

When the Naples High School football team is fortunate enough to practice on Thanksgiving, it turns into a family celebration. Past players and alumni come out to support the current Golden Eagles as they continue on their path to a state title.

At Thursday’s Thanksgiving night practice, players from the 2016 team let this year’s group know how bad they wanted revenge on Fort Myers. The Green Wave came to Naples last year and forced seven turnovers in a 28-7 win.

Naples turned the tables on the Green Wave this season. The Eagles took control early and maintained their grasp throughout their 36-9 win in the Class 6A-Region 3 championship game.

“It was huge,” Naples senior defensive back Andre Eaton said of the revenge factor. “(Thursday) night the older guys came out and talked about last year and how much they miss playing. We wanted to win this one for them.”

With the program’s seventh regional title in the past 17 seasons, Naples (10-1) moves on to next week’s 6A semifinals. The Eagles go on the road Friday to play Miami-Northwestern in Traz Powell Stadium.

Naples scored two short-field touchdowns in the first half, starting both drives inside the Fort Myers 40-yard line thanks to short punts. The Golden Eagles led 22-0 before the Green Wave (7-4) scored.

Naples coach Bill Kramer said his team was determined to play better than it had in last year’s loss to Fort Myers in the regional semifinals.

“I wouldn’t call it revenge, because it’s two different teams, but the guys who were on the field last year were really motivated by that,” Kramer said. “To lose like that is embarrassing. They worked really hard in practice. It’s been weeks of that now where we’re working really hard. The difference is now we’re working hard and smart. You saw that tonight.”

The Eagles’ defense had another strong showing, but it gave up its first touchdown in four games. The long Fort Myers score nearly flipped the momentum for the Green Wave in the third quarter.

On third down and 20, John Coleus took a short pass and slipped in an out of the Naples defensive backfield. Coleus’s 61-yard touchdown catch brought Fort Myers within 22-7.

On Naples’ ensuing possession, the Green Wave forced a three-and-out, then blocked the punt. Naples punter Hugh Wilkinson recovered the block in the end zone, giving Fort Myers a safety and cutting its deficit to 22-9.

The Eagles defense – which hadn’t allowed a touchdown in 15 quarters before Coleus’s score, dating back to Oct. 27 – was roused.

Naples got interceptions from Andre Eaton and D’Andre St. Jean on back-to-back Fort Myers offensive plays. The Eagles turned both turnovers into touchdown runs by Chez Mellusi.

Mellusi scored twice in 100 seconds to give Naples a 36-9 lead with 8:24 to play. The junior running back finished with 162 yards and three touchdowns. Fort Myers fumbled on its next possession, Michigan commit Sammy Faustin recovered for Naples, and the Golden Eagles ran out the clock on their regional title.

Faustin said Fort Myers’ big touchdown pass to Coleus reinvigorated the Eagles’ defense.

“They caught us slipping, so we had to get back in it,” Faustin said. “We had to stay focused as a team and do what we had to do.”

Naples held Fort Myers to 143 yards, 61 of them coming on Coleus’ catch. The Green Wave had 48 rushing yards on 24 carries.

The Golden Eagles rushed for 250 yards.

“They were the better football team,” Fort Myers coach Sam Sirianni Jr. said. “Physically they took it to us. That’s how it is in these games. Last year, we jumped on them and they wanted to have a shot at us again and they took it to us. You can slice and dice it all you want. They’re well-coached, they play hard. But they just took it to us up front. They whipped us both sides of the ball.”

NAPLES 36, FORT MYERS 9

FM       0          0          9          0          –          9

N         7          8          7          14        –          36

First quarter

N – Jordan-Persad-Tirone 7 run (Hugh Wilkinson kick), 6:43

Second quarter

N – Elan Sommala 3 run (Persad-Tirone run), 0:47

Third quarter

N – Chez Mellusi 58 run (Wilkinson kick), 9:42

FM – John Coleus 61 pass from Willie Neal (John Briers kick), 8:24

FM – Safety (Naples punter tackled in end zone), 5:09

Fourth quarter

N – Mellusi 13 run (Wilkinson kick), 10:04

N – Mellusi 5 run (Wilkinson kick), 8:24

Friday's scores

Class 6A regional final

(2) Naples 36, (4) Fort Myers 9

(1) Miami Northwestern 23, (6) Miami-Carol City 15

Class 5A regional final

(1) Immokalee 42, (2) St. Petersburg-Lakewood 14

(1) Plantation-American Heritage 58, (6) Cardinal Gibbons 57 3 OT

Friday, Dec. 1

Class 6A state semifinal

Naples vs. Miami Northwestern, Traz Powell Stadium

Class 5A state semifinal

Immokalee at Plantation-American Heritage, 7:30 p.m.