By DUGAN ARNETT

MURDOCK -- How is this for speed?

On Friday morning, barely 72 hours after Joe Woodruff stepped down after one season as head coach of the Port Charlotte High School football team, the school announced that Dave Hoffer would be taking over as head coach of the Pirates.

"We said from the start that if we found someone in-house that was right for the position, that we'd go with them," said athletic director Mark Primerano on Friday morning. "(Hoffer) has the qualities and standards that we were looking for, so there was no sense to look any further."

Those qualities, according to Primerano, include an instilled sense of discipline, an emphasis on academics and a familiarity with the Pirates family.

Hoffer, whose appointment goes into effect immediately, has spent the past nine seasons on the Port Charlotte sidelines, first as an assistant coach, and, since 1999, as the team's defensive coordinator.

A 1988 Port Charlotte High School graduate, Hoffer played linebacker and defensive back for three seasons at Tusculum College in Greeneville, Tenn., where he graduated in 1994 with a B.A. in computer information systems and later earned his M.A. in education.

On Friday morning, as he sat behind a desk in his Port Charlotte High School classroom, he was still waiting for the news to sink in.

"I'm trying to breathe right now," said the school's newest coach, who, in the next few months, will have the unenviable task of juggling his new position, his duties as coach of the school's boys track and field team and his wife's pregnancy. "There's just so much going through my head."

Hoffer's stock as Woodruff's eventual predecessor likely rose over the past couple of seasons, as Hoffer masterminded one of the area's top defenses, including last year's, which held opponents to less than 80 passing yards per game and allowed only six points to rival Charlotte in the teams' late-season showdown.

After interviewing with Primerano and principal Steve Dionisio Wednesday, Hoffer was informed of the school's decision Thursday afternoon, and by Friday morning, he was being introduced as the school's new head coach during a meeting with the school's football players.

Even before Friday's announcement, however, players were privately whispering about the possibility of Hoffer, who was a candidate for the head coaching spot last winter before Woodruff was eventually selected to replace Ray Hixson.

"I'm already looking forward to next year," said junior Baily Beckham, who will play running back for the Pirates next season. "It's nice having someone from inside the program; I think it'll bring stability."

Said junior Enrique Cuebas, a Pirates linebacker/free safety, "We'll be working a lot harder, that's for sure."

Friday afternoon, between handshakes and congratulatory phone calls, Hoffer was already digging into the task of turning Port Charlotte into a consistent local power. Hoffer inherits a program that finished 2-8 last season and loses over 20 seniors from last year's team, including its quarterback, top running back and top receiver.

But it's a task, Hoffer is convinced, that can be accomplished.

"I'm going to need as much help from the faculty, the staff, the students, the community, the alumni as possible," Hoffer said. "It's going to take some time, and it's going to take some work. But the more involvement we get, the quicker we're going to be successful."

Hoffer's History

Port Charlotte High School, Port Charlotte, Fla.
Head boys track & field coach (2001-present) Assistant football coach (1998-2006) Assistant head coach (2000-2006) Defensive coordinator (1999-2006) Strength and conditioning coach (1998-2006)

Landsberg Express, Landsberg, Germany
Assistant head football coach (March 1998 - July 1998) Defensive coordinator (March 1998 - July 1998)

Tusculum College, Greeneville, Tenn.
Assistant football coach (NAIA II/NCAA II)
Recruiting coordinator (1995)
Academic Coordinator (1996-97)
Video Coordinator (1994-97)
Assistant strength and conditioning coach (1994-97)

By Dennis Maffezzoli

MURDOCK -- Dave Hoffer wasn't named football coach at Port Charlotte High last year.

He wasn't even one of the two finalists for the job that went to Joe Woodruff.

It might have been the best thing that happened for Hoffer.

Woodruff included his defensive coordinator in many of the decision-making processes and thoroughly exposed Hoffer to the chores, tasks and duties away from the gridiron.

