The Cocoa Beach Minutemen showed fight and determination in 2019 playing better than their 2-8 record would indicate. This was a young team in 2019 and they will have a new man in charge this season, as Greg Underwood takes over for DeMarkulus Menyfield, who left after one season to pursue other interests.
The two wins came in a span of four days last season, as they beat Warner Christian Academy on a Monday night 49-7 and came back that Friday with a 35-15 win over Cornerstone Charter Academy.
Quarterback Thomas Nargi will be under center this season. He threw for 440 yards and six touchdowns as a sophomore and was the second-leading rusher on the team, carrying the ball 108 for 479 yards and four touchdowns. He rushed for 100 yards twice.
Haven Marascio was Nargi’s favorite target, catching 10 balls for 221 yards. He will look to make even more noise in 2020. They will have another year of experience but will likely be learning a different system, as coach Underwood looks to light a fire under a team that averaged 39.6 yards in the passing game and 140.9 on the ground, scoring a total of eight touchdowns.
Wide receivers Patrick Baker and Blue Dunsworth who played in two games last season may be called on more.
Alam Rosario was not only the leading rusher on the squad, with 503 yards on 96 carries, but had one of the two receiving touchdowns on the team. He caught three passes for 59 yards. Dylan Rios, who is entering his senior season, had the other receiving touchdown.
Christian Taylor was also in the backfield in 2019, rushing for 263 yards and a touchdown on 40 carries. He will play both ways, taking up an outside linebacker spot on defense. He was second on the team in tackles with 66, 56 of those were solos. Michael Deblois had 67 tackles, 55 solos, and one sack. Junior Kevin Suarez had three sacks to lead the team.
There will be a second Deblois on the Minutemen roster in 2020, with freshman Devon Deblois listed as a middle linebacker and long snapper. He will lead a crop of fresh faces on this squad that includes eighth-grader Kyler Coe, who is listed as a wide receiver and free safety.
Sean Westner is listed as the Minutemen kicker. He was 12-for-12 on extra points, playing in four games last season.
Cocoa Beach will start their season in the kickoff classic against All Saints’ Academy on August 14. That game will be played in Winter Haven. They will play at Satellite the following week, before opening their home schedule against Cornerstone Charter Academy on August 28. All three games are slated to start at 7:00 p.m. Homecoming is scheduled for October 23, at 7:00 p.m.