More than just talent has produced winning Booker football

The sheer talent suiting up for the Tornadoes this season is undeniable. On both sides of the ball, they boast multiple guys poised to join Power Four programs next fall.

No binoculars are necessary to see that. Stop by practice and stay for a little while. Tight-window passes, acrobatic catches and ferocious tackling will more than likely be on display.

Even with the abundance of athletes crammed into southwest Florida, talent can never be treated as anything less than the luxury it is. Talent alone doesn’t win games, but it always helps.

Coach Carlos Woods and his staff approach talent with one word — mutuality.

“We talk to those guys about it on a consistent basis. And when I’m saying mutuality, it’s not necessarily give-take,” Woods said. “It’s like we each have to do our part.”

That philosophy has worked wonders for Booker football thus far. Now 7-1 entering Week 10, the Tornadoes have stacked seven straight victories, and as of Oct. 14 per the FHSAA, are ranked No. 1 in Class 3A as well as No. 15 overall in the state.

It hasn’t been like the points parade of a year ago, when they scored 50 or more in six of 14 contests en route to the state semifinals. But they’re finding ways to win week after week.

The Tornadoes have now battled four opponents who they had faced by this time in 2024 — Tampa Berkeley Prep, Sebring, Naples Lely and Bayshore. Those former two outings both wound up as losses.

Booker, though, held off Berkeley Prep, 29-23, in Week 2 this season. Later on in Week 7, it survived Sebring, 27-20. Those are the two most obvious pieces of evidence that talent has gelled in a manner it never did last year.

More players have excelled in their individual roles. As a result, the likelihood of failure in crucial close-game situations has noticeably decreased.

“That’s the beautiful thing about this game that we call football and that we all love. All 11 have to do their job,” Woods said. “If you just execute your one-on-one, whatever we ask you to do, to the best of your ability, there’s a high probability that we’re going to have success.”

Photo by Ian Swaby

This is not the same defense that took the field early in the campaign. Personnel may be similar, but execution has reached a whole new level.

After allowing 68 points through their first three games — Auburn (AL) being the only loss — the Tornadoes have surrendered 34 across their last five. Three of those results were shutouts.

Contributions have been remarkably well-balanced. Seven players have at least 30 total tackles, and there’s just as many who boast 10-plus tackles for loss.

Senior wide receiver/cornerback and three-star recruit Karaijus Hayes has a fifth-best 34 tackles to his name. Then there’s Florida State commit Chauncey Kennon, a senior cornerback/wide receiver who ranks No. 48 overall in the Class of 2026, per the ESPN 300.

Booker’s defensive stats-sheet stuffer, though, is a 6-foot-3, 245-pound menace who thrives not in coverage, but in the trenches.

Kevontay Hugan leads the Tornadoes in several respects — 8.0 sacks, 22.0 TFLs and 38 total tackles. Until he takes his talents to Indiana, this squad can only benefit from the senior’s waning days of high school dominance.

“Personally, it means a lot that I’m able to do things like that,” Hugan said. “But it’s also telling me that I could do more, and I could probably teach and help other players out.”

Photo by Ian Swaby

Offensively, it would be an insult to the football gods not to applaud senior quarterback Joel Morris. He returned from a season-ending injury in 2024 and, without a doubt, has been the best signal-caller in the area.

He’s thrown 22 touchdowns without a single interception. Paired with that perfection is 1,670 passing yards on a 63.6% completion rate, all accomplished through eight starts under center.

If Morris keeps doing what he’s been doing, and Booker eventually turns its laundry list of victories into a championship, the Sarasota area will have a new folk hero.

“We always knew he was uber-talented. We always knew he was highly intelligent,” Woods said. “It was just a matter of it all coming together for him, and it’s all coming together for him at the right time for us, fortunately.”

Seniors Tyren Wortham and Dylan Wester — a Pittsburgh commit — are the primary beneficiaries of Morris’ MVP-caliber effort. Both of the two wideouts have 500 or more receiving yards and average 15-plus per catch.

Combined, they account for 15 of their resurgent quarterback’s 22 scores through the air.

“It’s been better, getting with Joel in practice,” Wortham said. “Just working and repping every play. Getting better at it.”

Chatter continues to circulate regarding the ever-elusive first state title in program history, and the hype isn’t hollow. Booker is still back-to-back state semifinalists.

This winning streak has only offered more fodder. The Tornadoes have playmakers aplenty, but what they’ve done with them is distinct from seasons past.

There’s more than just talent in these waters.