When a family illness forced Woodruff to resign Monday, Hoffer became a much more viable candidate to take over this time around.

Friday, Port Charlotte announced that it was staying in-house to replace Woodruff, naming Hoffer as the school's 10th head football coach.

"Words can't describe how I feel," said the 36-year-old Hoffer, who was surprised with the swiftness of the process.

A graduate of Port Charlotte and Tusculum (Tenn.) College, Hoffer has been an assistant football coach with the Pirates since 1998, serving under Ray Hixson and Woodruff.

"He's the only in-house candidate we interviewed," said Port Charlotte director of athletics Mark Primerano, who conducted the search with Principal Steve Dionisio. "We felt good with what he had to say."

Hoffer's involvement with Woodruff on many levels enhanced his chances.

"I was aware of those things, but I didn't know on what level," Hoffer said of the extracurricular activities.

An outside linebacker for the Pirates in 1987, Hoffer has served as defensive coordinator since 1999 and assistant head coach since 2000. While it hasn't been reflected in the wins and losses, Port Charlotte traditionally has had a strong defense under Hoffer.

"The kids believe and trust me, and I trust them," he said.

A computer science teacher, Hoffer is beyond defense and football. His aim is to vigorously address the student portion of the student-athlete.

"They need a strong work ethic, time management and dedication," he said. "I expect them to take the same attitude and use that in the classroom."

Also the boys track and field coach, Hoffer is searching for an offensive coordinator.

That's not all.

He's looking for help on all levels, not just coaching and not just from teachers and parents.

He's looking for community involvement.

One of the important traits Hoffer picked up from Woodruff is his ability to reach out to the public.

"I need to slow down sometimes," Hoffer said. "I get excited, because I'm very passionate."

Married to Renee with 9-year-old Briane, 7-year-old Bryce and Dava scheduled to arrive in a couple of months, Hoffer learned from Woodruff "you don't have to yell and scream to motivate or get your point across."

Hoffer admitted it would have been easy for him to walk away from Woodruff and Port Charlotte when he didn't receive the job last year.

"That would have been selfish," Hoffer said.

Staying and working under Woodruff landed him the job this time.

"I learned a lot from him, his attention to detail and knowledge of the game," Hoffer said. "He's been a valuable resource. You don't want something at the expense of another's misfortunes. I still have his number and plan to tap him for information."

By DUGAN ARNETT

MURDOCK -- When Dave Hoffer replaced Joe Woodruff as Port Charlotte High School's head football coach earlier this year, it was no secret that one of his first missions would be to create a culture of discipline within the program.

Tuesday, he took the first steps in seeing that mission through.

In addition to doling out a detailed rundown of the team's revamped personal conduct policy, Hoffer, the Pirates' defensive coordinator last season, announced that players would also be required to attend a mandatory 40-minute study hall each day before the start of practice.

"The bottom line is that academics come before anything else," said Hoffer, whose team will travel to East Lake High School in Tarpon Springs on May 18 for its annual Spring Game. "We want these kids, when they graduate, to be excellent students, in addition to excellent athletes. And that's the reason for the study hall.

"And they better be on time," he added. "That's all I've got to say."

By DUGAN ARNETT

MURDOCK -- Three days in, and already they're drawing a crowd.

A steady contingent of parents, faculty, friends and girlfriends made its way over to the Port Charlotte practice field Thursday afternoon to take in a few minutes of the football team's third practice of the Spring season.

Apparently, news is spreading fast throughout the school's hallways: There seems to be a certain excitement surrounding this year's team.

In the past week, for example, fellow coaches -- including swimming headmaster Walt Gossett -- have stopped by to check out practice. First-year head coach Dave Hoffer has received more than a few e-mails from members of the faculty expressing their excitement for the upcoming season. And just the other day, booster club liason Bryan Bouton was strolling through the school's media center when a teacher stopped him to praise the football program's new regime.

