The Ponte Vedra Sharks are 0-2 on the season; however, there is no denying the potential of Head Coach Stephen Price’s team.
On Aug. 14, the Sharks lost to the St. Augustine Yellow Jackets 40-7 in the Kickoff Classic, and Price is the first one to admit that his team did not perform very well.
On Aug. 21, the Sharks lost a heartbreaker to University Christian with a final score of 31-29.
Price was encouraged by his team’s performance against University Christian, and the effort he saw from his players.
“I felt like we executed better, and the offensive line played better,” he said.
One of the biggest improvements was the performance of junior quarterback Carter Sole. Sole threw three touchdown passes against University Christian and completed almost 70% of his passes.
Ponte Vedra lost a lot of seniors last season, with 12 players signing college football letters of intent. The Sharks are a very young squad this season, but Price says that is not an excuse because he believes his team is very good.
There are about 20 seniors on the team this season, which is a smaller number than usual, but Price still has a few weapons on his roster.
Younger players will look to veterans like senior running back Alex Winkles, senior wide receiver Tucker Henderson and senior offensive tackle Max Demirbulakli. Even though there are not many of them, Price said his senior class is full of good players who understand the importance of working hard.
“These seniors realize it doesn’t matter what happened last season, they have to earn everything they get,” he said.
Last season, the Sharks advanced to the final four in the playoffs and lost to the Lakeland Dreadnaughts.
On Aug. 28, the Sharks lost in overtime to the Bishop Kenny Crusaders with a final score of 28-21. They mounted a huge comeback against the Crusaders and came very close to earning their first win of the season.
Price said his team is taking every week as it comes, and they will continue to address their needs and get better.
“Our approach is that we just want to get better than what we were yesterday,” he said.
The Sharks will return to the Shark Tank on Friday, Sept. 4, to take on the Merritt Island Mustangs, and Price said he likes what he has seen from his team so far.
“I feel like we are definitely moving in the right direction,” he said.
