Tarpon Springs Facing Best of Four Generations

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Tarpon Springs Facing Best of Four Generations

By Bill Buchalter
Bright House Sports Network

Tarpon Springs is bracing to face the best of four generations when 10-1 Gainesville High School plays the spongers in round 2 of the Florida football playoffs.

Junior quarterback Ryan McGriff, who has thrown for more than 2,000 yards and 30 touchdowns, is the 4th member of his immediate family to play football for GHS - following in the cleats of father Mark, who later played tight end for the University of Florida, his grandfather and great grandfather who also later played at UF.

And we're not even talking about Uncle Lee McGriff's (UF receiver) side of the family where Ryan's cousin Brett played at UCF.

Gainesville, behind McGriff, eliminated New Port Richey Hudson in round one, and if the Purple Hurricanes are successful against Tarpon Springs will play the winner of the Lakeland Lake Gibson-Orlando Edgewater game.

Head coach for GHS is Ryan Smith who came to Gainesville from Orlando Dr. Phillips where he helped Kevin Pettis turn around the Panther program. One of his assistants and the quarterback coach is former UF star Shane Matthews. While Matthews coaches one rising QB, former University of Miami QB Ken Dorsey is coaching the position at Bradenton Lakewood Ranch.

Add a touch of trivia: When South Carolina center Lemuel Jean-Pierre (Orlando Timber Creek) lined up against Vanderbilt last week, he was playing for the first time as a team captain. Jeans-Pierre, a fifth-year senior, is one of just four remaining members of Steve Spurrier's first recruiting class at Carolina. His mother is a professor at UCF and he earned his degree last spring in retail, his father's chosen field.