"She said 'We're really excited to see a system in place where academics are as important as athletics," said Bouton, who also does the announcing for Pirates baseball and softball games.

And it's this excitement, Hoffer is hoping, that will trickle down to the players --ideally, in time for the team's May 18 Spring Game against East Lake in Tarpon Springs.

"That's huge," Hoffer said Thursday. "We have to have support. We have to. Positive encouragement is integral in anything you do, and it's very important to us."

By DUGAN ARNETT

MURDOCK -- Dave Hoffer is rolling. It's just past 7 on a recent Wednesday night, the second day of spring football practice for area schools, and a handful of coaches have gathered in the Port Charlotte High School football offices. Tucked into the corner of the office, stationed in front of a computer screen, is Hoffer, and as players file by his desk, checking out equipment, trying not to look nervous, the coach is an endless bundle of energy. He's telling jokes, doling out nicknames. Completing the monotonous hassle of equipment check-out with the same enthusiasm normally reserved for major holidays.

Nevermind that he's running on (maybe) five hours of sleep. Or that his voice, after only two days of practice, is cracking nearly to the point of inaudibility. It's hard to imagine that anyone, in the expansive history of the game, has had more fun passing out girdles and butt pads.

"Man," he says, bursting from his seat between players, "I'm lovin' this."

That Hoffer is able to carry out his coaching duties with such zeal is no small feat. Since the school announced in February that he would replace former head coach Joe Woodruff, who, in his first and only season at Port Charlotte led the Pirates to a 2-8 record, things have been non-stop for the 36-year-old coach.

His wife, Renee, gave birth to daughter Dava on March 1. He just recently completed his sixth season as the head boys track and field coach. And all the while, he's been racking his brain trying to figure out how to turn the program -- the same one for which he once starred -- into a perennial playoff contender.

There's plenty to do. There is equipment to be purchased, practices to be planned, community service projects to be organized. A slew of behind-the-scenes responsibilities that only a head coach knows.

And this is to say nothing of perhaps the biggest task of all: changing the collective attitude of his newly acquired program.

Before being issued practice equipment, for example, each player was required to sign a six-page personal conduct agreement vowing to meet a list of regulations. (This isn't just for show; so far this spring, multiple players have been disciplined for failing to meet team expectations.)

"There were so many excuses last year," says senior-to-be Jarret Debus. "After a (Friday) game, the coaches would tell us what time to be here on Saturday morning for practice, and you'd see 100 hands shoot up: 'I got church' or 'I got a family thing.'

"That's not going to be the case this year."

Indeed. While this might only be May, and while the team has yet to play a single down -- even in spring football, the early reviews have been encouraging.

"He's done a great job of changing the atmosphere in a very short period of time," says Port Charlotte athletic director Mark Primerano. "In the past, I think we've had kids that felt they could do whatever they wanted because they were football players. Now, I think they feel that they have more responsibility, more accountability, because they're football players."

Perhaps the biggest change, though, has come with an added focus on academics. In addition to implementing a mandatory 40-minute study hall for players each day after school, Hoffer recently went in front of the school's faculty to lay out his plan for improving the academic standards for his team -- an impressive move in the eyes of many of the school's instructors.

"There are often ideas that come to the faculty, where you hear them, and you kind of take a 'wait-and-see' approach," says English teacher Stefanie Flowers, who was at the faculty meeting.

"But Coach Hoffer's enthusiasm really is contagious. His ideas are based very much on what we (as teachers) want for our student-athletes."

All of this, of course, does not guarantee immediate success on the field. The team's defense, which Hoffer helped develop into one of the area's best last season, loses all but a handful of players -- including 2006 Sun Defensive Player of the Year Randy Bianchi -- to graduation, while the offense will be forced to replace its quarterback and leading receiver.

This is a process, the coach understands. One that will take time.

But the foundation is being set.

On a recent Tuesday morning, Hoffer sat behind a desk in his classroom, in between classes. He looked tired. Dava had been up with a fever the previous night. The adrenaline of the first week of practice, too, was likely wearing off. It was the first time in the past two months that the grind seemed to be getting to him.

