With its most versatile player, T.Y. Hilton, returning punts for touchdowns at FIU, Miami Springs football coach Alex Pacheco is looking for leaders among his young team.

Junior wide receiver Willis Wright is at the top of his list.

Wright (6-1, 195 pounds) caught two touchdown passes in the first half to help Miami Springs open its season with a 28-13 victory against Varela on Wednesday night at Ted Hendricks Stadium.

The game officially opened the high school football season in Miami-Dade County.

Wright led the Golden Hawks (1-0), ranked No. 17 in The Miami Herald's South Florida Top 20 poll, with three catches for 79 yards.

''Willis is a playmaker without a doubt,'' Pacheco said. 'There's a reason we call him the `man-child' on this team.''

Hilton, a freshman at FIU, led Miami Springs to an 8-2 record last year. But the Golden Hawks missed the playoffs after finishing third in District 14-6A.

After dropping a 21-6 decision last week in a preseason classic against Palmetto, Pacheco said his team needed someone to pick up its performance.

On Wednesday night, Miami Springs again appeared sluggish at first as Varela (0-1) forced two mistakes deep in Springs territory.

Varela's Giordano Cardoso sacked Miami Springs sophomore Rakheem Cato in the end zone for a safety. On the ensuing drive, Cato threw an interception off a deflection to Kevin Ibarra that led to a field goal and a 5-0 Varela lead.

But once the Golden Hawks regained their composure, they put the game away.

Cato, who completed 13 of 23 passes for 222 yards, found Wright in the back of the end zone for a 31-yard touchdown to give Miami Springs the lead. Early in the second quarter, Wright hauled in another deep pass for a 33-yard touchdown.

On both plays, Wright used his size and speed advantage to surge past Vipers defenders and score.

Miami Springs took a 28-5 lead into the second half, but numerous penalties prevented it from increasing the lead. Pacheco said the Golden Hawks' inexperience was a factor. Miami Springs returns only one starter on its offensive line -- junior left tackle Ramon Hernandez. To contend with Columbus for a district title, Pacheco knows his team needs to mature quickly on offense and defense.

The Golden Hawks have not made the playoffs since 1995.

''We're young and it shows because we're not very consistent,'' Pacheco said. ``On all sides of the ball, we need to improve. I think that was obvious by the way we played at the start of each half.

``But I honestly believe we have the speed and the playmakers to contend with the great teams in this district.''

Join the discussion

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. In order to post comments, you must be a registered user of MiamiHerald.com. Your username will show along with the comments you post. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

     Showing: Oldest first Newest first Most-recommended first Least-recommended first

@Nyx.AuthorDisplayName@ wrote on @Nyx.PostedAtTime@:

@Nyx.repliedToText@

@Nyx.replyAnswerText@

Reply to this Comment @Nyx.Recommender@ @Nyx.AbuseReporter@