After losses to open the 2008 season against Plantation and Dillard, South Broward needed a confidence builder in the third game of the season, and while first year program West Broward has no seniors and is searching for a direction, coach Allen Held and his Bulldogs were in no mood for sympathy.

When you happen to be in a district that boasts nationally rated St. Thomas Aquinas, losing is never an option if you want to close the talent gap between first place and the next playoff spot.

While St. Thomas is the overwhelming favorite to win the district, it's that second place spot that seems to be the main focus for the Bulldogs, Western, Cooper City, McArhur and rival Hollywood Hills, which South Broward will play this Friday in a game that appears to be a must win so early in the year.

The win over West Broward last Thursday night showed that the Bulldogs do have plenty of talent, and with Auburn commitment Steven Jacques anchoring one of the largest lines in Broward County, things could get mighty interesting if this team comes up with a win over Hollywood Hills, which hasn't been easy to do over the past five years.

"We needed a big win," said Held. "We played two very good teams to start the season, found ourselves 0-2, and then this week, we are playing a very key district game."

Jacques, a senior who was passed over by several schools in the stazte of Florida, committed to attend Auburn last weekend, and anchors a line that includes fellow seniors Anthony Mitchell, Ashley Bullock, David Bates, Fausto Arujo-Neto, Paul Daizovi, Arturo Penayo and John Rabb.

The line also features juniors Jamaal Herbert,  James Henjum, Miquel Cedillo and Jean St. Louis.

The Bulldogs have a talented senior class, which Held felt would be a huge advantage to his teams' success this season. Players such as Balvin Small (RB/DB), James Parker (WR), Jamar Brown (RB/DB), Andre Thomas (WR/DB), Paul Exilhomme (WR/DB), Jared Nuby (RB/LB), Joseph Tracy (WR/DB), Zeko Green (WR/DB), Richard Neunie (WR/DB), Rodan Aime (RB/DB), Chris Watervil (RB/DB) and kicker Chris Loper.

Trevaughn Faircloth

There are also juniors that figure to make major strides this season. Players such as heavily recruited defensive end Trevaughn Faircloth, who is one of the top juniors in the state.

Faircloth has the ability to be one of the most heavily recruited players this program has had in a long time. He is joined by Djwany Mera (tight end/defensive end), Bryan Parnes (quarterback), Dakota Liles (QB/LB), Jermaine Dumeng (WR/DE), Russell Neunie (WR/DB), Andrew Evans (RB/DT), Keon August (RB/LB) and linebacker Darryl Williams.

The Class of 2011 is also quite athletic with running back Curtic Evans, Junior Sylvestre (RB/LB), Thomas Jones (RB/LB), Karvin Noel (RB/DB) and linebacker John Rabb.

NEXT WEEK: District games could go a long way in determining the fate of several area teams

You can reach Larry Blustein via e-mail at FloridaKids1@hotmail.com. He can also be heard every Thursday night (9-10) on the Miami Dolphins High School Gridiron Report on WQAM (560 AM).