But even then, as the conversation shifted to the process of molding the lives of 100 young men, Hoffer leaned forward in his seat, his eyes jumping to life.

"When I can see that sparkle in their eye, man, and they're smiling because they're having fun -- working hard, but having fun -- then that makes it all worth while."

By Dennis Maffezzoli

MURDOCK -- Long before he became an assistant football coach, David Hoffer dreamed about tonight.

He thought of how he would mold a bunch of young men into a cohesive unit to do battle on a high school gridiron.

That time has come.

An aide since 1998, Port Charlotte High's Hoffer will make his high school head coaching debut at 7:30 p.m. against DeSoto County High at Arcadia.

Just because he's thought about it, don't ask Hoffer to make any predictions.

"I'm not Nostradamus," he said.

When Hoffer became the third Port Charlotte coach in as many years, his toughest task was "reconfiguring behavior."

How's that going?

"Oh, yeah, we're heading in the right direction," he said.

As far as accomplishing his goal, Hoffer said, "No, we haven't got our first win.

"The men we have playing for us want to be successful. We have to teach them how to be successful, because they don't know. They think they know, but they don't."

After losing an FHSAA Kickoff Classic to Naples Golden Gate 41-20 on Aug. 24, the Pirates had a bye for opening week.

Hoffer spent the first week of the season correcting mistakes.

"And we had a lot to correct, too," he said. "And for the most part, we corrected a lot of mistakes. We worked on the things we need to be in position to be successful. Against Golden Gate, we took ourselves out of position a lot."

While Hoffer and his coaching staff attempt to put the Pirates in position to be successful, he knows it will take time.

"We have to take one step at a time to reach our ultimate goal," he said. "We've definitely taken some steps in the right direction. We have a few instances where we've taken a few steps back, but nothing major. We've definitely made them up."

Obstacles will continue to creep up.

"There are some people out there who are pretty negative," said Hoffer, referring to people on and off the Port Charlotte campus.

"They do things and say things to get on people's nerves. They are trying to get our players down and see what they are made of. They'll try to keep them down and make them feel less confident. It's something they have to overcome. It comes with maturity and mental toughness."

Hoffer can't call his players young, but he can refer to them as inexperienced on the varsity level.

"As long as we keep progressing and don't regress," Hoffer said. "We're still learning a lot about the basics of football."

And more.

Football practice during the week doesn't begin until 4 p.m., because the players are in study hall for an hour after school.

"We have to teach them a lot more than X's and O's," Hoffer said.

"That's the thing that's time consuming. But that's why I was hired."

By Dennis Maffezzoli

MURDOCK -- As the Port Charlotte High football team gathered in the south end zone following Friday night's game, senior linebacker Ryan Roby stood up from his knee and shook David Hoffer's hand.

"The first of many more to come," chimed in Pirates offensive coordinator Roger Gruneisen.

With Roby and the rest of the defense making plays, and Gruneisen's play calling, Port Charlotte posted the first win in Hoffer's era with a 29-13 victory over Lehigh in a non-district game Friday night at the Pirates Cove.

"We got better as the night went on," said Hoffer, the longtime assistant who received his first-ever head coaching position this season, replacing Joe Woodruff.

Hoffer's goals:

Play 48 minutes.

Play hard.

Play fundamentally sound.

Have fun.

"There were some checks in there," Hoffer said. "We did some good things."

Junior Joe Bennett, who didn't receive a carry last week in Port Charlotte's opener against DeSoto County, rushed for a career-high 181 yards and scored a touchdown as the Pirates (1-1) jumped out to a 22-7 halftime lead and never looked back.

A fumble recovery and tackle for a loss by Roby in the third quarter prevented Lehigh (0-3) from entertaining comeback thoughts. "We improved from last week," Hoffer said.

