ST. PETERSBURG — There wasn’t much Darius Miller didn’t do in St. Petersburg’s 39-22 win over Lakewood on Friday night.
The junior running back scored on two long runs, returned a kickoff 83 yards for a touchdown and caught a 70-yard touchdown pass to cap the biggest night of his career.
“If our offense does what it’s supposed to do, the possibilities are endless,” said Miller, who ran for 121 yards had 114 receiving yards. “We all felt like it was going to be a big night. The holes were there, and we just ran through them. I always think that once I get past the line, then nobody can catch me.”
The game was delayed 35 minutes due to weather. Once it did get started, St. Petersburg set the tone on its first drive. Pinned at their own 5, the Green Devils marched 95 yards on eight plays and scored when Miller ran it in from 21 yards. There was also a 37-yard pass to Miller during the drive.
On its next possession, St. Petersburg went right down the field again. This time, it was a nine-play, 55-yard drive that ended when Jacquel Waller ran it in from 6 yards.
Things went so well for the Green Devils in the first half that even when they were stopped, they managed to score points. Early in the second, Lakewood forced a punt. Rodrick Strohman fielded the ball at his 1 and was tackled in the end zone for a safety.
One possession later, Miller broke an 87-yard run up the middle on the first play of the drive to make it 23-0.
Lakewood showed some life late in the half when Ryan Davis hit Sekendric Biddines on a 6-yard touchdown pass that capped a 10-play drive. Davis’ two-point pass to Biddines made it 23-8.
But not to be outdone, Miller ran back the ensuing kickoff 83 yards to make the halftime score 30-8.
“I’ve got three good backs out there,” St. Petersburg coach Joe Fabrizio said. “If one of them gets hot, they’re going to run it. Very rarely does anybody have a night like this, but (Miller) does have the ability to score from anywhere.”
The second half started like an Arena Football game. Davis began to take over on offense and gained big chunks running. Romello Pressley scored on a 14-yard run to cut the lead to 30-16. But on its first possession of the half, St. Petersburg quarterback Austyn Causey hit Miller on a 70-yard pass to push the lead back to 20. Causey was 8-of-10 for 144 yards.
Pressley scored again to make it 36-22. Lakewood had the ball late in the third quarter but fumbled on the St. Petersburg 13.
The Green Devils added a Parker Bryant field goal in the fourth to end the scoring.
“It took us a while to get our rhythm,” Lakewood coach Cory Moore said. “I’m happy with the way the guys responded in the second half. We still fought to the end. It’s going to get us ready for those district games that really matter.”
Davis gained 151 yards rushing but threw for only 58.
Stars of the game
Darius Miller, RB, St. Petersburg: A coming-out game. He had touchdown runs of 21 and 87 yards, returned a kickoff 83 yards for a touchdown, and caught a 70-yard touchdown pass.
Ryan Davis, QB, Lakewood: He threw for an uncharacteristically low 58 yards but ran for a game-high 151 yards.
Austyn Causey, QB, St. Petersburg: Highly effective. He completed 8 of 10 passes for 144 yards and a touchdown.