Orlando Christian Prep claims football district lead at The First Academy
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Orlando Christian Prep took a huge step toward securing a spot in the Florida High School Athletic Association postseason Monday night.
Senior quarterback Vilay Nakkoun Jr. rushed for two touchdowns and the Warriors (3-3, 3-0) amassed more than 400 yards of offense during a 31-7 district win at The First Academy (4-1, 1-1).
OCP, a Class 2A state semifinalist last year, closes out its Class 1M (Metro) District 2 schedule Oct. 28 at Trinity Prep (0-5, 0-1).
“The games that matter are the district games, so we know we have to take care of those,” Orlando Christian Prep coach Guerschom Demosthenes said. “I think we’re peaking at the right time. We started off really slow [Monday], but we turned it around in the second half.”
The Warriors took control late in the second quarter after TFA forced a turnover-on-downs at the 5-yard line following a 9-play, 85-yard drive. OCP’s defense responded by forcing a three-and-out to help change momentum for good.
Nakkoun scrambled out of trouble on 4th-and-6 while running for a first down. He then scored two plays later on a 10-yard run up the middle that gave the Warriors a 13-0 lead with 57 seconds to go in the half.
“He’s a very special football player. I can’t say enough about the young man,” Demosthenes said of Nakkoun. “We just like to put the ball in his hands and let him go, and tonight everybody got to see what he can do.”
Nakkoun reached the end zone again on a 9-yard carry on fourth down to cap off a 9-play drive to open the third quarter.
The game was postponed last week due to Hurricane Ian. The schools, located 10 miles apart, played on a Monday for the second year in a row.
OCP scored with 40 seconds left last year for a 14-7 win in a postponed game due to inclement weather. TFA had won the previous four meetings in 2010-11 and 2017-18.
This time, the Royals put up a valiant effort early on but they were unable to sustain drives as the deficit continued to mount.
TFA trailed 7-0 when it fumbled the ball away in the red zone with 2:51 to play in the first quarter. Senior Minor Jones intercepted a pass four plays later, but the ensuing drive ended in a punt that pinned the Warriors at their own 10-yard line.
OCP defensive ends Cooper Cadorette and Stanley Ihekwoaba were among players routinely causing issues for TFA.
Cadorette batted down a pass in the backfield on third down early in the second quarter. Ihekwoaba caused a 12-yard loss on a sack inside the final minute of the half.
“We were able to find gaps and stop the run and just play like a team,” Ihekwoaba said. “Adversity is going to come in games, but you’ve got to know how to fight through it, and that’s what we did.”
TFA plays at Trinity Prep on Friday. OCP plays Oct. 14 at Bishop Moore (2-3).
This article originally appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email J.C. Carnahan at jcarnahan@orlandosentinel.com.
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