Senior Alexander Fisher's recovery of a fumbled punt on the first play of the second quarter gave the Pirates the ball on the Lehigh 20.

Four plays later, senior running back Baily Beckham went over from the 1.

A 75-yard punt return by Ladarrius Adams set up his 10-yard scoring run that tied the game on the Lightning's ensuing possession.

"It took us a while to get adjusted to their team speed," Hoffer said.

With regular Sam Thurston taking over under center, Port Charlotte took the lead for good on Bennett's 10-yard TD run. A 37-yard pass from Thurston to tight end Travis Marz set up the score.

Junior inside linebacker David Raine picked off a pass in the final 2:20 of the first half. Port Charlotte cashed in when Thurston found Mikhail Morgan for a 23-yard score with 27.5 seconds remaining before intermission.

After two penalties, the Pirates went for a 2-point conversion, which Beckham converted.

An interception and 27-yard return by senior defensive back Enrique Cuebas set up Beckham's second touchdown of the game that made it 29-7 midway through the fourth quarter.

"They opened holes up front so our backs could run through," said Hoffer after his team rushed for 234 yards and gained 324 yards of total offense.

"There are still little things we need to work on, but the men played hard."

Beckham followed Bennett's big game with 51 yards on 11 carries.

Playing the final seven series, Thurston completed 4-of-6 for 79 yards. Three went to Morgan for 42. "We just held him out to make sure he was all right," Hoffer said of Thurston. "There's no quarterback controversy."

The Pirates, who fell to DeSoto last week after having a bye during Week 1, forced four turnovers on defense, recovering two fumbles and picking off two passes.

In its first meeting against Lehigh, Port Charlotte held the Lightning to 297 yards, 138 during the first half.

"We improved," Hoffer said. "I'll have to look at the film to see how much we improved."

Port Charlotte will begin play in Class 5A-District 11 at 7 p.m. on Friday against Manatee.

Port Charlotte leads 27-0 at halftime, cruises to win

By CURTIS WILLIAMS CORRESPONDENT

MURDOCK -- Lemon Bay High and Port Charlotte High have played some close football games the past few years, with five of the past nine games decided by fewer than seven points.

But that was not the case Friday night at Pirates' Cove.

The Pirates used a balanced offense and a stingy defense while coasting to a 34-0 victory over the Manta Rays.

Port Charlotte rolled up 20 first downs and 359 yards of total offense, while holding Lemon Bay to eight first downs and 101 yards of offense.

"I thought we came out and played very hard in the first half," Port Charlotte coach David Hoffer said.

"We wanted to get first downs whether it was running or passing the football. Turnovers went our way and that gave us momentum. They (Lemon Bay) didn't run as much of their wing-T offense we're used to seeing until the second half. We've still got a lot of work to do, but I saw some positive things."

Port Charlotte (2-2) took a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter. Junior quarterback Sam Thurston completed a 48-yard pass to junior wide receiver Patrick Paul setting up junior tailback Joe Bennett's 1-yard touchdown run.

Things would only get worse for Lemon Bay. The Mantas fumbled the kickoff and Port Charlotte's offense was right back on the field. It took the Pirates just one play to score as senior Baily Beckham took a handoff from Thurston and raced into the endzone from 18 yards out. That gave Port Charlotte a 14-0 lead with 11:52 to play in the second quarter.

The Pirates increased their lead to 20-0 on a pair of field goals (37 and 24 yards) by junior Sam Costa. Bennett's second touchdown of the night, a 9-yard run, gave Port Charlotte a commanding 27-0 lead with less than a minute to play in the half.

Lemon Bay (1-3) had a tough time moving the football in the first half. The Manta Rays did not get past the 50-yard line while managing just one first down and minus-8 yards total offense.

After a scoreless third quarter, the Pirates scored the final points when Thurston hooked up with junior Mikhail Morgan on a 32-yard strike.

"We held them (Port Charlotte) to just one touchdown in the second half but we couldn't get in the end zone," Lemon Bay coach Mike Messina said.

