Stoneman Douglas showed its 38-point performance in its season-opening victory over Orlando Colonial was not a fluke.
The Eagles hit the 30-point plateau again Friday night, taking down Cypress Bay 30-16 in a non-district game.
Douglas, running behind an offensive line that includes Division I prospects Gage Gaynor (6-3, 275) and Michael McLaughlin (6-8, 255), rushed for 140 yards and 3 touchdowns in moving to 2-0. The Eagles’ contest vs. Fort Pierce last week was canceled due to Hurricane Dorian.
Senior running back Brian Smith continued his strong start to the season with 91 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries. The 5-foot-10, 190-pound Smith ran for 230 yards and two scores in the win over Colonial.
“I’m trying to go to the playoffs and I’m chasing a ring,” Smith said. “We haven’t been to the playoffs in God knows how long and I’m trying to do that this year.”
Coaches said it’s been since 2001 that Douglas has been to the playoffs.
Smith’s second touchdown of the night — an 8-yarder — put Douglas in command 30-9 with 8:30 remaining in the fourth quarter. Smith also had a 1-yard TD run in the first quarter.
Alex Rodriguez also rushed for 43 yards and a TD, and Douglas junior QB Matt O’Dowd finished 11-for-16 passing for 103 yards.
“They’re great,” Smith said of the offensive line. “They work really hard and they were just blocking. They were moving guys and they make it easy for me.”
Gaynor, a senior, has offers including Louisville, Pitt, FIU and Marshall. McLaughlin, just a junior, has been offered by Miami and Florida State.
The loss drops Cypress Bay to 1-2.
Lightning junior QB Hayden Giles went 7-for-15 passing for 143 yards and a touchdown. Senior running back Michah Allen rushed for 62 yards and a score on 12 carries.
Douglas controlled the first half, despite losing the ball twice on fumbles.
The Eagles held Cypress Bay to two first downs and 24 yards rushing in going up 20-9 at the intermission. Cypress Bay did not help itself with 70 yards in penalties over the first two quarters. The Lightning finished the game with 155 penalty yards.
Douglas, meanwhile, rolled up 11 first downs in the first half and got 1-yard TD runs from Rodriguez and Smith. O’Dowd went 9-for-11 passing for 73 yards, including a 5-yard TD pass to Christian Higgins.
Cypress Bay’s first-half points came on a 45-yard field goal from German Rossado and a 35-yard TD pass from Giles to tight end Zach Forristall.
Pat Lammer is a correspondent for the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
