American Heritage shows signs of its potential in rout of Western

To navigate through a brutally difficult schedule, American Heritage is focusing on staying in the moment while getting incrementally better.

On Friday night, the Patriots took a giant leap forward, making a statement with a dominating 51-12 thumping of Western.

Heritage (1-1) showed what it’s capable of, which is scoring seemingly at will.

Dia Bell (Texas recruit) threw five touchdown passes. Miami Hurricanes ’26 recruit, Malachi Toney, snared two touchdown passes. And on the ground, 4-star Byron Louis added two rushing touchdowns.

How good can the Patriots offense be?

“It can be great,” Toney said. “Ya’ll ain’t seen nothing yet.”

For Heritage, there’s no looking ahead, because there are no breathers, especially in the first few weeks.

Last week, in the Broward County National Football Showcase, Heritage had an early lead slip away, and lost, 37-28, to nationally-ranked Milton (Georgia).

To regroup, coach Mike Smith and staff were able to get the players refocused for a rivalry game.

“Just staying focused on the little things,” Toney said of the message. “And start gelling together. [Play] more as a team instead of being independent.”

Heritage (1-1) had to be ready against rival Western (0-2), a serious state contender in Class 7A.

The Wildcats entered Friday also looking to regroup after falling 17-14 to Hoover (Alabama). It didn’t materialize, as the Wildcats weren’t able to stop Heritage’s touted skill players.

From the opening drive, Heritage unleashed its big play capabilities.

“That just was the game plan,” Toney said. “We just executed.”

Bell’s first play from scrimmage was a 50-yard completion to Coi Jean-Noel.

The drive was capped by Louis’ 5-yard touchdown run, and the Patriots never looked back.

In the first half, the Patriots scored touchdowns on all five of their possessions.

Considering how the game against Milton turned out, Heritage was looking to assert itself offensively early. And Bell showed why he’s one of the top quarterbacks in the country.

“It’s huge,” Smith said. “Especially after last week. We had to get back in rhythm. Listen, we lost to a good football team last week. That’s a team that’s probably going to go undefeated this year. I know we have a good football team as well. We just have to get back in rhythm. The guys did an excellent job preparing this week. I’ve got the best coaching staff in the country. They did an unbelievable job refocusing these kids, and getting back to work.”

The second drive was more of the same for Heritage. Bell found Toney for a 40-yard touchdown. And a 41-yard scoring strike to Denson made it 21-0 in the first quarter.

Western got on the board on Sebastian Circo’s 4-yard touchdown pass to Calerbe Hermane. But the conversion failed, making it 21-6.

In the second quarter, Louis added a 6-yard TD run. With 14 seconds left in the second quarter, Isaiah Calixte scored on a 1-yard run, and Heritage went into halftime ahead, 35-6.

Western came out in the second half, and drove the length of the field for its final touchdown, which came on Circo’s 23-yard touchdown run.

Heritage answered again with big plays, and Jean-Noel’s 16-yard TD reception from Bell made it 41-12. Bell and Toney hooked up with a 5-yard scoring pass, and much of the second half wound down due to a running clock run.

After polishing off Western, the schedule gets tougher next week, with a road game at Chaminade-Madonna. The Lions are surprisingly 0-2 after falling, 35-24, in overtime to Blanche Ely.

With Heritage holding a comfortable lead at halftime, Louis was able to rest the second half. Still, the senior embraces playing top-flight competition.

“With me being a top recruit, I know that at the next level, every game is going to be a dog fight,” Louis said. “I just take it one day at a time. I come out here, and I beast the weight room. I beast in practice and I just try to put on my best effort, every time I’m out here. What you all see on Friday night is everything I’ve been hounding, and I’ve been working on for the last three or four years.”

This story was originally published August 31, 2024 at 8:04 AM.