"We have to execute better, I don't know how many dropped passes we had. It's all about execution."

Bennett led the way for Port Charlotte rushing for 93 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries. Thurston completed 7-of-16 passes for 129 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions. Morgan had four receptions for 54 yards while Paul caught two passes for 63 yards.

Blume paced the Manta Rays with 52 yards rushing on 15 carries. Josh Freeman completed 6-of-20 passes for 58 yards and three interceptions.

They battle Pirates tonight while the Bulldogs take on the Wildcats

By DENNIS MAFFEZZOLI

Port Charlotte's David Hoffer leads his team against his biggest rival tonight as head coach.

Hoffer's Pirates travel across the Gilchrist Bridge to Punta Gorda for the annual meeting with Charlotte.

Hoffer has been part of the Port Charlotte-Charlotte game as a player, too. He was an outside linebacker for the Pirates in the 1987 game, a 23-6 Tarpons' victory in Murdock.

What he remembers was seeing his teammates cry in the locker room afterward.

If that was the case in all the meetings, there would have been plenty of tears shed by Port Charlotte.

Charlotte has won 23 of 24 meetings, the lone exception in 1990.

"People are going to make a big deal about it," Hoffer said. "I guess they consider it a rivalry because of the close proximity of the schools, but Port Charlotte has only won once. That's not a rivalry to me, that's more like a feud."

"We've got a lot of things to accomplish before we say it's a rivalry. I'd rather have a rivalry where the wins go back and forth."

The teams will be playing for pride, since both are eliminated from postseason action.

"It's another game for us right now," Hoffer said. "It's just another opponent to us. If we look at it any different, as if we have to up our level of play, then we haven't been doing what we've needed to be doing all season long."

An assistant under Ray Hixson and Joe Woodruff since 1998, Hoffer has heard the rumblings that the Pirates can finish 1-9, as long as that one win comes against the Tarpons.

"I don't believe that," Hoffer said. "If we do the things we're supposed to do, we wouldn't have a 1-9 season."

"Charlotte is a good football team. They are well-coached and have good athletes, but they are not the best team on our schedule. Manatee, Venice, and Lakewood Ranch are the better teams on our schedule right now."

By DUGAN ARNETT

PUNTA GORDA -- Let history reflect that at 10:06 p.m. on the second day of November, in the year 2007, 16 years of heartbreak was put to rest.

Let it reflect that, on a cool Friday evening, 60 young men wearing black and red did the improbable.

See, every fall since 1990, the Port Charlotte football team would take the field against their blue and gold-clad rivals from Charlotte High School. And every fall for sixteen years, Charlotte would find a way to win. It was kind of a tradition. Charlotte's annual sure-thing.

But on Friday night, in a sparkling new stadium in Punta Gorda, something happened. The Pirates played inspired. Things clicked. The defense decided to do its best Chicago Bears impression. The offense -- behind first-year offensive coordinator Roger Gruneisen -- just wouldn't stop scoring, and the special teams unit had about as big an impact as you could ever hope for.

And when the dust had settled, when the clock struck zero and the scoreboard blinked 28-19 in favor of the visitor, there was really no way to describe the feeling on the Port Charlotte sideline but pure, unadulterated elation.

Here is what it looked like: It looked like first-year Port Charlotte head coach Dave Hoffer, soaking wet from a celebratory Gatorade dousing, leading the Pirates student section in a raucous cheer. It looked like Port Charlotte athletic director James Vernon, who looked not unlike a deer caught squarely in the headlights on the sideline as time expired, unable to fully fathom what, exactly, had just transpired.

It looked like seniors A.J. Fisher and Jon Murray and Baily Beckham, unsure they'd ever have the opportunity to knock off Charlotte's evil empire during their high school playing careers, trading so many hugs and handshakes and smiles that you'd have sworn they'd just won Vince Lombardi's trophy.

