If football doesn’t pan out for Manny Scott, perhaps he has a future in psychic readings. Central’s 13-7 victory at Springstead Friday night may have surprised many, but the Central senior called it two days earlier. “When we beat Springstead,” said Scott on Wednesday, stressing he didn’t mean if, “that’s when Hernando (County) is going to wake up. When we beat them is when everyone is going to open up their eyes… We’re hungry. All we’ve got to do is beat Springstead and that’s what will make us dominating this season.”
Considering the Bears had won a grand total of eight games going back to 2009, those words might have seemed laughable at the time. But not so much in the moments following Friday’s contest, which ended when Scott blocked a low 40-yard field goal attempt with 5.3 seconds remaining, and teammate Albon Jones collected the ball and returned it 68 yards to the end zone as time expired. “I was hungry,” Scott said after the game. “Me and Albon actually communicated before that big play. He told me, ‘All you’ve got to do is just get it.’ I was like, ‘OK, I got you, bro. I got you.’ I did it. We succeeded, we succeeded. We came up with that victory… I said we were going to win this game. Doesn’t matter how hard we had to play, we were going to win this game.”
Clearly, Scott isn’t afraid to speak his mind and make some bold predictions. It’s that personality that defines his role beyond simply being a wide receiver, defensive back and kick returner.
“Manny’s always been a competitive kid,” Central head coach Chris Sands said. “He’s hard-working, he’s always doing the right thing and it’s his time to shine now. He’s been playing since his sophomore year here and he’s made plays every year. He just needs to make more this year… He’s the emotional leader. We have a leadership committee on our team and he’s the emotional guy. He’s the one that gets these guys fired up. All the kids respect him because he’s always doing the right thing on and off the field. He’s just that guy that he’s going to tell you what he feels. That’s Manny for you,” Sands explained.
The 6-foot, 175-pounder caught nine passes last year for 145 yards and one touchdown. Modest numbers, but consider the learning curve the entire team experienced with Sands taking over as headman after a 1-9 run in 2013. “Everything is going great. We’re practicing very hard,” Scott said. “Our goal is to be district champs. That’s our number one goal. Maybe to the playoffs. We’re going to put Central on the map… I’m progressing well. I’m progressing better than any year in my high school career. I’m faster, stronger, becoming a leader.” Scott pointed to a leadership void as a major factor in the Bears’ recent shortcomings, and that further compelled him to step up in that capacity. He admits all the losing has been “stressful,” but not without its lessons. “It’s what built me into the player I am today,” Scott said. “If I fail, I want to do everything in my power to fix my mistakes… I don’t look at myself as a star above anybody. I see myself as a role player. I just need to make plays and win games.”
He does have some high personal goals, specifically scoring 22 touchdowns. He hopes to play in college, listing Florida Atlantic, UCF, USF and Southern Methodist as his preferred destinations. “Manny has a lot of college opportunities right now,” Sands said. “There’s a lot of FBS (NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision) and FCS (NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision) schools that love him. The process is now for him to do right in the classroom, then he’ll have a great shot at being successful.”
However, Scott made it clear his primary focus lies on the current season and continuing a turnaround that may have potentially began on Friday night. “We all see it. We all know we can make a difference for this school,” Scott said. “Let people look down on us. We’re going to hit them in the mouth.”