When his team lost in the second round of the 6A state playoffs last season, head coach Mark James vowed that his Boyd Anderson Cobras would be back to finish business in 2007.

Well, the 2007 season is here, and while they sputtered in the first two games of the season against Ely and upstart Cypress Bay, James and his football team sit 2-0 and have a chance to make quite a statement in two weeks when they travel to Lakeland.

The game against a Dreadnaught team that has won 47 straight games and happens to be the three-time 5A state champs and two-time defending national champions will provide the opportunity that James and his football program has been searching for.

After blowing away Palm Beach Lakes in the spring and then Key West in the fall kickoff classic, the Cobras have been tested the first two weeks of the season against very good BCAA opponents. But this week, the bar will be raised in a major way.

This Boyd Anderson team hasn’t rested on what it accomplished during the summer at camps and combines throughout the state. What has happened in the first two weeks of the season is that this team has come together and pulled out wins.

“That gives us plenty of momentum and confidence going up to play a great team like Lakeland,” said James. “The one thing that we cannot do that we have done the first two weeks is fall behind. You don’t do that on the road against a nationally-rated team.

While senior Tyrone Brantley has been the hero in the first two weeks of the season, coming up with a key play in an opening night win against Ely, and then catching a pass from junior quarterback Kenneth Graham in a win over Cypress Bay, he is not alone. There are other athletes on this team that have been responsible for putting the team into the spotlight.

Graham, who many believe is the best high school quarterback in the BCAA, threw for 301 yards in the win over Cypress Bay. He arrived on the scene last year and was among the best in South Florida.

Running back Chris Anderson has added a big time prospect to the offensive attack. Closing in on 3,000 career yards, Anderson is the kind of back who has the ability to lead the team to that upset over Lakeland.

In Anderson, you have an explosive runner with speed and tremendous instincts.

The Cobras also boast receivers Chris Bynes (senior) and sophomore Steve Green, who has been tremendous over the past six months.

Defensively, this is a program that continues to produce top-flight athletes with University of Wisconsin-bound Kevin Claxton and University of Miami commitment Joseph Wiley, a former quarterback who has emerged as one of the top safeties.

While a loss to North Miami Beach a year ago, put an end to plans to compete for a 6A state title, many believe that this is the year that this program, which has finally plugged into the local youth football league pipeline, can turn some heads.

BCAA BANTER: Looking for surprise teams this year? How about Steve Davis and Plantation. The Colonels beat South Broward to open the season, and then came from 28 back to beat Western. If you remember, Davis took an Ely team to a 5A state title after starting his coaching career at 0-10...

While there are some very impressive 2008 players, the Class of 2009 has already started to showcase some very impressive athletes such as A’Kevis Anderson (Hallandale), Shane Gordon (Cypress Bay) and Miramar quarterback Eugene Smith, who threw for 219 yards and 6 TD passes in a win at Miami Monsignor Pace. Smith is already being recruited by every major college in the nation…

There’s little doubt that after scoring 41 points against nationally-rated Miami Northwestern in the fall kickoff classic and then beating Hollywood Hills and rival Ely, Deerfield Beach will be one of the teams that everyone will keep a close eye on.

Head coach Art Taylor and his Bucks have proven that they can score against anyone, which will make things very interesting in an already competitive Class 6A among BCAA teams.

Want to know more about high school football? Check Larry Blustein’s weekly evaluations at www.floridafb.com. You can also reach him via E-Mail at Floridakids1@hotmail.com