"I'm speechless," said Fisher. And he was.

"The best feeling in the world," is how Murray put it.

"I can honestly say," said Beckham, "that this is my proudest moment as a Pirate."

It wasn't easy. It took a lot of sweat and a little luck, but by the third quarter, the Pirates were holding an improbable 28-19 third-quarter lead.

But this, of course, is Charlotte-Port Charlotte, and if the Pirates' faithful have learned anything in the past 16 years of headache and heartbreak, it's that no lead can be trusted.

So when, exactly, did the Pirates know they could exhale?

"Double zero," said defensive lineman Jarret Debus. "That's when we felt comfortable."

On Thursday evening, Hoffer talked about the Charlotte game and, in standard coach-speak, insisted this game was no bigger or more important than any other on the Pirates' roster. That the rivalry talk was good for the fans and the atmosphere, but that a true rivalry didn't tend to be as one-sided as 24-1 (the combined series record before the Pirates' victory Friday).

"I don't see how it can be called a rivalry when we've won one game," he said. "A rivarly, to me, is when you go back and forth, back and forth; that's a rivalry."

But on Friday night? In the hazy, breathtaking moments following what might have been the biggest victory -- of any kind -- in the school's past 16 years of existence?

"I guess," said Hoffer, a smile tugging at his lips, "you can consider it a rivalry now."

Port Charlotte recovers three fumbles and converts all into touchdowns

By Dennis Maffezzoli

PUNTA GORDA -- No miracles or late-game heroics needed this time.

The Port Charlotte High football team did it with hard work and mistake-free football.

For only the second time since 1982, the Pirates defeated the Tarpons. Unlike the previous win in 1990, when Port Charlotte (3-6, 1-4 in 5A- 11) needed a late pass, the Pirates took advantage of Charlotte mistakes and stuck to their game plan to take a 28-19 victory Friday in a Class 5A-District 11 contest at Tarpon Stadium.

First-year coach David Hoffer reeled off a list of items in Port Charlotte's game plan: believe in yourself, your teammates and coaches, play with confidence and good sportsmanship, never quit and have fun.

The postgame celebration was as long as the list.

Hoffer had his Pirates parade in front of the throng of Port Charlotte fans that packed the visitors' stands and rarely sat down.

That's when the Pirates assumed control. Down 13-7 at the half and kicking to Charlotte (4-5; 1-4 in 5A-11) to begin the third quarter, Port Charlotte recovered three fumbles and converted all into touchdowns.

Then, the Pirates turned it over to the defense in the fourth quarter, a unit that sacked Charlotte quarterback Kyle Midgett three times and recorded three other tackles for a loss.

"This proves we're on the right path," Hoffer said after high-fiving fans and getting a huge hug from his wife.

Junior inside linebacker Jeremy Brown, who had a big second half, got the Pirates going with a fumble recovery on the second play of the second half at the Charlotte 23-yard line.

Six plays later, senior Baily Beckham went over from 1 yard out. Sam Costa's PAT kick gave the Pirates a 14-13 lead it wouldn't relinquish.

In fact, Port Charlotte added to the lead after junior linebacker David Raine recovered a fumble on the Tarpons' third play of the next series. This time, junior quarterback Sam Thurston cashed in from 6 yards out, putting the Pirates up 21-13.

Mike Bellamy, who accounted for much of Charlotte's offense, broke free for his second touchdown of the game, a 35-yard burst after it appeared he was stopped for a short gain. The Tarpons try for a two-point conversion failed, leaving them two points shy of tying.

After forcing Port Charlotte to punt, junior linebacker Richard Morgan scooped up a loose ball on a punt. Two plays later, Thurston connected with junior wide receiver Patrick Paul for the second time, this one from 20-yard out to make it 28-19.

Brown and the defense took over from there. Brown recorded two sacks and junior linebacker Jerrett Patterson had the other, as the Pirates put the finishing touches on their second victory in 26 games in the series.